THE BASICS: SIUE volleyball continues its 2023 campaign on the road, traveling to UT Martin for a pair of matches. The Cougars (10-9, 4-4 OVC) will face the Skyhawks (6-14, 4-6 OVC) on Friday at 6:00 p.m. before closing the weekend at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday.
LAST TIME OUT: Despite falling in the opening set last Friday and Saturday, SIUE rallied off three consecutive set wins to down Tennessee Tech 3-1 in both matches for the weekend sweep. The Cougars tallied 20 total blocks over the weekend while hitting a combined .159 attack percentage to upend the Golden Eagles. Sydney Hummert paced the Cougars' attack with 24 kills while Priscilla Jones led SIUE with 10 total blocks.
THE SERIES: Friday marks the 30th meeting between the Cougars and Skyhawks dating back to 2008. SIUE owns a 15-14 advantage in the series but have fallen in the last five contests.
BLOCK PARTY: The Cougars lead the Ohio Valley Conference and rank 37th in the NCAA with 184 total blocks. SIUE has picked up double-digit total blocks in 11 matches, including a season-high 15 vs. SEMO on Sep. 30. Priscilla Jones leads SIUE with 81, good for second in the league. Chelsey Abel's 0.94 blocks per set ranks 10th.
100 KILL CLUB: Five Cougars have registered over 100 kills this season: Sydney Hummert (199), Priscilla Jones (197), Julia Treichel (147), Bree Schreimann (103), and Chelsey Abel (102). Hummert's 2.69 kills per set leads the team and ranks 12th in the conference.
DIG IT: Freshman Abi Banitt's 274 digs this season ranks sixth in the conference. She has collected 10 or more in 17 of SIUE's 19 contests. Hummert (199), Treichel (177), and Drifka (152) are the only other Cougars to tally 100 or more digs this season.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLE: Hummert has tallied double-doubles in five consecutive matches, dating back to Sep. 30 vs. Southeast Missouri. The junior has nine double-doubles. Drifka leads the Cougars with 10 this season.
AT CENTER COURT: Drifka leads SIUE and ranks ninth in the OVC with 387 assists. Grace Beekman and Corinna Jones have dished out assists this season with 192 and 185, respectively. SIUE ranks third in the OVC with 892 assists, good for 83rd in the nation.
FOLLOW THE ACTION: Stay connected with the Cougars all season long by following @SIUEVolleyball on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
