By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After winning its first six matches of the 2024 season, including four sweeps, Washburn University volleyball suffered a tough five-set loss to Texas A&M-Kingsville last Saturday in its final match of the Mountaineer Volleyball Classic at Gunnison, Colo.
Junior setter Corinna McMullen leads the 6-1 Ichabods in assists with 148 entering this weekend's PSU Regional Challenge. [Photo courtesy of Washburn Athletics]
But junior setter Corinna McMullen said the key now is to make sure that Saturday's defeat is nothing more than a temporary bump in the road as the 6-1 Ichabods get set for their final three tuneups this weekend before opening MIAA play.
"I'm upset about the loss, but at the same time I'm not happy it happened but sometimes it is essential for us to have it happen in order to grow,'' McMullen said.
And McMullen said that despite Saturday's loss the Ichabods are proud of their start to 2024.
"The team's been really excited about it,'' said McMullen, a former Louisburg standout. "We've grown a lot in these matches and I think even though we did lose, and we definitely should have won, sometimes you have to lose those matches, especially early in the season, to grow from them and learn where we have to grow from them.
"We learned that we have to show up in the big moments and our next goal for these next couple of matches is to win in these big moments and to want to be that player that is going to put the ball away or is going to make the good pass or make the good set.''
Washburn heads to Pittsburg this weekend for three matches at the PSU Regional Challenge in John Lance Arena, beginning with two matches on Friday before wrapping up non-conference play with a match on Saturday.
The Ichabods will take on Missouri S&T at 9 a.m. on Friday before facing Harding later in the day at 2 p.m. Washburn will wrap up the tournament on Saturday morning with a 9 a.m. match against Henderson State.
The 2024 PSU Regional Challenge will be made up of seven teams -- three from the MIAA and two from the GLVC and the GAC.
Joining the Ichabods from the MIAA are Emporia State and host Pittsburg State while Henderson State and Harding will represent the GAC and Illinois-Springfield and Missouri S&T will represent the GLVC.
The Ichabods went 3-1 last weekend, sweeping Western Colorado and Fort Lewis and adding a 3-1 decision over Western New Mexico before finishing the tournament with the 3-2 loss to Texas A&M-Kingsville.
Senior Jalyn Stevenson is the team leader with 76 kills (2.92 per set) while hititng .264 across WU's seven matches. She also leads the Ichabods with eight service aces and is second in digs, picking up 88. She is 16th in the MIAA in both total digs and kills per set. She has double-digit kills in four matches this season with three double-doubles.
Stevenson ranks 23rd in program history with 1,067 career kills and needs 81 more to crack the top 20. She is also 15th on the program charts in aces with 109. With four more aces she will move into 14th place.
Junior Alex Dvorak is second on the team in both kills with 63 and in hitting percentage with a .450 mark. She has started all seven matches and leads the team with 37 total blocks. Dvorak is 16th in the nation and secnd in the MIAA in hitting percentage and is 14th in the nation and first among MIAA players in blocks per set with 1.42. She has hit at least .333 in all seven matches.
McMullen paces Washburn with 148 assists (5.92 per set) through seven matches and is also third on the team with 68 digs while adding five service aces. McMullen is 12th in the MIAA in both assists and assists per set and has three double-doubles on the year and four matches with at least 20 assists.
McMullen ranks 13th in program history in total assists with 1,578. She needs 32 more to move up one spot to 12th. She also ranks 25th on the program charts with 87 service aces.
Sophomore Taylor Rottinghaus, a Shawnee Heights product, has a team-high 109 digs across seven matches and has chipped in 28 assists and served five aces. Rottinghaus is seventh in the MIAA in digs per set while ranking ninth among conference players in total digs.
Bella Limback leads the Ichabod offense in hitting percentage with a .490 mark and has tallied 56 kills and is second on the team with 23 blocks. The junior's hitting percentage is 12th highest in the nation and second in the MIAA. She is also top-15 in the conference in total blocks and blocks per set.
Seaman graduate Maddie Steiner is second on the team with six service aces while playing and starting in all seven matches. The senior has made 27 digs from the back row.
Friday morning's WU opponent, Missouri S&T, enters the weekend with a 2-5 record, having lost four matches in a row.
Alina Carrillo leads the Miners with 100 kills while hitting .225 across seven matches with six starts. She is second on the team wiht 79 digs (2.93 per set) and has made 16 total blocks this season.
Harding is 5-4 on the year entering Friday afternoon's match against Washburn, moving back above .500 with a 3-0 win over Central Baptist on Tuesday evening.
Skyler McKinnon leads Harding with 110 kills through nine matches with seven starts. She is hitting .240 while adding 43 digs and five blocks.
Henderson State is 7-3 on the year after falling 3-0 to Arkansas Tech on Sept. 17 in its GAC Conference opener.
Three players for Henderson State have at least 80 kills on the season, with Christiane Uzoh leading the balanced attack with 88 kills while hitting .202. She has started all 10 matches and is second on the team with 29 blocks.
"This is a big weekend and I think we are preparing well for it,'' McMullen said.
Washburn will begin conference play next weekend with a trip to Missouri to face Northwest Missouri State at 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27. The Ichabods will finish out the weekend at Missouri Western the next day at 6 p.m.
Coming off a 17-11 season last fall McMullen said she feels very good about the way the Ichabods are meshing together as a team entering the meat of their schedule.
"Our personalities are meshing so much better and we're such a close group as a team this year,'' McMullen said. "Everyone's willing to work harder, everyone wants to get out on the floor and if you're not out on that floor everyone behind you has such a big support system that you feel so comfortable and so wanted.
"The biggest difference this year is just that it's so competitive and that's what's making us better every day in practice.''
