Josh Visnaw

The volleyball team is three wins away from accomplishing its goal of the first Mid-American Conference Tournament title in school history.

Central will take on Bowling Green at 11 a.m. today in the quarterfinals of the MAC Tournament in Toledo.

“It is very exciting to be this close,” said junior setter Stephanie Budde. “But, at the same time, we just have to take it one game at a time. We can’t afford to get too excited or look too far ahead.”

CMU defeated Bowling Green in straight sets on Oct. 16. The three-set rout was led by sophomore outside hitter Lauren Krupsky, who had 14 kills. BGSU lost each set by at least eight points.

The Falcons won seven consecutive matches after losing to Central. BGSU finished the season 12-4 in the conference and enters the tournament as the No. 6 seed.

“We get one crack at East opponents each year,” said coach Erik Olson. “That can be a challenge at times, but this year it plays into our favor because we got them. We know what works, and they haven’t got the chance to see if their adjustments will work against us.”

BGSU may have an advantage if the match goes past the fourth set, as it is 9-1 in such a scenario. Central has not won a five-set match.

Bowling Green defeated Buffalo 3-1 in the first round on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals.

Kendra Halm led the Falcons offensively throughout the season, totaling 371 total kills. Halm had 10 kills against CMU, but could not overcome her team’s 15 attack errors.

Central earned the No. 4 seed in the tournament with a 12-4 conference record.

“Playing CMU volleyball is playing smart, and playing aggressive,” said junior libero Alexis Lonneman. “We have to play to win and come out aggressive and set the tone of the match. If they set the tone, it brings our momentum down. If we come out swinging, we should be fine.”

The Chippewas have not played since a 3-2 loss to Ohio on Nov. 15 at Rose Arena.

With a win today, Central would face Western Michigan or Toledo at 4:30 p.m. Saturday. Western Michigan comes into the tournament as the No. 1 seed. However, the Broncos were the No. 2 seed last season and were upset by No. 7 seed Eastern Michigan in the semifinals.

“It is a great feeling to be there,” Lonneman said. “My freshman year we didn’t make it to the tournament. It is a great experience. We want to enjoy it while we’re there, but don’t overthink it. Just go out and play like we normally play.”

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E-mail the author: D.J. Palomares