Welcome to tonight's MIAA volleyball match between the Hope College Flying Dutch and the Saint Mary's Belles. The Flying Dutch come in ranked seventh in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association NCAA Division III poll.
Today is Youth Day for Hope College volleyball. After the match, there will be a free team poster giveaway and post-match autographs on the court. A special thanks for Schreur Printing for its support of Hope Athletics and the free team poster giveaway.
MIAA Standings | MIAA Statistics | PDF version of game program
Hope enters with records of 11-1 overall and 4-0 in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletics Association matches. The Flying Dutch are tied for first place with top-ranked Calvin. Saint Mary's (5-6 overall) is in fourth place in the MIAA with a 2-2 league record.
The Flying Dutch are coming off a 25-14, 25-22, 25-20 win at Trine on Tuesday. Katie Rietberg's 10 kills and Sophia Hackett's 29 assists led the Flying Dutch. Saint Mary's beat visiting Alma 25-22, 25-13, 25-13 behind 12 kills from Meaghan Gibbons.
Katie Rietberg ranks second in the MIAA at 3.48 kills per set, while Alexis Thompson is second at 5.02 digs per set. Sophia Hackett is second at 9.98 assists per set and fourth at 0.48 service aces per set.
Meaghan Gibbons sits third in the MIAA at 3.21 kills per set. Teammate Kaylin Szucs is fourth at 4.49 digs per set.
Tonight is the 39th match all-time between the Flying Dutch and Belles. Hope leads the all-time series 37-1, including wins of 3-0 and 3-1 last season.
Hope's next match is Saturday, Sept. 24 at 4 p.m. vs. Adrian at DeVos Fieldhouse. The Flying Dutch follow that with home matches against Calvin on Wednesday, Sept. 28 at 6:30 p.m. and Kalamazoo on Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m.
Fans, you can participate in our weekly Buffalo Wild Wings Brain Buster Trivia at every Saturday home event this school year. Look for the trivia question on Hope Athletics' Twitter account at kickoff and tweet your guess for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to Buffalo Wild Wings. All guesses must tag Hope Athletics and include the hashtag BWW Brain Buster.
Order your Hope College volleyball and athletics gear online through our Sideline Store. Customize items with whatever Flying Dutchmen or Flying Dutch team you want. Visit hope.edu/sideline story to find your gear.
Download the new Hope Athletics Front Row app. Just search Hope Athletics on either the App Store or Google play. Fans can sign up for breaking news, scores and alerts of any Hope team they would like. Learn more at athletics.hope.edu/frontrow.
Need something to eat or drink at today's game? Check out Hope College Concessions on lobby for food, snacks, pop and water. Credit and debit cards are accepted.
