With a losing streak that now stands at 11 matches, and an injury list that just keeps getting longer, the UB women's volleyball team (7-16, 0-10 MAC) could surely use a nice home game or two against a perennial patsy.
Unfortunately, with a visit to MAC West division-leader Ball State (15-6, 8-1) scheduled for Friday night, and a showdown at Marshall (14-9, 5-4), a team that has already beaten UB once this season set for Sunday, the going only appears to get tougher for the Bulls.
"Ball State is one of the top teams in the MAC, we expect them to be real good," said UB head coach Sally Kus. "They should have great ball control and test our defense for sure."
BSU rides a nine game winning streak into its showdown with Buffalo, and boasts a solid .225 team hitting percentage, thanks to the efforts of Sarah Obras, who leads the team with 365 kills, and Rachel Refenes, who has put down 264.
Refenes, a middle-hitter who stands 6'3," anchors a tough Cardinals defense, using her 8'1" reach to average 1.62 blocks per game.
The UB hitters will have to be aware of Refenes if they hope to improve upon the abysmal -.096 and .031 hitting percentages they put up last weekend against Ohio and Akron, respectively.
Marshall, meanwhile, is led by junior setter Katie Stein, who has posted a whopping 1025 assists so far this year. Stein's favorite target is Kelly-Anne Billingly, a freshman averaging 5.7 kills per game, and whom coach Kus identifies as a threat no matter where she is on the floor.
"(Billingly) can hit front row, back row, anywhere," said Kus. "Unfortunately you can't concentrate on keeping the ball from one kid, because they'll get everyone else involved and force you to defend elsewhere."
Defense has been a point of emphasis for UB this week, as Kus hopes to put her best possible defensive lineup on the court this weekend in order to remedy the problems that have stemmed from a string of tough injuries.
"All we've been working on all week in practice is defense," Kus said. "Without our full lineup, that's what's hurting us."
The injury bug has bit the Bulls hard and often lately, with the status of outside hitters Katherine Diduck and Nikki Morzenti along with middle hitter Lauren Burd up in the air for the weekend games. UB will also again be without assist-leader Amy Brown, a problem that has been magnified by a knee injury to Brown's backup at the setter position, Brandie Clark.
Kus expects Clark, along with Morzenti and possibly Diduck, depending on how she feels, to play through their injuries this weekend, and each could be critical, as Clark is the team's best hope to initiate the offense from the setter position, and Morzenti has been the Bulls' most potent hitter, leading the team with 212 kills.
Kus notes that in terms of hitting, her young team is more than capable. The problem has been defending against the opposition's attacks, and setting it up for Morzenti, Molly Schrantz, Katie Weekley, and the other UB hitters.
"We're a young team, and we're adjusting to college volleyball," said Kus. "Coming out of high school, it's a big difference in the quality of play, especially when it comes to defense."
UB is both literally and figuratively limping down the final stretch of its season. Ball State may simply be too much for the Bulls to handle, but coach Kus felt that UB was competitive when Marshall came to Buffalo two weeks ago, although the Bulls' lineup was quite different at the time, prior to the injuries to Brown and Burd.
The Bulls will look to gain some kind of momentum this weekend, in hopes of parlaying it into a victory or two when they return to Buffalo for their final two home games next week against Toledo and Miami.
"We're hoping we can get home, get everybody ready for those final two home games, and really pull it all together," said Kus.
Friday's game at Ball State will be played at 7 p.m., while the Marshall game is Sunday at 3 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
