Bronchos Finish Regular Season On The Road

No. 18-ranked Central Oklahoma wraps up the regular season schedule this week with a pair of Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association road matches.

The Bronchos, 23-5 overall and 13-5 in the league, go to Wichita, Kan. Tuesday to face Newman (8-20, 3-15) before moving on to Maryville, Mo. Wednesday to take on No. 12 Northwest Missouri (21-5, 15-3). Match-time both days is 6 p.m.

NWMSU has taken over the conference lead headed the final week of the regular season. Nebraska-Kearney (14-4) is second, followed by Central Missouri (13-4), UCO and Washburn (12-6).

"We need to finish strong to have some momentum for the conference tournament," head coach Edgar Miraku said. "Going on the road is always a challenge in this league, so we know we have our work cut out for us."

The MIAA Volleyball Championship is set for Nov. 10-12 in St. Joseph, Mo. Eight teams qualify, with the winner earning the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Division II national tournament.

ABOUT THE BRONCHOS: UCO went 1-1 in its final homestand last week, falling to UCM in four sets on Thursday before rebounding to sweep Missouri Western the next night.

Three players have 250-plus kills for the Bronchos – Sydney Huck (405), Mallorie Koehn (296) and Jenna Karp (252).

Huck leads the MIAA in kills per set (4.52), having knocked down 15-plus kills in 16 matches this season. The hard-hitting freshman has added 303 digs on the season.

Koehn's 3.02 kills per set ranks eighth in the conference. The sophomore also leads UCO in service aces with 34.

Karp has a team-high 80 blocks and is fifth in the league in hitting percentage at .328. The sophomore has been on fire lately, having hit .378 in the last 10 matches with 101 kills and just 20 errors in 214 attempts.

Lari Migliorino is hitting a team-best .337, which ranks fourth in the MIAA. The freshman has 148 kills on the season along with 24 aces.

Lindsey Houran is enjoying a fantastic season as UCO's setter, having handed out 1,255 assists for a 11.84 per-set average that leads the league. The rookie also has 273 digs, 88 kills, 26 aces and 25 blocks.

Jaedynn Evans continues to be Central's defensive ringleader. The sophomore standout has moved into fifth place on the school's single-season digs list with 698, a 6.58 per-set average that tops the conference.

ABOUT THE JETS: Newman has lost its last three matches and will miss the MIAA tournament.

The Jets are led by Riley Daugherty, who has 331 kills, 363 digs, 45 blocks and 21 aces on the season. Ozioma Ajekwu has added 254 kills and 114 blocks, while Abby Borough has 232 kills with 89 blocks.

UCO swept Newman in this year's first meeting back on Oct. 4 in Edmond. The Bronchos own a commanding 12-1 lead in the series and have won the last 10 meetings.

ABOUT THE BEARCATS: Northwest Missouri has won nine straight in taking over the league lead, including a four-set win over Nebraska-Kearney in its last outing.

The Bearcats have three players with 200-plus kills – Jaden Ferguson (279), Payton Kirchhoefer (275) and Avery Kemp (212). Alyssa Rezac is second in the MIAA in aces (0.41/set) and third in assists (10.85/set).

UCO swept the then-No. 10-rated Bearcats on Oct. 7 in Edmond and has a 17-4 lead in the series.

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