The Braves finished last weekend with a record of 1-3 at the Hampton Inn Classic hosted by Columbia College and Central Methodist University. Ottawa was defeated 3-1 by no. 12 Eastern Oregon, 3-2 by John Brown, and 3-1 by no. 14 Central Methodist. The Braves defeated no. 21 Grand View, 3-1.
Ottawa swept the weekly KCAC awards this past week.
Radaisy Valdez was named KCAC Attacker of the Week,
Kaitlyn Haller earned KCAC Setter of the Week honors, and
Jadore Hayes was named KCAC Defender of the Week.
The Braves are averaging 10.9 kills per set, 10.6 assists per set, 2.3 blocks per set, 1.1 service aces per set, and 17.7 digs per set. Ottawa has a .132 attacking percentage. Ottawa is ranked 32nd in the NAIA in digs per set (17.7), 57th in solo blocks (13), 41st in block assists (66), 49th in total blocks (46), and 20th in blocks per set (2.3).
Radaisy Valdez leads the Braves in kills with 66. She is averaging 3.3 kills per set.
Kaitlyn Haller is OU's leader in assists with 106 (5.3 per set),
Jadore Hayes is the team's leader in digs 87 (4.3 per set), and Valdez leads the Braves in blocks with 21 (1.05 per set).
This is the third meeting between Ottawa and Valley City State University. The first meeting took place on Oct. 13, 2007. VCSU won the match 3-0; 30-22, 30-18, 30-20. Ottawa won the second meeting on Sept. 5, 2019, 3-2; 25-27, 21-25, 25-21, 25-17, 15-9.
Ottawa matches against Indiana Tech, Taylor, and Carroll are the first meeting between the teams.
Valley City State is 2-2 to start the season. The Vikings lost their first two matches of the season, 3-1 to Montana State-Northern and 3-2 to Mount Mercy. VCSU have won the last two, a 3-0 win over Southwestern College and a 3-2 victory over Briar Cliff. The Vikings are 29th in the NAIA in kills per set (12.88), 36th in assists per set (11.9), 12th in digs per set (19.4), 44th in blocking errors (11), and 12th in ball handling errors (13).
Carroll has started the season 6-2. The Saints are averaging 11.7 kills per set, 11 assists per set, 2.06 blocks per set, 1.32 service aces per set, and 18.8 digs per set. They have a .141 attacking percentage. CC is 23rd in the NAIA in kills (363), sixth in attacking errors (198), 11th in total attacks (1,172), fourth in digs (583), 20th in digs per set (18.8), 15th in block assists (86), 20th in solo blocks (21), eighth in total blocks (64), and 34th in blocks per set (2.06).
Taylor is 6-0 to start the 2022 season. The Trojans are averaging 12.8 kills per set, 11.4 assists per set, 2.6 blocks per set, 1.2 service aces per set, and 13.4 digs per set. Taylor has a .237 attacking percentage. The Trojans are ranked 47th in the NAIA in kills per set (12.3), 18th in attacking percentage (.237), 45th in service errors (54), 11th in solo blocks (25), 24th in block assists (78), eighth in total blocks (64), eighth in blocks per set (2.6), and 44th in blocking errors (11).
Indiana Tech opens 2022 with a record of 4-0. They are averaging 14 kills per set, 12.7 assists per set, 2.2 blocks per set, 3.3 service aces per set, and 14.1 digs per set. The Warriors have a .303 attacking percentage. Indiana Tech is ranked fifth in the NAIA in kills per set (14), third in attacking percentage (.303), 14th in assists per set (12.7), and second in service aces per set (3.3).
