FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations
SOMERS, Wis. (Sept. 19, 2013)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside volleyball team gears up for Great Lakes Valley Conference play, opening up its league schedule this weekend inside the friendly confines of DeSimone Gymnasium. The Rangers host Quincy University on Saturday before facing league newcomer Truman State University on Sunday.
The Rangers take on Quincy at 5 p.m. on Saturday before closing out the seven-match homestand on Sunday with a 1 p.m. showdown with 14th-ranked Truman State.
About the Rangers: UW-Parkside (6-3) dives into conference play having won four of its last five matches, including a 3-2 victory over Northern Michigan University on Tuesday. The Rangers lone defeat during that stretch was a 3-0 loss to then-second ranked University of Minnesota-Duluth on Sept. 14 during the UW-Parkside Tournament.
Against the Wildcats on Tuesday, the Rangers dropped the opening set but rose to the occasion when it mattered most, winning a decisive set five 19-17 to take the match 3-2 (20-25, 25-16, 25-22, 19-25, 29-17).
Rebecca Roembke finished with 12 kills and four aces while Lauren Hickson dished out 28 assists along with 15 digs. Sarah Mlachnik posted a team-high 24 digs while Meghan Conley was a force at the net with nine blocks (two solo, seven assists).
About the Hawks: Quincy comes to Wisconsin sporting a 4-4 record after splitting four matches at the Superior Oasis Wildcat Open last weekend. QU defeated Michigan Tech University 3-1 before falling 3-2 to Bemidji State University on Sept. 13. The Hawks concluded the tournament with a 3-1 loss to host Northern Michigan and a 3-1 victory over University of Minnesota-Crookston.
The Rangers and Hawks have met just once in Christine Paciero's tenure as head coach. UW-Parkside was a 3-0 winner in that contest on Oct. 8, 2011 in Somers, Wis.
About the Bulldogs: No. 14 Truman State enters the weekend with a 5-3 record with all three losses coming at the hands of ranked opponents. The Bulldogs dropped the season opener 3-0 to then No. 6 Southwest Minnesota State University before rattling off three straight wins to finish the Grand Rapids Classic.
Last weekend at the Colorado Premier Challenge, TSU downed Florida Southern College and No. 21 Regis University by 3-2 scores and fell 3-0 to defending national champion Concordia University Saint Paul and No. 3 University of Nebraska-Kearney.
DeSimone Advantage: Over the past four seasons, UW-Parkside has compiled a record of 28-8 in home games at DeSimone Gymnasium.
100-Club: Head Coach Christine Paciero notched her 100th career win in the season opener against Anderson University on Sept. 6. Paciero, now in her third season at UW-Parkside, owns a career mark of 105-67 and a 42-29 record with the Rangers. Paciero compiled a 63-38 record in three seasons at Dominican University (2008-2010) before taking over the reins at UW-P.
Flooding the Record Book: Cayla Flood entered the record books as the program's all-time leader in service aces with four against Wayne State University on Sept. 13, surpassing Kari Good's mark of 113. Flood currently has 117 aces in her three seasons with the Rangers.
Preseason Prognostications: UW-Parkside was selected to finish third in the GLVC East Division by the league's 16 head coaches in the annual preseason poll. The University of Indianapolis was the preseason favorite in the East followed by Lewis University. Truman State was picked to win the West Division with 2012 GLVC Champion Rockhurst University selected to place second.
