Evansville, In.:  Following a tough three-game stretch against Peoria and Huntsville, the Thunderbolts are set to turn the page and find their stride in this coming weekend’s games, as they travel to Knoxville to take on the Ice Bears on Friday before returning home to host the Quad City Storm for Hockey Fights Cancer Night on Saturday at Ford Center.

Week In Review: 

The Thunderbolts struck first on Friday in Peoria thanks to a goal from Grayson Valente, however the Rivermen shut down the Thunderbolts the rest of the way in a 4-1 Rivermen win that was filled with fights and scrums as both teams combined for 120 Penalty Minutes.  On Saturday at Ford Center, the Thunderbolts again held a 1-0 lead against Huntsville as Tommy Stang scored for Evansville in the opening period, before the Havoc took over and won by a 5-1 score.  On Tuesday morning against Peoria, the Thunderbolts welcomed over 7,600 fans to Ford Center for Education Day, setting a new single-game franchise attendance record.  The end result was a 6-3 loss, but not without a strong second half of the game that made for an exciting finish, with goals from Scott Kirton, Matt Dorsey, and Colton Kalezic.  

The Week Ahead: 

The Thunderbolts will be in Knoxville this Friday night to take on the Ice Bears, puck drop set for 6:35pm CT.  Friday’s game can be viewed with a paid subscription on FloHockey or can be listened to for free on the Thunderbolts Radio Network via the Thunderbolts Mixlr Channel.  Fans can also watch Friday’s game at the Thunderbolts Booster Club away game watch party at Parkway Pizza.  On Saturday, the Thunderbolts return home to Ford Center to host the Quad City Storm for Hockey Fights Cancer Night, featuring specialty jerseys which will be auctioned off after the game.  There will also be a Smash Car outside Ford Center that fans will have the opportunity to smash with a sledgehammer before the game, one swing for five dollars or three swings for 10 dollars, with partial proceeds going to Cancer Pathway Midwest.  For tickets to this Saturday’s game, call (812)422-BOLT (2658), go to EvansvilleThunderbolts.com, or visit the Ford Center ticket office.

Coming Soon: 

The Thunderbolts will be on the road for three consecutive games on November 22^nd, 24^th, and 25^th in Quad City against the Storm, each game starting at 7:10pm CT.  Following the road trip, the Thunderbolts return home to Ford Center on Friday, December 1^st and Saturday, December 2^nd to host the Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs, both games beginning at 7:00pm CT.  Saturday the 2^nd will be the first Dogs Night Out game of the season, and fans can bring their dogs to the game for only five dollars each.

Scouting the Opponent:  

1. • Record: 2-8-0, 4 Points, 9^th Place
   • Leading Goal Scorer: Brady Fleurent (7 Goals)
   • Leading Point Scorer: Brady Fleurent (11 Points)
   • Primary Goaltender: Kristian Stead (1-4-0, .895 Save %)
   • Thunderbolts 22-23 Record vs KNX: 1-3

Last weekend in Pensacola, the Ice Bears held close in a 5-4 loss to the Ice Flyers, nearly coming back off goals from Skate Skalde, Seth Ensor, and Cameron Hough, who finished with a pair of goals.  Saturday’s rematch loss would not be as close, with a 6-0 Pensacola shutout victory.  On Wednesday morning the Ice Bears picked up their second win of the season in a 4-1 win in Fayetteville, with Brady Fleurent picking up a hat trick and Hough scoring the game-winning goal in the third period to break what was a 1-1 tie halfway through the final period.

1. • Record: 3-4-0, 6 Points, 8^th Place
   • Leading Goal Scorer: Matt Ustaski (8 Goals)
   • Leading Point Scorer: Matt Ustaski (11 Points)
   • Primary Goaltender: Kevin Resop (2-3-0, .893 Save %)
   • Thunderbolts 22-23 Record vs QCS: 5-2

Quad City battled it out with Fayetteville on Friday and Saturday night at home, falling short 7-6 on Friday before getting payback on Saturday with a 3-2 overtime win.  Friday’s game saw a rare occurrence as the Storm had two players with a hat trick each, Matt Ustaski and Leif Mattson, an even-rarer occurrence coinciding with a loss.  In Saturday’s lower-scoring rematch that resulted in a win, Ustaski scored twice, including the game-winning goal in overtime, while Mattson appropriately scored a goal as well.

Call-up Report 

– None to report currently.

Transactions:     

Wed. 11/15: D Michael Greco signed to professional tryout (PTO)

Wed. 11/15: F Jared Christy released from professional tryout (PTO)

Tue. 11/14: F Colton Kalezic activated from Injured Reserve

Tue. 11/14: D Filip Lundqvist placed on 14-Day Injured Reserve

Sat. 11/11: G Michael Herringer signed to standard contract

Sat. 11/11: G Hayden Lavigne placed on 14-Day Injured Reserve

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Melanie Feliciano recorded a season-high 31 kills to help the University of Evansville volleyball team complete the season with a 3-1 road win at Indiana State on Tuesday evening at ISU Arena.

Feliciano hit .333 in the victory and tallied 10 digs.  Giulia Cardona had another exceptional performance, posting a career-high 26 digs along with 24 kills, three blocks and two aces.  Brooke Springer added eight kills, four block assists and a solo block.  Kora Ruff tallied 28 digs and 62 assists while Ainoah Cruz finished the night with 26 digs and seven assists.

Game 1 – UE 28, Indiana State 26

Each point in the early moments was tied until the Sycamores turned a 7-7 game into a 10-7 advantage.  The run for the Sycamores continued as they led by as many as six tallies when a UE error gave them a 16-10 lead.

Four in a row by the Purple Aces got them right back into the mix.  Giulia Cardona picked up a pair of kills and a block assist to cut the deficit to two.  Indiana State doubled the lead back to four at 20-16 before another Evansville run sent the set into extra points.  Trailing 23-20, UE scored three in a row with Kora Ruff picking up an ace.  Both teams had their opportunity at set point, but it was the Aces who took advantage first.  With the score tied at 26-26, Emilee Schuemann had a solo block and Cardona followed with a kill to seal the win.

Game 2 – Indiana State 25, UE 21

With a come-from-behind win in the books to open the night, the Aces picked up right where the left off in the second frame.  Led by three kills apiece from Melanie Feliciano and Cardona, UE jumped out to a 7-2 advantage.  The Sycamores quickly countered with five in a row to tie it up.

In the late moments, ISU pushed the lead out to four points (22-18) and clinched the set by the same margin to tie the match.

Game 3 – UE 25, Indiana State 15

Evansville jumped out to a 4-0 lead with Blakeley Freeman recording an ace and Feliciano adding two more kills to her tally. Four more kills by Feliciano saw the Aces establish a 12-2 advantage.  Cardona tacked on two more aces and UE retook the match lead with the 10-point win.  Feliciano’s 24^th kill of the night clinched the set.

Game 4 – UE 25, Indiana State 17

Set #4 of the evening started off with multiple ties, leading to a 5-5 score.  Kills from Feliciano and Cardona, coupled with another ace from Freeman, put the Aces up 9-5.  Indiana State reeled off the next three in a row, but Evansville responded with seven in a row to open a 16-8 lead.  Feliciano added two more tallies with Ainoah Cruz picking up an ace.

From there, it was all Aces as they clinched the match with a 25-17 decision in the fourth set.

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Yacine Toumi tied his career scoring high with 20 points to help the University of Evansville men’s basketball team earn a 76-58 win over Southeast Missouri State on Tuesday evening inside the Show Me Center.

UE improves to 3-0 for the first time since the 2019-20 season on the strength of its largest win away from the Ford Center since the 2015-16 campaign.  That win was a 68-42 win over Indiana State at Arch Madness in St. Louis.

“From the beginning, we were locked in.  Our guys are so unselfish and connected and that is a great feeling as a coach,” UE head men’s basketball coach David Ragland said.  “A lot of credit goes to our scout team.  They did a great job.”

Toumi opened the game knocking down his first eight attempts before finishing 10-of-15.  He added five rebounds and three assists.  Ben Humrichous added 18 points on an efficient 7-of-10 effort from the field.  Cam Haffner and Kenny Strawbridge Jr. finished the night with 10 and 8 points, respectively.

Led by Toumi’s 12 first-half points, the Purple Aces had an exceptional opening 20 minutes.  Ben Humrichous picked up a 3-point play to open a 5-0 run that turned a 2-2 tie into a 7-2 advantage.  SEMO scored the next four before Antonio Thomas went coast-to-coast as he forced a steal and took it all the way for a layup to reestablish a 5-point lead at the 14:40 mark.

Chuck Bailey III converted a field goal that extended the lead to 19-10 as the period reached its midway point.  The Redhawks closed to within four points with 6:09 remaining in the half as an Adam Larson basket made it a 27-23 game.  That is when Evansville took control.  Over the next five minutes, UE went on a 12-3 run to make it a 39-26 game with 1:12 showing on the clock.

Ben Humrichous and Cam Haffner hit from long range during the run.  The final basket of the half belonged to the Redhawks, who cut the UE lead to 39-28 at the break.

Haffner drained a three to open the second half scoring while Humrichous had a second-chance basket to make it a 47-33 game two minutes into the period.  Southeast Missouri State responded with a 7-0 rally to cut the lead to eight points just two minutes later.  As fast as SEMO made its run, the Aces came right back.  Four points apiece from Toumi and Humrichous comprised an 8-0 stretch to give UE its largest lead of the night at 56-40 with 14:12 remaining.

Evansville continued to add to the lead with a turnaround jumper by Toumi pushing the edge to 64-45 with just over eight minutes on the clock.  Kenny Strawbridge Jr. hit a shot that made it a 20-point game for the first time and the advantage for UE would reach 21 in the final minutes before a late basket by the Redhawks made it the final of 76-57.

Strawbridge led UE with seven rebounds and five assists.  Antonio Thomas recorded a game-high four steals.  SEMO was led by Rob Martin and BJ Ward, who score nine each.  Evansville shot 53.3% on the game with the Redhawks finishing at 43.4%.  SEMO finished with a slight 31-30 edge on the boards.

On Saturday, UE will look to keep rolling with a 1 p.m. game against Ball State at the Ford Center.

ST LOUIS – For the first time in his career, midfielder Ola Arntsen has been named to a Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Scholar-Athlete Team.

On Wednesday morning the conference office announced its Valley Men’s Soccer Scholar-Athlete teams. The Aces had one representative honored for his academics and play on the pitch in sophomore Ola Arntsen. Arntsen was named to the MVC Scholar-Athlete Second Team for his work in the 2023 season. Western Michigan forward Dylan Sing was named the MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year after being named the 2023 MVC Player of the Year last week.

Over the past season, Arntsen was recognized for his academics as an MVC Scholar-Athlete Spotlight earlier in the fall of 2023. Arntsen is currently a sophomore at UE majoring in business management with a GPA of 3.68.

On the pitch, Arntsen led the Aces in playing time with 1255 minutes across 14 games while starting in all 14. The sophomore midfielder had 13 games where he played a full 90 to anchor Evansville’s back line while also contributing on offense. Arntsen scored his lone goal of the season against Southern Indiana and added two assists against Missouri State and Bradley in his final two games of the season.

Valley scholar-athlete teams are decided by league men’s soccer sports information directors based on the College Sports Communications Academic All-American criteria. Nominees must be starters or important reserves with at least a 3.50 cumulative grade-point average (on a 4.00 scale). Also, students must have participated in at least 75 percent of the season matches. Student-athletes must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at their institution and must have completed at least one full academic year at their institution.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Soccer announced early signees for the 2024 class. The Screaming Eagles are welcoming 10 players to the program for the 2024 season.

“We are excited to welcome the 2024 class to the USI Soccer family,” USI Women’s Soccer Head Coach Eric Schoenstein said. “The 2024 class is our most talented class yet. We feel they will come in and make an immediate impact.”

Josie Pochocki (LaGrange Park, Illinois) is a 5’3″ attacker from Lyons Township High School who can play as a forward or midfielder. Pochocki’s high school squad has won three straight conference and regional championships. Her team also won a sectional title and was a state runner-up in 2021. Pochocki was named to the All-Sectional Team and earned a sportsmanship honor this year. During her three years of high school soccer, Pochocki has totaled 31 points on 13 goals and five assists in 37 games played, averaging five goals in the last two seasons. Pochocki played her club soccer for Galaxy SC GA and Eclipse Select SC ECNL.

Hailey Robinson (St. Louis, Missouri) is a 5’6″ forward from the Visitation Academy of the St. Louis. Hailey has scored eight goals with four assists in the last two seasons. She played at the club level for St. Louis Scott Gallagher ECNL. She joins USI alongside her twin sister, Hannah.

Hannah Robinson (St. Louis, Missouri) is a 5’6″ defender from the Visitation Academy of the St. Louis. Coming off a solid 2022-23 season, Hannah tallied four goals and eight assists. She played club soccer for St. Louis Scott Gallagher ECNL. Hannah comes to USI with her twin sister, Hailey.

Ava Hess (Hamilton, Ohio) is a 5’8″ defender from Stephen T. Badin High School. Hess earned Rookie of the Year in 2019-20, is a three-time All-League First Team recipient, a three-time defensive MVP winner, and was All-League Second Team in 2022-23. A four-year varsity starter, Hess was an All-City First Team selection in 2023. Her high school team won District Finals in 2020, 2021, and 2023, and have won the GCL in three straight years. Hess played in 39 games through her first two seasons and scored twice as a sophomore. Hess played club soccer for Kings Hammer 06 ECNL.

Ana Munyon (Plymouth, Minnesota), a 5’5″ attacker who can play forward or midfield, hails from Wayzata High School. Munyon was a four-year varsity starter, helping her squad to a 59-11-6 record in four years including a 37-3-1 mark in 2022 and 2023 as a junior and senior. Her high school team won four straight Class 3A sectional championships and was a four-time state tournament qualifier. Munyon was the team’s leading scorer in 2021 and led as a captain in 2023 to a state runner-up finish. Munyon played at the club level for Salvo 05/06 GA.

Brittney Veugeler (Mokena, Illinois) is a 5’6″ defender out of Lincoln-Way Central High School. Veugeler was a two-sport athlete in high school. Veugeler played club soccer for Chicago Inter SC – 06/05 ENCL. At the club level, Veugeler is a seven-time state cup champion, a three-time U.S. Soccer Youth National Training Center I.D., and a 3-v-3 national champion. Plus, her ECNL regional league team was a division champion in 2022 and a national semifinalist in 2023. Her team also won a USYS MRL regional championship in 2022 and a USYS E64 Midwest Conference championship in 2022.

Gabrielle Aydelott (Centerville, Ohio), a 5’4″ midfielder, comes to USI from Centerville High School. Aydelott’s high school team were three-time conference champions and district finalists between 2020-23. The squad was also a regional finalist in 2020. In her high school career, Aydelott tallied 31 points on 10 goals and 11 assists in 31 games played. Aydelott played at the club soccer level for FC Dayton of the ECNL and National League PRO.

Emma Schut (Middleville, Michigan) is a 5’3″ midfielder from Thornapple Kellogg High School. A multi-sport athlete in high school, Schut has earned all-conference, all-district, all-region, and all-state soccer honors all four years. Schut played club soccer for Michigan Rangers 06G elite 64 NLC PRO.

Katelyn Borschnack (Kankakee, Illinois) is a 5’2″ midfielder out of Herscher High School. Borschnack was a multi-sport athlete in high school, as she also played basketball and competed for the cross country and track and field teams. In the last three years, Borschnack has totaled 108 goals and 63 assists in 65 games played. She is a three-time ICE All-Conference honoree, a two-time IHSSCA All-State recipient, and was IHSSCA All-Sectional Honorable Mention in 2021. Her high school squad has been back-to-back IHSA Sectional and Regional Champions for the last two years. Borschnack played soccer at the club level for Evolution SC ECRL and Indy Premier SC GA.

Makenzie Buss (St. Peters, Missouri), a 5’9″ wing forward and defender, heads to USI from Fort Zumwalt South High School. Buss is a three-time Missouri state soccer champion at Fort Zumwalt South. In 2021-22, she scored a pair of goals with eight assists. She plays club soccer for St. Louis Development Academy.

“Brittney and Ava are game-changing centerbacks who can control the game from the back line,” Schoenstein commented. “Hannah and Makenzie are shutdown outside backs, and Emma and Gaby are high-energy midfielders that win everything and never stop working. Katelyn and Josie are creative forward/midfielders who can score goals and create opportunities for their teammates. Ana and Hailey are exciting, fast wide players that can break down defenders and create goal-scoring chances.”