WEBSTER GROVES – Webster University is set to open its 36th season of intercollegiate volleyball on Friday by playing three matches over two days in the WashU Bear Invitational at WashU Field House on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis.

The Gorloks, who shared the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season title with Greenville a season ago, opens the 2019 season on Friday at 3 p.m. against North Park University, before facing Fontbonne University at 5 p.m. on Friday and then concluding the two-day event on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. against Hendrix College.

It marks the second time in the last three years that Webster is opening the season at the WashU Bear Invitational as the Gorloks also opened the 2017 season with three matches at the WashU Bear Invitational.

"Practices have been going well and we are excited about the season. We have 12 returners and 11 new players this season, including nine freshman and two junior college transfers," Webster head volleyball coach and Assistant Athletic Director Merry Graf said. "We have a lot of learning still happening, but we've had a lot of energy and hard work."

The Gorloks, who were tabbed to share the SLIAC title with Greenville in this year's Preseason Coaches Poll, come into the 2019 campaign welcoming back three starters, its top libero and 12 letterwinners from last season's 19-12 squad that shared the SLIAC title with Greenville as both teams posted a 16-2 league record.

The 19-12 record marked Webster's third consecutive season of posting a winning record and the 19 wins are the most in a season for the Gorloks since finishing with a 19-13 record in 2016.

"Everyone was prepared and super excited coming into this season," said Graf, who is 358-207 as Webster's coach. "Some of players helped with camp this summer and spend time with their other teammates. That motivated them to come back ready to get to work."

Among the key returners for the Gorloks are junior right side/outside hitter Samantha Kruse (Waterloo, Ill./Waterloo) and junior libero Kristen Farrah (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell).

Kruse earned First-Team All-SLIAC honors last season after leading the Gorloks in kills (282), kills per set (2.69) and aces (38) and was second in digs (419) in 2018,
 
"Samantha is well-prepared and returned ready to earn her position again," Graf said when asked about Kruse, who spent the summer in Iowa working on a research project.
 
Farrah was named an AVCA Honorable Mention All-Central Region selection and also took home both the SLIAC Defensive and Player of the Year honors after leading NCAA Division III in digs per set (8.32) and finishing second in Division III in total digs with a single season school record 882 digs. Farrah became the first Webster Volleyball player to earn a national statistical championship from the NCAA after leading D-III in digs per set last season. Farrah enters this season 10th on the school's all-time dig chart with 1,281 and is just 648 digs shy of Webster's career dig mark of 1,929 digs set by Katie O'Toole from 2013-16.
 
"Kristen has an awesome work ethic, loves to work out and is coachable," Graf said about her record-setting libero. "She realizes that we have other talented DS's in our program and she needs to continue to work hard to maintain her role. She is very competitive, so we feel confident she'll do some great things again this season."
 
In addition to Kruse and Farrah, the other key returners from last season are sophomore middle hitter Kylie Burke (Belleville, Ill./Belleville East), senior right side/outside hitter Sarah Jacobs (Carbondale, Ill./Murphysboro) and senior setter Jenna Rodriguez (Smithton, Ill./Freeburg). Burke led the team in blocks with 58, including a team-best eight solo blocks and added 97 kills and hit .153, which was sixth on the team, while Jacobs had 149 kills, 35 blocks and 60 digs a season ago and Rodriguez, who shared setter duties with graduated senior Kelsey Hamann, led the team in assists (439), was second in aces (31) and was one of three players to record 300 or more digs as she recorded 309 in 2018.

"Sarah is a smart attacker and had a strong block which is key on the right side," the Webster coach said. "Jenna is a very vocal player on the court and has strong leadership skills. Her communication helps the other players and makes the team stronger."

Other returners that saw game action last season are sophomore outside hitter Peyton Eikel (Dardenne Prairie, Mo./Liberty), sophomore defensive specialist Kyra Gensel (Clarkton, N.C./Harrells Christian), sophomore middle/right side hitter Samantha Hoff (Sterling Heights, Mich./Sterling Heights), sophomore right side hitter Natasha Norris (Elgin, Texas/Carol Morgan) sophomore setter Ali Spohr (Quincy, Ill./Quincy), junior setter Emma Larson (Bellevue, Neb./Bellevue West) and junior middle hitter Hayley Taylor (Highland, Ill./Highland).

One of the biggest strengths for the Gorloks this season as they look to win a second consecutive SLIAC regular season title is the team's depth at every position throughout the line-up, which will allow Graf's line-up to have more flexibility this season.

"We are excited about our depth this season. We are multiple players deep in every position and this should help the team during any injuries or illnesses that might come up," added Graf. "The added depth also helps push the starters to work hard to maintain their position."

While depth is something Graf is excited this season, she says that one of the biggest keys to her team's success will be being able to have good ball control.

"We thrive on good ball control and that starts with the pass. We're pretty deep at defensive specialist bringing back Kristen (Farrah and Kyra (Gensel), who is a sophomore for us now and does a really good job on the court and then we have two freshman defensive specialists as well," the Webster coach said. "Setter-wise we have good depth as we have five setters, one in each class, including two freshman again and we have a lot of hitters and they're very versatile and can hit from multiple positions which give us a lot of depth and different combinations of players that you can utilize."

With the added depth this season, Graf should have an easier time finding replacements for the three seniors and four players that have moved on from the program at the end of the 2018 campaign. The three seniors from last season were outside hitter Samantha Budrovich, right side hitter Torie Grassi, Hamann and junior middle hitter Taylor Kissel, who graduated early and is now in pharmacy school.

Grassi was a Second-Team All-SLIAC selection after recording 238 kills, 44 digs, 20 blocks and hitting a team-best .242, while Budrovich was a Third-Team All-SLIAC selection after recording 231 kills, 11 aces, 280 digs and 28 blocks a season ago.

Despite having only two seniors this season in Jacobs and Rodriguez, Graf doesn't expect leadership to be a problem with this year's team.

"In our program, we look for leaders and encourage all players to be vocal. We ask their opinion, communicate with them and train them on leadership skills," said Graf. "This team had a strong leadership unit."

Webster tuned up for the regular season by playing three scrimmage matches last Saturday at WashU and then played an alumni match on Sunday afternoon in Grant Gymnasium.

"It was great to compete against outside competition. We utilized several different line-ups and saw some players step up in different positions, which was great to see," added Graf, who won her 400th career match last season as a collegiate coach in Webster's three-set win at Westminster on Sept. 27.

Following this weekend's three matches at the WashU Bear Invitational, the Gorloks will play five more matches away from home before opening the home portion of its schedule on Wednesday, Sept. 18 against Rose-Hulman at 7 p.m. in Grant Gymnasium.

"It will be fun to get in the gym this weekend and see what we can do in live competition," the Webster coach stated.