Friday, September 22
Kent, Ohio
6 p.m.
at
Kent State
Photo by: Paul Hokanson/UBBulls.com
Bulls Open MAC Play at Kent State
9/21/2023 11:26:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
BUFFALO, N.Y. – The University at Buffalo women's volleyball team (10-2, 0-0 MAC) will travel to Kent, Ohio to face the Kent State Golden Flashes (4-7, 0-0 MAC) for the first weekend of MAC play.
The Bulls will open the conference portion of their schedule against the Kent State Golden Flashes. This will mark the fifth time the Bulls will open MAC play against the Golden Flashes. Kent State, however, is 4-0 in MAC openers against the Bulls. The last time the Bulls and Golden Flashes opened conference play was in 2016.
Last season, the Bulls swept the Golden Flashes for just the third time in program history. UB won both matches in straight sets. The two previous times came during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Overall, the Golden Flashes hold a 36-17 (.321) record against UB. In just MAC play, Kent leads 33-16 (.327). Head Coach Scott Smith is 4-4 (.500) against Kent State during his tenure at Buffalo.
The Bulls are coming off a solid weekend in Queens where the Bulls finished second of five teams at the Red Storm Invitational. Maria Futey and Courtney Okwara earned All-Tournament honors as the Bulls finished 2-1 with their lone loss coming against No. 16 Arkansas. UB defeated the Columbia Lions in straight sets then dropped the hammer on host St. John's to close out the tournament.
Okwara's performance at St. John's led to her earning her first MAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. She had a team-high hitting percentage of .484 on her way to finish with 17 kills. The well-balanced offensive attack by UB led to four players to have at least 22.0 points. Okwara finished with nine total blocks and 22.0 points. This marks Okwara's first weekly honor in her career. The Bulls have won a player of the week honor in three straight weeks.
On the season, the Bulls are 7-1 when two players have 10 or more kills in a match. The only loss came on the road at Xavier in five sets. There have been 12 double-doubles on the year by the Bulls. Mandy Leigh leads the team with seven, followed by Manoela Forlin (2), Katrin Trebichavska (2), and Maurine Calande (1).
The Bulls have the top-two hitters in the Mid-American Conference with Abby Leigh and Courtney Okwara. A. Leigh is 34th in the nation and second in the MAC with a hitting percentage of .414. Okwara checks in as the MAC leader in hitting percentage at .514. 2023 two-time MAC East Setter of the Week Mandy Leigh is 107th in the NCAA (second in the MAC) averaging 9.21 assists per set. Katrin Trebichavska has 29 service aces on the season, good for fourth in the country and second in the MAC. Her 0.72 aces per set is third in the NCAA and leads all MAC players. As a team, they're one of the best offenses and defenses in the country. The Bulls have a .271 hitting percentage, which is 34th in the country. They limit their opposition to just a .165 hitting percentage, good for 50th in the country. Both marks are first in the MAC.
The Bulls will open the conference portion of their schedule against the Kent State Golden Flashes. This will mark the fifth time the Bulls will open MAC play against the Golden Flashes. Kent State, however, is 4-0 in MAC openers against the Bulls. The last time the Bulls and Golden Flashes opened conference play was in 2016.
Last season, the Bulls swept the Golden Flashes for just the third time in program history. UB won both matches in straight sets. The two previous times came during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Overall, the Golden Flashes hold a 36-17 (.321) record against UB. In just MAC play, Kent leads 33-16 (.327). Head Coach Scott Smith is 4-4 (.500) against Kent State during his tenure at Buffalo.
The Bulls are coming off a solid weekend in Queens where the Bulls finished second of five teams at the Red Storm Invitational. Maria Futey and Courtney Okwara earned All-Tournament honors as the Bulls finished 2-1 with their lone loss coming against No. 16 Arkansas. UB defeated the Columbia Lions in straight sets then dropped the hammer on host St. John's to close out the tournament.
Okwara's performance at St. John's led to her earning her first MAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. She had a team-high hitting percentage of .484 on her way to finish with 17 kills. The well-balanced offensive attack by UB led to four players to have at least 22.0 points. Okwara finished with nine total blocks and 22.0 points. This marks Okwara's first weekly honor in her career. The Bulls have won a player of the week honor in three straight weeks.
On the season, the Bulls are 7-1 when two players have 10 or more kills in a match. The only loss came on the road at Xavier in five sets. There have been 12 double-doubles on the year by the Bulls. Mandy Leigh leads the team with seven, followed by Manoela Forlin (2), Katrin Trebichavska (2), and Maurine Calande (1).
The Bulls have the top-two hitters in the Mid-American Conference with Abby Leigh and Courtney Okwara. A. Leigh is 34th in the nation and second in the MAC with a hitting percentage of .414. Okwara checks in as the MAC leader in hitting percentage at .514. 2023 two-time MAC East Setter of the Week Mandy Leigh is 107th in the NCAA (second in the MAC) averaging 9.21 assists per set. Katrin Trebichavska has 29 service aces on the season, good for fourth in the country and second in the MAC. Her 0.72 aces per set is third in the NCAA and leads all MAC players. As a team, they're one of the best offenses and defenses in the country. The Bulls have a .271 hitting percentage, which is 34th in the country. They limit their opposition to just a .165 hitting percentage, good for 50th in the country. Both marks are first in the MAC.
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's VolleyballBuffalo Classic Day 3
Monday, September 08
Buffalo Classic Day 2
Monday, September 08
Buffalo Classic Day 1
Monday, September 08
Buffalo Invite 2025 - Women's Volleyball (Day 3)
Monday, August 11
