THE COUGARS: Continue their 2022 campaign on Friday, Oct. 21 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 22 at 2:00 p.m. when SIUE travels to Tennessee State. The Cougars are 5-3 in their last eight matches.
LAST TIME OUT: The Cougars dropped a pair of road matches last weekend at Tennessee Tech, falling 3-0 in both games. Since 2011, SIUE is 4-10 against the Golden Eagles and have lost their last six matchups.
Priscilla Jones led the Cougars with nine kills, four blocks, and a .500 attack percentage on Friday. She followed up her performance with eight kills, two blocks and a service ace on Saturday. Alyse Drifka was SIUE's top setter last weekend, dishing out 17 assists in each game. Nicole Kijowski racked up 18 digs combined on defense.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: After playing its first 14 matches of the season on the road, SIUE is amid a five-game road trip. The Cougars are 0-2 on their midseason road swing so far and are 2-6 this season when playing as the visitors.
SERIES STUFF: The Cougars will face Tennessee State for the 14th time in program history on Friday dating back to 2010. SIUE is 7-6 against the Tigers and have taken five of the last eight matches in Nashville. Last season, the two schools split a pair of matches at Tennessee State.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS: Tennessee State is 9-14 and 3-7 in OVC play after splitting with Lindenwood last weekend. The Tigers have dropped four of their last five matches and are 6-2 at home this season.
Johanna Alcantara leads the Tigers with 278 kills this season, good for first in the OVC. Gina Rivera-Ortiz is Tennessee State's top defender with 427 digs this season which ranks fourth in the country.
100 KILL CLUB: Five Cougars have recorded over 100 kills on the offensive end this season: Sydney Hummert (215), Savannah Christian (179), Julia Treichel (163), Priscilla Jones (139), and Ainsley Ranstead (125).
INDIVIDUAL CONFERENCE RANKS: Sydney Hummert holds the tenth spot in the OVC with 2.93 kills per set. Caroline Waite's 468 assists and 6.30 assists per set rank seventh. Nicole Kijowski's 4.44 digs and 327 total digs are good for fifth in the conference.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sydney Hummert earned Offensive Player of the Week  honors in the OVC Sep. 19. after recording double-doubles each match at the Green Bay Invitational. She led the Cougars with 43 kills and a team-high 3.58 digs per set.
AT THE HELM: Head Coach Kendall Paulus is beginning her sixth season in charge of the Cougars. She owns a career record of 72-79 as head coach.
