GLIAC Tournament Central

2022 DU/GVSU Recaps: Sept. 20 | Oct. 25

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Thirty regular season matches later, the Davenport University women's volleyball program turns the page to the postseason and is set to host a GLIAC Tournament match for the first time in program history. The third-seeded Panthers will welcome sixth-seeded Grand Valley State into the DU Student Center on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. for their second quarterfinal showdown in as many seasons. Davenport and Grand Valley State split their two regular season meetings in 2022 with the away team winning each and the all-time series is knotted up at 7-7.

Davenport enters with an all-time GLIAC Tournament record of 6-4 with that sixth victory coming as the fifth seed over fourth-seeded Grand Valley State last November in Allendale. In the two teams' all-time series, the Panthers are dead even both at home (3-3) and on the road (4-4), but recently, the away team has won four of the last five meetings. DU comes in having won three of its last four matches while GVSU has been victorious in three of its previous five, the first of those three being at Davenport on Oct. 25, the Panthers' Senior Night.

Individually, Grand Valley State has been led by freshman setter Jordyn Gates, junior middle Sarah Wight and freshman outside hitter Kendall Stover. As a setter, one of two for the Lakers, Gates is second on the team in both kills (295) and assists (584) while finishing 13th in the GLIAC in kills per set (2.81) and ninth in assists per set (5.56). Defensively, the Grand Rapids native has proven herself as well as she's tied for seventh in the league in total digs (354) and 10th in digs per set (3.37).

When it comes to hitting efficiency, not many have been better than Wight who's first on the team and third in the conference for that category at .292. The 6-2 hitter has been responsible for 255 kills, 2.55 per set. Topping GVSU in kills is Stover with 298, 11th in the GLIAC, and 3.01 kills per set, which ranks ninth.

While Davenport is 6-4 all-time in the this event, victorious in four of its last six, Grand Valley State is just 1-7 in its last eight GLIAC Tournament outings, but that one win was on the road.