EVANSVILLE, Ind.—After nearly a month away from home, University of Southern Indiana Volleyball returns to Screaming Eagles Arena Friday at 7 p.m. to host Great Lakes Valley Conference opponent William Jewell College.
USI (13-9, 7-4 GLVC), which plays five of its final seven matches at Screaming Eagles Arena, also hosts Drury University Saturday at 3 p.m. and the University of Indianapolis next Tuesday at 7 p.m.
What’s on tap
• Archies Army will be giving away a set of Apple Airpods to a lucky USI student with a valid USI student ID at USI’s match against Drury Friday night.
• Saturday’s match against Drury is Alumni Day for the USI Volleyball team. USI also will have a poster signing with trick-or-treating as well as a free kids clinic following the match. Admission to the match for all alumni and their family, clinic attendees and their parents is free of charge.
If you go
Masks are required inside Screaming Eagles Arena and fans are asked to maintain proper social distancing while in the Arena.
How to follow
All three of USI’s matches will be aired live on the GLVC Sports Network, while live stats will be available via GoUSIEagles.com
Where the Eagles stand in the GLVC
USI is tied with Indianapolis for second in the GLVC East Division and would currently be the No. 6 seed in the GLVC Tournament if it were to start today.
USI Volleyball Notes
• USI goes 2-0. The Eagles went 2-0 in GLVC play last week, posting a five-set victory over the University of Illinois Springfield before tallying a three-set win over McKendree. Freshman outside hitter Abby Bednar (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) led USI with 3.88 kills per set, while senior setter Casey Cepicky(St. Louis, Missouri) averaged 11.00 assists, 1.00 kills, 3.14 digs, 0.43 aces and 0.57 blocks per frame. Senior libero Callie Gubera (Thorntown, Indiana) averaged 4.38 digs per set to lead USI’s back row, while junior middle hitter Taylor Litteken (Foristell, Missouri) averaged 1.00 blocks per set to lead USI at the net.
• Eagles break trend. USI broke a tough trend of struggling away from Screaming Eagles Arena. Entering last week, USI was 3-9 away from home and were hitting .176 with 11.98 kills per frame compared to the opposition’s .234 attacking percentage and 13.20 kills per set. The Eagles, however, hit .250 with 14.63 kills per set in their two road wins last week, holding the opposition to a .150 attacking percentage and 10.13 kills per set.
USI is hitting .256 with 14.22 kills per set in eight matches at Screaming Eagles Arena, while its opponents are hitting just .115 with 9.22 kills per frame.
• Season leaders. Bednar has taken over the team lead with 2.94 kills per set in 49 sets of work, while sophomore outside hitter Leah Anderson(Bloomington, Illinois) is averaging 2.67 kills and a team-high 0.56 aces in 81 sets of work. Litteken leads USI with a .334 attacking percentage, while senior middle blocker Sidney Hegg (Menasha, Wisconsin) averages a team-high 0.90 blocks per game. Cepicky is averaging 9.45 assists per set, while Gubera is averaging a team-high 4.05 digs per frame.
• Home-sweet-home. USI is 8-0 this season at Screaming Eagles Arena and have won 15 straight home matches dating back to last season. The Eagles are 24-4 all-time at Screaming Eagles Arena and have won 20 of their last 21 matches on their home court.
• Scouting the opposition. William Jewell enters Friday’s match at USI with a 7-16 overall mark and a 1-10 record in GLVC play after losing both of its home matches last week. Senior right side hitter Lily Johnson averages 2.13 kills and 0.78 blocks per set to lead the Cardinals, who trail the all-time series with USI, 8-1, after dropping last year’s meeting in five sets in St. Louis.
Drury, which takes on Arkansas Tech University Tuesday night and the University of Illinois Springfield Friday, is 15-8 overall and 6-5 in GLVC play after winning its previous two. Senior middle hitter Makina Wratten averages 2.25 kills and 1.00 blocks per set to lead the Panthers, who host Arkansas Tech University Tuesday night before visiting Illinois Springfield Friday.
USI leads the all-time series with the Panthers, 13-7, but have lost three straight in the series after falling to Drury in three sets last year in Quincy, Illinois.
The Eagles’ meeting with Indianapolis marks the second time this year the two in-state rivals will square off after the USI rallied for a five-set road win over the Greyhounds earlier this month. Â USI is 14-24 since 2000 against UIndy, but has won three straight in the series, including a regular-season sweep of the Greyhounds last year.
UIndy enters this weekend with an 11-12 overall record and a 7-4 mark in GLVC play. Junior outside hitter Grace Hegwood averages 3.03 kills per set to lead the Greyhounds, who host Rockhurst University Friday and Missouri University of Science & Technology Saturday.
• On deck. Following USI’s three-match homestand, the Eagles visit Quincy University November 5 and Lindenwood University November 6 before coming back to Screaming Eagles Arena to close out the regular-season with matches against Illinois Springfield (November 9) and nationally-ranked Lewis University (November 13).
