EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – SIUE volleyball travels to Macomb, Illinois, this weekend for an Ohio Valley Conference series against the Western Illinois Leathernecks, marking the Cougars' fifth OVC series of the season. First serve is set for 6 p.m. Friday, while Saturday's Halloween contest will begin at 2 p.m.
SERIES: SIUE and Western Illinois have met a total of 14 times, with the Leathernecks holding a 9-5 advantage in the all-time series, with the two teams splitting the series last season in Edwardsville. The Cougars are 1-4 in matches played away in Western Hall.
LAST WEEK: The Cougars are coming off a challenging road series against the top-seeded Lindenwood Lions. SIUE dropped Wednesday's match in straight sets before pushing the Lions to five sets Friday, despite taking the opening two sets of the contest.
STANDOUT STATS: SIUE features two setters ranked among the OVC's top 10 in assists.
Paige Bernstein ranks eighth with 341 assists (4.67 per set), while
Ally Hughes sits 10th with 324 assists (4.44 per set). Sophomore defensive specialist
Kinley Quast ranks ninth in the conference with 21 service aces this season. At the net, junior
Jehireh Williams is 10th in the OVC in blocks per set at 0.79.
ABOUT THE LEATHERNECKS: Western Illinois enters the weekend with a 2-16 overall record, including a 2-6 mark in OVC play. Both conference victories came against Tennessee State.
Senior Hillary Estes leads the OVC in service aces during conference play with 11 through eight OVC matches. She also ranks sixth in the conference in hitting percentage at .279 on 201 total attacks. Junior Maria Eduarda Pereira Tonella is third in the OVC in blocks per set (0.91), while senior Kennedy Adair ranks sixth in conference-only kills per set at 3.48.
