The Missouri State volleyball team (17-3, 6-1 MVC) finishes the first half of the league season this weekend with a trip to Drake and league-leading Creighton. This weekend in the Valley will go a long way in shaping the title race, as the 7-0 Bluejays play both 6-1 MSU and 6-1 Wichita State on their home floor.

Live stats for the Creighton match will be available at www.missouristatebears.com. Just click "Live Stats" on the left side of the home page and select the appropriate match. Live audio of the Bears and Bluejays will be available on the web at www.kvss.com.

THE OPPONENTS Drake is 5-13 on the season and 2-5 in Missouri Valley Conferece play. The Bulldogs have proven to be a dangerous team thus far in the league season, taking Creighton and Illinois State to five games and UNI to four in losing efforts. Angela Bys ranks fourth in the Valley with 3.73 kills per game, and versatile setter Chelsea Lauersdorf has a pair of triple-doubles this season.

Creighton enters the weekend alone in first place with a 7-0 league record and 13-5 overall mark. Three of CU’s five losses have come at the hands of ranked opponents and a fourth came in the season opener against a Middle Tennessee team that has also seen time in the polls. Senior Kelly Goc is second in the league in both kills (3.85) and hitting percentage (.348), and the Bluejay defense limits opponents to a .133 attack efficiency on the year. That number dips to .123 in league matches.

THE SERIES Missouri State is a combined 64-11 all-time against this week’s opponents. MSU has won 16 straight over Drake and has built a 40-8 lead in the all-time series with the Bulldogs. Missouri State also boasts an impressive win streak against Creighton, winning the last 18 meetings and 24 of the 27 all-time matches.

COACH MELISSA STOKES Missouri State head coach Melissa Stokes (San Diego State, 1991) is 262-117 (.691) in her 12th season at Missouri State. A native of El Cajon, Calif., Stokes has guided Missouri State to an overall record of 191-60 (.761) and 108-24 (.818) in the Missouri Valley Conference since 2000. In 2003, the Bears were the MVC regular-season champions and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1993. MSU made a return trip to the NCAAs in 2005 after winning the MVC Tournament, and advanced to the second round for the first time in program history in 2006, defeating Arkansas before falling to No. 13 Oklahoma in the second round.

Stokes came to Missouri State from the University of Idaho, where she helped the Vandals to four straight NCAA Tournament berths. As a setter at San Diego State, Stokes played four seasons and helped the Aztecs to two NCAA appearances. She recorded her 100th career victory in the Bears’ five-game win over Manhattan College, Sept. 1, 2001 and coached the 250th victory of her Missouri State career against Florida State, Aug. 31, 2007. Stokes ranked 37th among active Division I coaches in win percentage entering 2007.

LAST WEEK The Bears saw their 11-match win streak end Friday against Wichita State but rebounded to sweep a solid South Dakota State team Sunday.

Against the Shockers, Sara Thomas tallied the 10th kill-block-dig triple-double in MSU history with 11 kills, 11 blocks and 19 digs in the 3-1 loss.

Thomas came within two blocks of another triple-double Sunday and finished the match with 15 kills and a .565 hitting percentage. Jamie Adams had 12 kills and 10 digs versus SDSU for her second career double-double, and Terri Del Conte served seven aces in the 3-0 win.

Missouri State has not lost back-to-back matches since Sept. 2-3 of the 2005 season, meaning the Bears have won their last 18 matches immediately following a loss.

The Bears are 4-2 in 2007 against teams that have received votes for at least one week in the AVCA Top 25 poll.

Melissa Stokes is two conference wins away from gaining her 150th career MVC victory. She is currently 148-57 (.722) in league matches and will be the third coach to reach 150-win milestone.

Missouri State received eight votes in this week’s AVCA Top 25 poll, the 34th-highest total.

Missouri State ranks among the nation’s top 60 in the following categories through Oct. 7. There are 325 Division teams in the rankings:

16th in winning percentage (.850)

25th in digs per game (18.54)

31st in blocks per game (2.94)

47th in kills per game (15.89)

60th in hitting percentage (.240)

Katelyn Panzau ranks 76th in the NCAA with 11.85 assists per game and Shayla Patrick and Sara Thomas are tied for 128th in blocking with a 1.17 per game average through Oct. 7.

Stokes earned her 250th career victory when the Bears defeated Florida State on Aug. 31.

The Bears are 6-2 this year in matches lasting longer than three games and 3-0 in five-gamers. MSU has won its last four five-game matches.

Head coach Melissa Stokes is climbing up the all-time MVC coaching lists in a number of categories. Listed below is the 12th-year coach’s ranking in those categories. Lists are compiled based on statistics at Valley schools only:

Sixth in total victories with 262

Fourth in win percentage overall (.691) and second among active MVC coaches

Sixth in win percentage in MVC matches only (.722)

Third in MVC victories (148)

Sara Thomas, Jamie Adams and Sara Staubach have all posted matches with 20 or more kills this season.

Missouri State is 8-0 this season when Sara Staubach has 12 or more kills.

Shayla Patrick leads all MVC freshmen with 1.17 blocks per game.

MSU is 15-0 this year and 39-1 the last two seasons when winning game two.

The MSU defense has been very difficult to ace this season, surrendering an average of 0.93 aces per game to opponents. As a comparison, the lowest-ranking MVC team in terms of serving aces averages 1.06 per game.

Katelyn Panzau is seventh in school history with 2,308 assists and now holds the record for assists by a two-year player.

Missouri State’s win over No. 25 Middle Tennessee on Sept. 9 was the first over a ranked team since 2003.

Jamie Adams has reached at least 10 kills in 23 of her last 27 matches.

Missouri State has hit over .200 in 15 of 20 matches this season and at least .169 in all but two.

Nikki Vandepopulier has reached the 10-dig mark 16 times in 18 matches this season.

Sara Thomas has recorded at least one kill, dig, assist and block in all but one match this season. Katelyn Panzau has achieved that feat in 53 of her 55 career matches.

By winning MVC Player of the Week honors Sept. 10, Thomas became the first MSU player to win the award multiple times in the same season since Linette White in 2003.

Thomas has recorded at least six kills in each match, hitting .500 or better three times, .400 or better eight times, .300 or better 12 times, and .200 or better 14 times.

HOMECOMING Missouri State has been dominant at home since 2000, compiling a home record of 98-14 for an .875 winning percentage at Hammons Student Center. The Bears have completed seven consecutive years with three or fewer losses in a home season and are 10-1 in 2007.

1,000th WIN Missouri State became the second volleyball program in NCAA history to reach 1,000 victories with a sweep on Indiana State on Nov. 17, 2006. Now with 1,020 all-time victories, the Bears trail only UCLA (1,051) on the all-time wins list.

NATIONAL PRAISE Missouri State is the reigning College Volleyball Update Overall Defensive Team of the Year in 2006. The Bears ranked second nationally last season by holding opponents to a .119 attack efficiency and 27th with 3.11 blocks per game.

TOUGH COMPETITION The Bears have seven matches lined up this season against teams that began the year receiving votes in the AVCA coaches poll, and nine versus teams making at least one appearance so far.

MSU plays Illinois State, Northern Iowa and Wichita State two times each, and Middle Tennessee, Michigan State and Sacramento State also appear on the schedule.

The Bears are 4-2 against that competition this season.

PANZAU CHASING A RECORD Senior setter Katelyn Panzau is in just her second season on the floor for the Bears, but is in line to finish as one of the top setters in school history. She recorded 1,502 assists in 2006, and a repeat of that will put her in third place on MSU’s all-time list. She now occupies seventh place on the career list with 2,308.

Just a pair of two-year players appear in the career top 10 in addition to Panzau, with Jessica Brester (2,027) and Lani Kim (1,838) occupying the ninth and 10th spots, respectively.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK Sara Thomas and Shayla Patrick brought home MVC awards in the first week of the season. Thomas was the league’s player of the week after averaging 3.79 kills, 4.07 digs, 1.07 blocks and hitting .357 on the way to becoming the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational MVP.

Patrick was the freshman of the week after leading MSU in hitting efficiency (.377) and blocking (1.29/game). She was named to the all-tournament team in her first collegiate action.

Thomas earned the award a second time on Sept. 10 after averaging 4.23 kills, 2.92 digs, 1.54 blocks and 1.46 assists per game in MSU’s 4-0 trip through Tennessee. She hit over .400 in three matches and .368 for the weekend, including a career-high 20 kills and a .405 attack efficiency in MSU’s 3-1 win at 25th-ranked Middle Tennessee.

Thomas added another award to her resume Oct. 8 by earning MVC Defensive Player of the Week honors. She averaged 4.57 digs and 2.71 blocks against WSU and SDSU, recording a triple-double against the Shockers. She is the first league player this year to win weekly awards in more than one category.

MVC TOURNAMENT The State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament returns to Springfield for the first time since 2003 on Thanksgiving weekend. The top six teams in the regular season standings will come to Hammons Student Center November 23 and 24 to vie for the league’s automatic NCAA Tournament berth.

PRESEASON POLL Coming off back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2005 and 2006, the Bears are picked to finish fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference in 2007 by the league’s coaches. UNI is the preseason choice to repeat as league champions, while Wichita State was picked second and Creighton a close third.

VOLLEYBALL LUNCHEONS Four dates remain for Missouri State volleyball luncheons this fall. Luncheons will be on alternate Wednesdays at Ebbets Field, 1027 East Walnut, and feature Bears’ head coach Melissa Stokes. Luncheons begin at noon and remaining dates are Oct. 10, Oct. 24, Nov. 7 and Nov. 21.