THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE: Ferris State Athletics Opens 2015-16 Season!
By Harrison Watt
FerrisStateBulldogs.com
Big Rapids, Mich. - A packed Labor Day weekend will tip off the 2015-16 athletic calendar for the Bulldogs with the volleyball, soccer, women's tennis and cross country squads kicking off regular-season play.
Volleyball
The nation’s #18 ranked team and defending GLIAC Champions will be the first Ferris State team in action this year with a 12:30 p.m. (ET) serve on Friday (Sept. 4) at home against California (Pa.) at the Ferris State Invitational inside Wink Arena. It will also begin the program’s 20th season under head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm.
The contest is the first of four weekend tilts as the Bulldogs also host Missouri Western State at 6 p.m. (ET) that evening. On Saturday (Sept. 5), FSU has a noon start scheduled against McKendree (Ill.), and their day ends with a 5 p.m. (ET) contest against Metro State.
Ferris State last took on California (Pa.) to open their 2013 season in the FSU Invitational, sweeping the Vulcans 3-0 and the Bulldogs own a 2-1 advantage against California dating back to 2009. All three meetings have been at Ferris State.
Both California (Pa.) and Metro State finished just outside of the top 25 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Coaches preseason poll.
Three of Ferris State’s opening weekend opponents were in the 2014 NCAA Division II Volleyball Tournament, with California (Pa.) advancing the furthest, to the third round.
Women’s Soccer
The FSU women’s soccer team will be the second Bulldog athletic team to kick of their season when they take on the Truman State Bulldogs on Friday (Sept. 4) at 3 p.m.(ET) in Kirksville, Mo. Ferris State then ends the road trip at Quincy (Ill.) on Sunday (Sept. 6) at 1 p.m.
Ferris State took on the same teams in the same order early in the 2014 season. The women’s soccer team dropped both games 2-0 and 1-0, respectively, in Allendale. Truman State finished with a 13-5-2 mark and a Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) tournament berth, while Quincy finished 8-8-4 with a GLVC tournament berth.
Ferris State finished the 2014 season with a 6-10-2 mark, and comes in ranked sixth in the GLIAC North Division Preseason Coaches poll. The Bulldogs are looking to compete in their sixth consecutive GLIAC tournament.
Cross Country
The runners will be the third Ferris State team to sprint into action at their annual Ray Helsing Bulldog Invitational on Saturday.
This year will mark the 41st running of the Ray Helsing Bulldog Invitational. Last season, Ferris State’s Kyle Richardson led the entire pack in the 8k men’s races with a winning time of 26:48.22.
Richardson, now a junior, is one of three returning runners that placed in the top six in the 2014 installation of the Ray Helsing Bulldog Invitational, including junior Logan Hammer and sophomore Trevor Holowaty.
The women also had a strong showing when they had four of the top nine finishers in the 5k women’s race, with Kristie LeSage leading the way for Ferris with a fourth-place finish. Junior Samantha Humprey and senior Emily Haynes are also returning members from that group.
Women’s Tennis
The women’s tennis team swings into action with an Upper Peninsula trip, opening with a 10 a.m. (ET) start on Saturday at Lake Superior State. They finish the following day at Michigan Tech with another 10 a.m. (ET) tilt.
A year ago, Ferris State took on the same two teams at home, winning 9-0 and 7-2 over Lake Superior State and Michigan Tech, respectively.
Ferris State is coming off a 19-9 overall season in 2014-15 and placed fifth in the GLIAC Tournament last fall.
The Bulldogs had a strong 8-4 mark in their spring schedule, finishing with a 5-0 loss to Indianapolis in the NCAA II Tournament.
Ferris State alum Chad Berryhill will direct the women’s tennis team into action for his fourth season at the helm and owns 40 wins already leading the women’s program to date.