Kent State volleyball team embarks on another weekend road trip
Sophomore setter Jenny Buczek falls to the court attempting to return the ball during a 3-0 loss to Akron October 6 at the M.A.C. Center. The Kent State volleyball team has lost 8 of its last 10 matches. Photo by SHANE FLANIGAN.
The Kent State Flashes volleyball team will continue its Mid-American Conference play with two matches this weekend. The Flashes will start this week’s play 7 p.m. Friday against the Ball State Cardinals. Saturday, the Flashes will stay on the road to take on the Toledo Rockets at 5 p.m.
“Any win in the MAC is a good win, at home or on the road,” first-year head coach Don Gromala said. “The big thing about this weekend is that both Ball State and Toledo are looking to find that victory that starts to build some momentum for the season just like us. Every point will be a big point and we need to come out strong in each match.”
The Flashes will head into Friday night’s match against the Cardinals with an overall record of 5-13 and a conference record of 2-4. Last week, the Flashes went 1-1 in conference play with two home matches against Buffalo and Akron.
The Flashes came out winners in their first game of the week against Buffalo in a four-set contest. Kent State wrapped up conference play last week with a rivalry game against Akron, and Flashes suffered a defeat to the Zips in three sets.
The Ball State Cardinals will head into tonight’s showdown with an overall record of 9-10 and a MAC record of 2-4. The previous week, the Cardinals had two MAC games against Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan.
Ball State dropped both matches. Last year, Ball State and Kent State faced each other once, and the Cardinals won the match in three sets.
“They’re one of the bigger and more physical teams in the conference,” Gromala said. “We will have to make smart setting choices to get one [on] one hitting opportunities. We also have to get a lot of touches with our block to come out on the winning end.”
The Flashes second MAC opponent of the week is the Toledo Rockets. Toledo will come into this week’s play with a 7-11 overall record and a 1-5 record in conference play.
Before Saturday’s match against the Flashes, the Rockets will have a Friday night match-up against the Ohio Bobcats. Last season, Toledo and Kent State squared up against each other one time and the Rockets came out on top with a three set victory.
Contact Drew Jones at [email protected].