PITTSBURG, Kan. -- The Pittsburg State Volleyball team will take the long trip to the Western-most MIAA schools this weekend for a Friday (Oct. 24) 7 p.m. match at Nebraska-Kearney and a Saturday (Oct. 25) 6:30 p.m. match at Fort Hays State. 

The Lopers are currently in a three-way tie for first in the league standings with an 11-2 MIAA record. They are a league best 19-2 overall. The Lopers only losses were to Central Oklahoma and Central Missouri. In the first meeting, the Gorillas took the Lopers to five sets at John Lance Arena. The Lopers won the first set easily, but the Gorillas came back with 27-25 amd 25-21 wins to take the lead in the match. UNK won the next two sets, 25-18 and 15-8 for the win. 

Live stats and live video are available for Friday's match. Tickets for fans traveling to the match are $9.

Fort Hays State is 10-12 overall and 4-9 in MIAA play, tied with the Gorillas for eighth in the league standings. Pitt State won the previous meeting between the two teams, 3-2. The Tigers won the first set 25-22, before the Gorillas came back to win set two 25-18 and 25-20. The Tigers took the fourth set 25-20 to force a fifth set that Pitt State won 15-10. 

Live stats will be available for the match. Fans traveling to Hays should be aware there is a football game pior to the match. Admission is free.

Pitt State is 7-14 overall and 4-9 in the MIAA. The team is 1-1 in its second trip through the MIAA with a five-set loss to Central Missouri and a 3-0 win over Lindenwood, a team that beat the Gorillas the first time through. 

Madi Mosier leads the Gorillas and is seventh in the MIAA with 3.48 kills per set. Hayley Hansfird dishes out 9.79 assists per set, which is sixth-best in the league. The Gorillas' libero Ashlen Schwartz leads her team with 4.26 digs per set and ranks seventh in the MIAA. 

Ary Crittleton and Paula Okrutna each add more than 2.00 kills per set at 2.59 and 2.32, respectively. 

As a team, the Gorillas are averaging 2.11 blocks per set. The team's blocking is much improved from last season. The Gorillas have only 38 fewer blocks now than all of last season and only one less solo block than the 2013 season with nine matches to go. Mosier leads the team with 62 total blocks. Ashley Bell adds 53, Haylee Gregory, 50, Crittleton, 46, and Okrutna, 39.

Aimee Wood is a great contributor to the Gorilla defensive effort with 2.52 digs per set. Mosier adds 2.11 and Hansford gets just slightly less than two dps at 1.99.