GLVC Coaches Predict Fifth-Place Finish In East For USI Volleyball

Great Lakes Valley Conference volleyball coaches’ predicted a fifth-place finish in the East Division for University of Southern Indiana Volleyball in 2017.

With the closure of former GLVC member Saint Joseph’s College, the GLVC will feature three five-team divisions—East, West and Central—in 2017.

Lewis University was picked to win the East, while the University of Indianapolis (second), Bellarmine University (third) and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside (fourth) were predicted to finish ahead of the Screaming Eagles.

USI is looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2016 campaign that saw it post a 9-21 overall record and a 3-15 mark in GLVC play. The Eagles finished the year on a 10-game slide after winning four straight matches to begin the season.

Senior libero Shannon Farrell (Munster, Indiana) returns to lead the Eagles’ back row after becoming the first player in program history to record back-to-back 500-dig seasons. Farrell, who ranks third all-time at USI with 1,359 career digs, set the single-season school record with 5.41 digs per set in 2016.

Play at the net will be huge for USI in 2017 as senior middle hitter Te’Ayla Whitfield (Fort Wayne, Indiana) returns to pace the Eagles’ block. Whitfield averaged a team-high 0.82 blocks per set as a junior after amassing 0.92 blocks per frame as a sophomore in 2015.

The connection between junior setter Erika Peoples (Bloomington, Illinois) and sophomore outside hitter Mikaila Humphrey (Floyd Knobs, Indiana) also figures to be a key component for the Eagles in 2017. Peoples was fifth in the GLVC with a team-best 9.06 assists per set a year ago, while Humphrey was USI’s leader with 2.61 kills per frame during her rookie season.

In addition to the East Division, McKendree University was the coaches’ pick to win the Central, while Rockhurst University was a unanimous choice in the West. The University of Missouri-St. Louis, Quincy University, the University of Illinois Springfield and Maryville University rounded out the coaches’ predictions in the Central; while Truman State University, Drury University, Missouri S&T and William Jewell College concluded the coaches’ forecast in the West.

USI begins the season September 1-2 when it competes at the University of West Florida Hampton Inn-vitational in Pensacola, Florida. The Eagles host the Dunn Hospitality Invitational September 8-9 before opening GLVC play September 14 against Maryville University.

2017 GLVC Volleyball Preseason Coaches’ Poll