UNI is the only undefeated team remaining in the Missouri Valley Conference after going 4-0 in its first-ever four-match, league-play-opening road swing in program history. Also, this is the fourth time in six seasons that the Panthers won their first four conference contests. UNI has been red hot of late, winning 10 of their last 11 matches after starting the season 1-5.
Drake (3-1 MVC) sits one game behind UNI in the standings entering this week, while Valpo, UIC and Belmont each sit 3-2 in Valley action.
NCAA RPI Report
The first edition of the NCAA RPI report for the 2022 season has been released and the Valley has four teams featured in the top-100. Valparaiso leads the league at No. 63, while UIC (No. 64), UNI (No. 72) and Drake (No. 88) are also among the nation’s top-100. Illinois State also ranks in the Top 175 at No. 151. The Valley ranks 19th as a league in RPI.
Team RPI
MVC 19
Valparaiso 63
UIC 64
UNI 72
Drake 88
Illinois State 151
Southern Illinois 224
Missouri State 271
Evansville 276
Bradley 277
Indiana State 280
Belmont 284
Murray State 302
Four in Top 100
With four teams currently sitting in the Top 100 of the NCAA RPI (Oct. 3), The Valley joins a list of 11 conferences with four or more teams sitting in the Top 100 entering this week. The Valley joins the American, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Mountain West, Pac-12, SEC, Sun Belt and West Coast with 4+ teams in the RPI Top 100 this week.
1,000 Kill Club
The Missouri Valley Conference now has six active players with over 1,000 career kills. Drake’s Haley Bush and UNI’s Emily Holterhaus each joined the list over the weekend. Bush became the 11th Bulldog in program history to hit the milestone, while Holterhaus is the 29th Panther to surpass 1,000 kills.
MVC players with 1,000+ Kills:
Alondra Vazquez, Evansville, 1,602
Paola Santiago, UIC, 1,398
Melanie Feliciano, Evansville, 1.211
Sarah Kushner, Illinois State, 1,023
Emily Holterhaus, UNI, 1,016
Haley Bush, Drake, 1,006
BEL: Going 3-0
With their 3-0 week against Valley competition, Belmont has their first three-game winning streak in conference play since 2018. The Bruins took down Murray State on Tuesday for their first MVC win in program history, and defeated Indiana State in straight sets on Saturday for their first MVC sweep in program history.
BRAD: Defensive Spark
Senior Serena Sparks has led the Braves defensively throughout her career and is nearing her position in the top 10 in career digs. With 29 digs in eight sets of action last weekend, Sparks has raised her career total to 1,180 digs. She now ranks 13th in school history and with three matches on the schedule for the upcoming week, Sparks is just 20 shy of moving into the top 10 in school history.
DU: Bush Reaches Milestone
Haley Bush led the Bulldogs to a 2-0 weekend with wins at Southern Illinois (9/30) and Missouri State (10/1). Bush not only helped Drake to team victories but also reached a major personal milestone. The senior Iowa native became the 11th player in Bulldog volleyball history to record 1,000 career kills.
UE: In the Rankings
Giulia Cardona sits near the top of several national statistical rankings. Her total of 30 service aces and 277.0 points are both 8th in the NCAA. Cardona’s 235 kills is 13th in the country while her 644 total attacks is 16th. Her averages of 4.69 points per set and 0.51 aces per set rank 33rd and 34th, respectively, in the nation.
UIC: Win #100
With UIC’s 3-1 win over Illinois State, head coach Justin Ingram became the fourth coach in UIC history to tally 100 wins with the Flames.
ILS: Redbird Arena Packed
Illinois State’s 3,257 fans at Friday’s match against Valparaiso is the most in the MVC for home matches since the Redbirds drew 3,850 on 9/13/19 against Illinois. The Redbirds’ crowd more than doubled the next closest MVC for home matches (UNI vs GCU - 1,563 on 9/10/22). The 3,257 fans are the most in the state of Illinois this season (next closest: Illinois vs #5 Purdue - 2,648 on 9/30/22) and the most the Redbirds have drawn against a mid-major in 20 years (vs Southern Illinois - 3,597 on 9/29/02).
INS: Next Level
Indiana State outside hitter Karinna Gall has stepped up her play since the start of Missouri Val-ley Conference play. Gall has three double-doubles in the first four conference matches this season, including 14-kill efforts against both Bradley and Belmont. Her 12 digs against Belmont also led the Sycamores against the Bruins. Gall has also been a netfront presence for the Trees since the calendar turned to conference play, as 10 of her 17 blocks this season have come dur-ing the Sycamores’ four MVC matches.
MSU: Going the Distance
The Bears have gone beyond three sets in seven consecutive matches and 12 times in 16 outings this season, averaging 4.06 sets per match. Only once before has Missouri State averaged more than four sets per match, playing 92 sets in 22 matches (4.18 average) during the shortened spring 2021 campaign.
MUR: Successful Week
Murray State finished the week 2-1 in Valley play. The Racers got their first Missouri Valley Conference win over Indiana State on Friday and then added their first win over Evansville in 25 years (last win was in 1997) with a sweep Saturday.
UNI: Historic Happenings
A plethora of Panthers reached significant milestones within the past week. Inga Rotto became UNI’s leader for career matches played at 139 outings while Emily Holterhaus became the 29th Panther to surpass 1,000 career kills, and Sydney Petersen recorded her 100th collegiate service ace.
SIU: Salukis Drop Two
Southern Illinois hosted Drake and UNI over the weekend and dropped both matches (1-3, 0-3). The Salukis drop to 9-7 (2-2 MVC) on the year as they hit the road this weekend and head to Evansville and Indiana State
VU: Dominating Difficult Foe
Valpo’s win on Friday not only kicked off the program’s first sweep of the central Illinois road trip since joining the MVC, it also came against the team’s most difficult opponent. The victory was just Valpo’s second in 12 matchups against the Redbirds as MVC foes.
Valpo had not held Illinois State to fewer than 18 points in a set to 25 in any of the first 11 matchups between the two programs since joining the Valley, and then did so in all three set wins on Friday.
This week's Missouri Valley Conference Volleyball Players of the Week are Belmont's Kristen Clemons, UNI's Sydney Petersen and Valpo's Emma Hickey.
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Kristen Clemons, Jr., MB, Belmont
Clemons helped power Belmont to a 3-0 week in Valley play, collecting 44 kills on an eye-popping .395 hitting percentage from her middle position. The junior tallied 17 kills on .500 hitting in a three-set sweep of Indiana State on Saturday, her birthday, averaging 5.67 kills per set. In Tuesday’s win over Murray State, Belmont’s first ever MVC victory, Clemons set a new career-high with four service aces, pairing that with 11 kills to help the Bruins win on the road at Racer Arena for the first time since 2015. Over the three-match winning streak, Clemons collected 11 kills on .400 hitting against Murray State, 16 kills on .303 hitting in a thrilling win over Evansville, and 17 kills on .500 hitting against Indiana State. The junior chipped in six total blocks and five total service aces to finish with 52.5 points over the span of the week.
Other Notable Performances: Karagan Coggin (BU); Haley Bush (DU); Becca Oldendorf (UIC); Karinna Gall (INS); Manuela Ibarguen (MOST); Bailey DeMier (MUR); Emily Holterhaus (UNI); Ceci Bulmahn (SIU); Miranda Strongman (VU)
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Sydney Petersen, Sr., L, UNI
Sydney Petersen posted 5.43 digs per set, a perfect 1.000 reception percentage, and her 100th collegiate ace last week as UNI went 2-0 to improve to 4-0 in MVC play. Petersen opened with a season-best and near-career-high 24 digs Friday at Missouri State and supported UNI’s offense with eight assists in a 3-1 triumph. She added 14 more digs Saturday in a 3-0 Panther victory at Southern Illinois. Petersen did not allow any opposing aces on 23 receptions while her own serving produced a near-league-leading 0.57 aces per set for the week with three service winners Saturday featuring the 100th ace of her career.
Other Notable Performances: Rachel McBride (BEL); Kaity Weimerskirch (ILS); Azyah Green (MOST); Dahlia Miller (MUR); Elise Swistek (VU)
MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK:
Emma Hickey, Fr., L, Valparaiso
The nation’s leading freshman in digs/set, ranking 14th overall, and the MVC leader in digs/set, Hickey enjoyed another strong week anchoring Valpo’s back-row defense. Hickey tied for match-high honors in digs in early-week action at UIC before tallying back-to-back 20+ dig efforts as Valpo swept the central Illinois road swing for the first time since joining the MVC. Hickey’s 23 digs helped limit preseason MVC favorite Illinois State to .067 hitting, the second-worst hitting percentage by a Valpo opponent this season. She followed with a team-high 26 digs in the win at Bradley, six of which came in the fifth set as the Beacons held the Braves to .088 hitting in the deciding frame. Hickey has now posted 20+ digs in 12 of the first 17 matches of her career - three more times than any of Valpo’s esteemed lineage of liberos in their respective rookie seasons. For the week, Hickey averaged 5.25 digs/set - the fifth time in six weeks she has averaged better than five digs per set.
Other Notable Performances: Brooke Gilleland (BEL); Addison Beagle (DU); Jasslyn Ford (INS); Lucca Dunser (MOST); Federica Nuccio (MUR)