EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE volleyball will be competing in the Northern Illinois tournament this weekend. Here they will face Indiana State, Merrimack and NIU.  

NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN: The Cougars recently saw Indiana State last weekend at the Bellermine Tournament (Aug. 29). The team took the Sycamores to five sets, winning sets three and four (25-22 and 27-25). 

SERIES: The NIU tournament will mark the first time the Cougars have played against Merrimack and the fourth time facing NIU. Against NIU, the Cougars are 2-1 in the all-time series. They last saw NIU at Valparaiso during the 2022 season where they won in five sets. 

DOUBLE DEAL: Sophomore Sophie Robinson has started the season strong with two double doubles at the Bellarmine Tournament. She had 15 kills and 15 digs against ISU and 11 kills and 14 digs against Bellarmine. Freshman Ally Hughes also got her first double double against Bellarmine with 17 assists and 16 digs. 

AT THE TOP: As a team the Cougars are tied for second in the OVC, with Lindenwood, in assists (11.59 per set) and kills (12.83 per set). Kyndia Smith is second overall in the OVC for hitting percentage (.447) , following Little Rock's A'Lane Margaritha (.513). Newcomer Vienna Elliot ranks third for blocks averaging 1.25 per set. 

A NEW LOOK: The 2025 roster features 10 new additions: five freshman (Kinley Quast, Kennedy Pike, Morgan Jones, Ally Hughes, Maddie Determan) alongside one sophomore (Teagan Sullivan), three juniors (Vienna Elliott, Anika Ivester and Paige Bernstein) and one senior (Grace Nichols). 

DOUBLE TIME: Sullivan is a dual sport athlete for SIUE. During her freshman year she competed in track and field. She was recognized as OVC field athlete of the week (Jan. 25, 2025), she also recorded a PR long jump with a distance of 5.97m, good for third in the programs all-time performances. This will be her first season with the volleyball team, marking the start of her dual sport college career. 

TRANSFER TALK: Kendal Paulus and her staff welcome four transfers. Elliott joins the Cougars after two season with SIU Carbondale, Ivester comes from Omaha, Bernstein was previously at the University of Houston and Nichols is the lone inter conference transfer from Western Illinois. 

PRESEASON HONORS: The OVC released its 2025 preseason volleyball poll Aug. 21, with SIUE picked to finish seventh. Also recognized was senior Bree Schreimann to the OVC watch list. Last season Schreimann appeared in 104 sets over 27 matches, averaging 1.62 kills per set and 74 total blocks. 

AT THE HELM: Kendall Paulus enters her ninth season in charge of the Cougars, owning an all-time record of 100-120. Paulus is SIUE's second longest tenured volleyball head coach behind Todd Gober, who coached the Cougars for 10 seasons. 

COACHING STAFF: Paulus added assistant coach Josh Comer and Graduate assistant Dante Pulphus to her coaching staff. Comer joins the Cougars after two season with McNeese. Pulphus recently graduated from Marian University where he received his Bachelor in Science and played men's volleyball.