NOTEBOOK (PDF)
UNI maintained its lead at the top of MVC standings with a win over rival Drake in league play. The Panthers (10-0 MVC) have won nine of their last 10 matches heading into this week’s action with the only setback coming on Sunday against #18 Marquette. Illinois State (10-1 MVC) sits just a half game behind UNI in the race for a MVC crown with just one month remaining in the regular season. The Redbirds earned wins over Bradley, Southern Illinois and Missouri State during the week.
Perfection in League Play
UNI remains unbeaten in MVC action after another perfect week of league play, sitting at 10-0. The last time UNI opened MVC play 10-0, they went on to finish 18-0 in league play in 2011, which was the program’s third straight 18-0 MVC campaign. The Panthers have only dropped seven sets in league play, posting a 30-7 mark in conference sets.
Totally Tested
UNI’s RPI sits No. 20 this week. The Panthers are one of only nine teams nationally to have eight matches against teams ranked in the Top 25 of the RPI, joining Stanford, Illinois, USC, Wisconsin, Nebraska, UCLA, Oregon and Iowa. UNI is also one of only 23 teams nationally to have at least two Top 25 RPI wins. UNI’s schedule is rated as the 10th toughest nationally.
Redbirds Keeping Pace
Illinois State’s start to league play matches its best since 2014, when the Redbirds won the MVC outright with an 18-0 record. Illinois State is currently riding a six-match win streak and improved to 7-0 at Redbird Arena. The only season that the Redbirds went unbeaten at home in program history was also in 2014 (10-0).
Historic Stretch
Bradley has possession of third-place in the MVC standings. Bradley’s four-set victory over defending MVC champion Missouri State gave the Braves their first sweep of the regular-season series with the Bears since 1999. The Braves had not swept any Valley opponent during the regular season since 2013 and already have two sweeps to their credit after a three-set victory over Southern Illinois Saturday. Bradley swept the regular-season series from three MVC foes in 2013, which was the last time the Braves reached the Valley Tournament. Bradley’s current 12-match home win streak is the longest in school history, surpassing the previous longest home win streak in program history of 11 set during a 32-10 season in 1985. .
Big Turnaround
Bradley and Loyola are two of just four teams in the country to have an eight-win improvement from last year through matches of Oct. 21. Joining the Braves and Ramblers in the exclusive group are Stetson (9) and Florida International (8).
Team ‘18 wins ‘17 wins
Stetson 12 3
Bradley 18 10
Florida International 14 6
Loyola 13 5
Another 20 Win Season
The pair of wins last weekend gave Valpo 20 wins this year, the 15th time in Avery’s 17 seasons that Valpo has won 20 or more matches. This year marks the seventh time out of Avery’s 15 20-win teams that the program has reached 20 wins within the season’s first 25 matches. Valpo is one of seven teams nationally with 20 or more wins this season (Through Oct. 21), joining BYU, Pittsburgh, Texas State, SFA, Denver and Austin Peay.
NCAA RPI Report
The latest edition of the NCAA RPI report has been released and The Valley has three teams featured in the top-65. UNI leads the league at No. 20, while Illinois State (No. 40), and Valparaiso (No. 62) are also among the nation’s top-65. Four other teams rank in the Top 125 (Bradley, Drake, Loyola and Missouri State). As a conference, The Valley ranks eighth among 32 conferences.
AVCA Top-25
UNI continues to receive votes in this week’s AVCA Top 25 poll. The Panthers are receiving 23 points in the poll and sit 27th overall entering this week’s action.
MVC Career Digs Watch
Illinois State senior Courtney Pence sits second on the all-time MVC career digs list, while Missouri State’s Emily Butters continues to sit 4th on the all-time list. UNI’s Kendyl Sorge moved up to eighth on the list this weekend and is three digs shy of moving into seventh.
Career Digs
1. 2,656 - Ellie Blankenship, UNI 2007-10
2. 2,556 - Courtney Pence, Illinois State 2015-pres.
3. 2,423 - Alana Wittenburg, Drake 2007-10
4. 2,310 - Emily Butters, Missouri State 2015-pres.
5. 2,215 - Katie Klages, Evansville 2010-13
6. 2,202 - Kelly Broussard, Wichita State 2005-08
7. 2,095 - Julie Walroth, Evansville 2004-07
8. 2,093 - Kendyl Sorge, UNI 2015-pres.
9. 2,060 - Kasey Mollerus, Illinois State 2006-09
10. 2,055 - Jule Groves, Evansville 1997-00
This week's Missouri Valley Conference Players of the Week are Valpo's Ally Cummings, Illinois State's Courtney Pence and Bradley's Hannah Thompson.
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Ally Cummings, So., RS, Valparaiso
Valpo’s Ally Cummings hit over .500 in both of Valpo’s wins and averaged a team-best 4.29 kills/set on .520 hitting as Valpo improved to 20-5 on the season. She kicked off the weekend with a career-best 17 kills on .517 hitting in Valpo’s four-set win over Evansville, while also tying her career high with five blocks. Then, against Indiana State, Cummings led all players with 13 kills on .524 hitting in the sweep. Cummings became the first Valpo player to hit .500 (minimum 12 kills) in consecutive matches since October of 2008.
Other Notable Performances: Cathryn Cheek (DU); Ali Line (ILS); Gabi Maciagowski (LUC); Aubrey Cheffey (MSU); Piper Thomas (UNI); Emma Baalman (SIU)
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Courtney Pence, Sr., L, Illinois State
Pence and the Redbird defense continued to shine in Illinois State’s trio of wins last week. The senior collected 81 total digs for a week-high 8.10 digs per set average. She dug a match-high 31 digs against Bradley to open the week, as she was a key component in Illinois State’s efforts to hold the Braves to a .122 hitting percentage. In the Redbirds’ pair of sweeps against Southern Illinois and Missouri State, the libero collected 23 and 27 digs, respectively, while aiding in a team defense that held the Salukis to just .009 hitting on Friday. For the week, Illinois State’s opponents hit just .108, while Pence was responsible for 36 percent of the team’s total digging on the defensive side.
Other Notable Performances: Yavianliz Rosado (BRAD); Kylee Macke (DU); Elle Van Grinsven (LUC); Emily Butters (MSU); Kendyl Sorge (UNI); Keera Clarke (SIU); Brittany Anderson (VALPO)
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK:
Hannah Thompson, Fr., OH, Bradley
Thompson turned in three double-doubles in three outings last week, averaging 3.00 kills and 4.09 digs per set as she became the first freshman in school history to collect 265 kills and at least 340 digs. She opened the week with 13 kills and 14 digs in a four-set contest at Illinois State. She followed it up with 10 kills, 17 digs and two blocks in a four-set victory over Missouri State as the Braves completed the first sweep of the regular-season series with the Bears since 1999. Thompson capped the week with 10 kills and 14 digs in addition to matching a season-high with three aces in a sweep of Southern Illinois as Bradley earned its 12th consecutive home victory to surpass the longest home win streak in school history (11) set during the 1985 season. She now has a team-high 13 double-doubles on the season, one short of matching the most by a Bradley freshman.
Other Notable Performances: Marissa Stockman (ILS); Lauren Caprini (LUC); Chloe Rear (MSU); Kat Wagner (SIU)