THIS WEEK IN DRAKE VOLLEYBALL
    The Bulldogs host the Hampton Inn Drake Invitational this week, welcoming Green Bay, Southern Utah, and North Dakota to the Knapp Center. Drake will open the tournament with a 7 p.m. match against Green Bay Friday night, then meet Southern Utah at 1 p.m. and North Dakota at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. The Bulldogs then square off against North Dakota State Sunday at 2 p.m. before traveling to Kansas City, Mo. to take on UMKC in a Monday matchup at 7 p.m.

WATCH VOLLEYBALL ONLINE, FOR FREE
    Every match of the Hampton Inn Drake Invitational will be streamed live online, for free. Visit www.godrakebulldogs.com for more information.
   
ABOUT DRAKE
    Drake took home the North Dakota Classic championship after going undefeated last week. Senior outside hitter Angela Bys capped off a stellar weekend with an 18 kill, 14 dig effort in the tournament championship game against North Dakota, earning Tournament Most Valuable Player in the process.
    Seniors Alisa DeBerg Roth and Alana Wittenburg earned all-tournament honors for their efforts.
    The Bulldogs opened the season 4-0 for the fifth time since 1995 with wins over Gonzaga, Cal State Bakersfield, San Jose State and North Dakota.

KILLER BYS
Senior outside hitter Angela Bys tallied 50 kills at the North Dakota Classic last weekend, moving her career kill total to 1,229. Bys needs just three more kills to tie Eve Johnson's (2003-06) all-time Drake kills record of 1,232.

MORE BYS, PLEASE
With 30 total attempts against San Jose State, Angela Bys passed former Drake great Brandy Ossian for third place on the all-time attempts list. With 3,464 career attempts, Bys needs 434 more attempts to tie Eve Johnson's all-time Drake record of 3,898

THREE ON ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Senior outside hitters Angela Bys and Alisa DeBerg Roth, along with senior libero Alana Wittenburg were named to the North Dakota Classic all-tournament team. Bys earned Tournament MVP honors after leading Drake in kills during all four games. Deberg Roth tallied 28 total kills for the Bulldogs, while Wittenburg was Drake's top defensive player with 62 digs.

FAST START
Drake opened with a 4-0 record for the first time since 2008 and only the fifth time since 1995. The Bulldogs opened at least 4-0 during the 1995, 1996, 2003, and 2008 seasons.

DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Angela Bys and junior setter Caitlin Johnson put up double-double efforts against North Dakota last Saturday. Bys tallied a game-best 18 kills and a team-high 14 digs while Johnson added 27 assists and 11 digs.

SET STREAK
The Bulldogs won their first nine sets of the season, tying for the second-most consecutive sets won since 1995. The longest Drake win streak in the modern era was 15 straight sets in 1996.

CONSECUTIVE SETS WON (MODERN ERA)
DATE                OPPONENTS                                                        STREAK
8/30-9/6/96        Green Bay, St. Louis, UMKC, Murray State, LSU         15
8/27-8/28/10       Gonzaga, Cal State Bakersfield, San Jose State           9
9/4-9/5/09           Valparaiso, Texas A&M-CC, Centenary                        9
9/6-9/9/03           Louisiana-Monroe, UT-Chattanooga, Iowa                     9
10/17-10/23/98    Indiana State, Western Illinois, Bradley                        9

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
Green Bay
    The Phoenix went 0-3 at the Hawkeye Challenge in Iowa City, Iowa last week, dropping matches to Southern Illinois, Alabama and Iowa in three sets each. Freshman outside hitter Monica Anderson leads Green Bay with 23 kills and a .153 attack percentage.
    Green Bay is coached by 14th year head coach Debbie Kirch.

Southern Utah
    The Thunderbirds went 2-2 last week at the UniWyo Wyoming Invitational, earning wins over Murray State (3-0) and Northern Arizona (3-2) and falling to host Wyoming (3-0) and Central Arkansas (3-1). Sophomore outside hitter Analaine Pelaez led Southern Utah with 62 kills in 169 total attempts last week, hitting .207 in the process.
    Southern Utah is coached by third-year head coach Debby Baker.

North Dakota
    The Fighting Sioux went 3-1 as the host of the North Dakota Classic last week, losing to Drake in the championship match. Junior outside hitter Devin Trefz leads North Dakota with 62 kills and has a .268 attack percentage. Junior middle blocker Tiara Russell leads UND with 18 total blocks.
    The Fighting Sioux are coached by Great West Conference Coach of the Year Ashley Hardee.

North Dakota State
    The Bison are 0-2 on the season, with losses to Louisville (3-1) and Ohio (3-2). Senior outside hitter Brooke VandenBergh leads NDSU with 18 kills, while junior middle hitter Chrissy Knuth trails her by just one with 17.
    North Dakota State is coached by fifth-year head coach Erich Hinterstocker.

UMKC
    The 'Roos are 1-3 on the season with their lone win coming in four sets over Grambling State. Junior outside hitter Elizabeth Beck is UMKC's leader with 43 kills and is second on the team in digs with 35. Junior middle hitter Christiana McQuin leads the 'Roos with 12 total blocks.
    UMKC is coached by fourth-year head coach Geno Frugoli.

DRAKE VS THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS
    Drake is 8-2 against Green Bay all-time and won the last meeting, 3-0, at Green Bay Sept. 5, 2008.
    This will be the first meeting between Drake and Southern Utah.
    The Bulldogs met North Dakota for the first time ever last week, dropping the Bison in a thrilling five-set match to win the North Dakota Classic.
    Drake is 2-0-1 against North Dakota State and won the last meeting, 3-0, in the Knapp Center Oct. 2, 2005.
    Drake owns a 22-6-1 advantage over UMKC, the most wins over any non-conference opponent. The Bulldogs topped the 'Roos, 3-0, Sept. 15, 2009.

EARLY CONTESTS
    Drake won its season-opener for the first time since 2008 when it took a three-set victory from Centenary. Drake is now 8-8 in season opening contests in the Modern Era. The Bulldogs  have compiled a winning record in their first four games of the season in three-straight seasons, going 4-0  this season, 3-1 in 2009 and 4-0 in 2008.

WE CAN BUILD ON THIS
    Drake will look to build on its historic 2009 season, during which the Bulldogs won 22 games - the most since the 1996 squad won 24 - and qualified for their first Missouri Valley Conference Tournament since 1998.

NEW DIGS
    After a generous donation from Hy-Vee, the Knapp Center court was resurfaced over the summer and named in honor of Drake graduate and former Hy-Vee Chief Executive Officer Ron Pearson. With a new name and a Hy-Vee brand, the Ron Pearson Court is a shining example of Drake University's continued commitment to athletic facilities and Hy-Vee's commitment to the Des Moines community.

2010 CAPTAINS SELECTED
    Juniors Mikayla Sims and Caitlin Johnson and senior Alana Wittenburg have been selected as team captains for the 2010 season. Sims tallied 110 kills and a .201 attack percentage last season while Johnson will be one of two primary setters this season. Wittenburg is the most prolific statistical defensive specialist in Drake history and will be a leader at the libero position.