FLORENCE, Ala. - The University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball squad battled a pair of familiar opponents on Day 1 of the Noona Kennard Invitational today, falling 3-0 to in-state foe Chattanooga (15-25, 14-25, 21-25) before dropping a three-set decision to Jackson State (21-25, 16-25, 21-25) in the second meeting between those two squads so far in 2026.

Sophomore middle blocker Sophie Diouf led the Skyhawks today, combining for 24 kills (4.00 per set) on a .212 hitting percentage. Carly Mueller also secured double-digits in kills (13) today on a .242 attack percentage while freshman Addie Rosales distributed a team-best 38 assists (7.60 per set).

Defensively, Abby Freund accounted for a team-best 14 digs while Maddy Gladson and Mia Saenz each rejected a team-high five blocks (1.00 per set) over UT Martin's two matches.

The Skyhawks close out their second nonconference weekend of the early 2026 campaign tomorrow with a 3 p.m. matchup against tournament host North Alabama.

Diouf reached double digits in the kills column (11) for the first time today but UT Martin fell in its first matchup of the day.

The Mocs scored the first nine points of the opening set before Mueller gave the Skyhawks their first kill of the match. UT Martin would later score five unanswered points that included back-to-back service aces from Freund but Chattanooga was able to claim a 1-0 advantage. Mueller had a pair of kills to guide the Skyhawks in the first stanza.

UT Martin's first three points of the second set all came via Diouf kills but the Mocs went on a 13-2 run to take a late lead. Diouf then powered through with five consecutive kills for the Skyhawks as her final rally killer of the set spurred a 5-0 surge. However, Chattanooga recovered to take a 2-0 lead in the match. Diouf recorded a whopping seven kills against just one error (.462 attack percentage) in the second set alone.

UT Martin led for a majority of the third set as Diouf kills accounted for the Skyhawks' first three points. A kill from Saenz pushed the Skyhawk lead out to 13-10 but the Mocs answered with 11 of the next 14 points. A pair of kills by Mueller pulled UT Martin back within two points (22-20) but Chattanooga hung on for the win. Rosales handed out 10 assists in the final set for the Skyhawks.

Diouf's 13 kills were four more than anybody else on either side but UT Martin could not find momentum in its second match of the day.

A competitive opening set featured 11 tie scores and a pair of lead changes. The match swayed back-and-forth until the Skyhawks took their first lead of the day after a Penny Kirkham service ace made the score 19-18. The Tigers then tallied the next three points as part of a 7-2 run to close out the set. Diouf stayed hot with five kills against only one error in 10 swings (.400 hitting percentage in the opening stanza.

Diouf earned three kills in UT Martin's first three points of the second set. Jackson State eventually led by a 15-8 margin at the media timeout before a Diouf kill and service ace on back-to-back rallies trimmed the Skyhawk deficit to 17-14. However, that was as close as UT Martin would get in the middle set as the Tigers ended the set on an 8-2 run. Diouf (four kills) and Saenz (two blocks) led the Skyhawk offense and defense, respectively, in the second set.

Sturdy defense at the net midway through the third set helped UT Martin close the gap in the third stanza. Saenz and Gladson teamed up for a block assist before a Gladson solo block gave the Skyhawks a boost. Lauren Mariscal added a service ace and Gladson rose high for a kill to pull UT Martin within a single point (12-11). Despite three Diouf kills over the Skyhawks' next four points, Jackson State escaped with the win. Diouf's four kills and Saenz's two blocks once again guided UT Martin in the final set.
 

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MOREHEAD STATE 3, MERCYHURST 0
MOREHEAD STATE 3, CLEVELAND STATE 1
ERIE, Pa. - The Morehead State volleyball team notched a pair of victories on the opening day of the Mercyhurst Invitation sponsored by Scott Enterprises Friday on the Owen McCormick Court at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center in Erie, Pa.
 
Morehead State (3-2) opened the day with a 3-0 sweep (25-13, 25-10, 25-20) over the host Mercyhurst (1-3). In their second match of the day, the Eagles turned back Cleveland State (2-3) 3-1 (25 17, 26-24, 15-25, 25-16).
 
In the opener against Mercyhurst, senior outside Hollan Everett led the Eagle attack posting a match-high 11 kills and posting a sizzling .529 hitting percentage (11-2-17). Freshman Ella Warrick added seven kills and three service aces.
 
Amelia Nott posted six terminations and a match-high three total blocks. Nott also notched her 300th career block in the second set. She now ranks seventh in total blocks in the Morehead State record book for the modern era.
 
Morehead State opened the match with a four-point run to take the early advantage. A later 3-0 run put the Eagles on top 13-7 and Morehead State closed out the opening frame with an 8-0 run. MSU posted an efficient .417 hitting percentage in the first set, led by Everett who posted five kills on six swings for an outstanding .833 efficiency. Nott added three kills with no errors for a perfect 1.000 efficiency. Up front, Warrick and fellow freshman Anna Schiltz both posted block solos as Morehead State held Mercyhurst to just a .100 hitting percentage.
 
Morehead State broke out of an early tight second set with a 6-0 run to take a 10-4 run. The Eagles put a chokehold on the set outscoring the Lakers 9-2 to take a 19-6 lead. Morehead State closed out the set with a  4-0 run. The Eagles posted three more blocks up front and held the Lakers to a .000 hitting percentage in the frame.
 
The Eagles gave up the first point of the third set, then ran off four straight points to take a 4-1 lead and never trailed again. Mercyhurst improved to a .226 hitting percentage, while MSU posted a .222 attack efficiency. Everett and Warrick led the MSU attack with four kills apiece in the set.
 
Mercyhurst was led by Julia Shepherd's six kills with a .222 efficiency. As a team, the Lakers posted a .108 hitting percentage. Shepherd and middle Mia Mattingly paced the Lakers with two blocks each.
 
In the nightcap for Morehead State, Everett again paced the Eagle attack with 15 kills posting a .368 hitting percentage. Nott was solid again in the second match of the day with 12 kills while hitting .391. Warrick posted her third career double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs.
 
Morehead State used a pair of late multiple-point runs to claim the opening set over Cleveland State. With score tied at 15-15, the Eagles ran off four straight points and closed out the opening frame with six-point run highlighted by two kills from Nott and a service ace by Warrick to set up the Eagles with set point. Nott led the Eagle attack with four kills hitting .571 in the opening frame. Warrick added three kills while Everett and Anna Schiltz each recorded a block solo. The Eagles posted a .314 efficiency while holding the Vikings to a .000 hitting percentage.
 
The Eagles came from behind to claim the second set a tightly contested frame that featured 13 ties. After a five-point run to put the Eagles ahead 19-17, Cleveland State stormed back with a 5-0 run of its own to push its lead to 22-19. Morehead State mounted a rally, outscoring the Vikings 6-1 to claim the set. Hollan Everett had four kills in the rally with freshman Norah Campbell clinching the set with her first ace of the match. Everett tallied eight kills in the set and MSU posted a .171 hitting percentage in the frame.
 
After the teams traded service errors to begin the third set, Cleveland State erupted with a seven-point run to take control of the set. The Vikings took a 15-5 lead into the technical timeout and cruised to the set win. CSU held the Eagles to a .057 hitting percentage while posting a .250 efficiency in the set.
 
Morehead State used a three-point run to gain some separation from the Vikings at 9-6 after seeing six ties in the early stages of the final frame. After giving up a point, the Eagles ran off five straight points to push ahead 14-7. Cleveland State could get no closer than three points the remainder of the set and MSU closed out the match outscoring the Vikings 6-1. The Eagles posted a sizzling .462 hitting percentage in the set paced by Nott with four kills and a .667 attack efficiency.
 
Cleveland State was led by Bryn VanVleet with 12 kills. Jazen Debina added 10 terminations for the Vikings. VanVleet also posted four service aces for match honors.
 

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SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 3, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 2
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Southeast Missouri volleyball fell to Southern Illinois 3-2 on Friday, with set scores of 22-25, 25-17, 14-25, 25-20, 11-15. SEMO rallied from a 7-4 fourth-set deficit to lead 9-8 and won the set before the Salukis took the fifth.

SEMO moved ahead 3-0 to open the set, scoring on a Salukis setting error and back-to-back blocks. The Salukis worked back to a 10-10 tie on Beatriz Piaia's kill, and after the teams traded points to 12-12, the Salukis scored three straight to go in front 15-12 before SEMO cut it to 15-14 with a kill and a service ace. SEMO later tied the set at 19-19 and again at 22-22, but the Salukis took the final three points on a service error, an Ella Swansiger kill and a Chloe Anderson kill to close the set 25-22.

SEMO built early leads of 4-1 and 6-3, but the Salukis stayed close and used kills by McKenzie Moeller and Carlota Mora to get within 9-8. SEMO answered by winning the next six points, using five kills and a service ace to move ahead 15-8. After the Salukis trimmed the margin to 16-11, SEMO took four straight points to extend the lead to 20-11. SEMO reached set point at 24-15, and after the Salukis scored twice, a service error closed the set at 25-17.

The third set stayed level through 6-6 before SEMO used a Salukis attack error and a kill to move ahead 8-6. The Salukis came back to tie it at 10-10 on a service error and a block, and after SEMO pulled even at 11-11, the home side scored six straight points behind kills from Carlota Mora and Ella Swansiger to lead 17-11. SEMO traded sideouts to get to 13-18, but the Salukis scored the next six points, with Beatriz Piaia involved in a block and a kill and Alexandria Arrington adding two kills, before a final Mora kill closed the set 25-14.

After the Salukis used a Lillian Dempkey service turn to go ahead 6-2, SEMO worked back from 7-4 with kills by Marin Johnson, Alaina Lester and Reagan Nelson, moving in front 8-7 before an attack error by Ella Swansiger made it 9-8. The teams traded points to 12-12, but SEMO took the next three on two Salukis attack errors around a Johnson kill to build a 15-12 lead. The Salukis stayed within 18-17 on a Chloe Anderson service ace, but SEMO answered with kills by Nelson and Johnson during a three-point push to 21-17 and later reached 24-18 on consecutive Salukis attack errors. The Salukis took the next two points before Paige Smith closed the set with a kill for a 25-20 SEMO win.

SEMO moved ahead 2-0 to start the fifth set and stayed in front through an 8-6 edge after a kill and a service ace. The Salukis answered with kills from Natalie Vance and Beatriz Piaia to tie it at 8-8, and the teams continued trading points until the Salukis moved ahead 10-9. SEMO pulled even again at 10-10 and 11-11, but the Salukis closed the set with four straight points on kills by McKenzie Moeller, Chloe Anderson, Ella Swansiger and Alexandria Arrington to take the set 15-11.
 

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SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 3, WESTERN ILLINOIS 0
BRADLEY 3, WESTERN ILLINOIS 0
BROOKINGS, S.D. - The Western Illinois Volleyball team had their first two games of the SDSU Invitational on Friday, September 4th, against South Dakota State and Bradley.

The first game at South Dakota State, ended with a final score of 0-3, with each set ending 15-25, 22-25, and 22-25 respectively.

The first set was one where the Leathernecks started out down 0-5, which proved to be a very difficult hole to climb out of. The team was able to fight back and try to bring the score back to even, but was unable to get the job done.

Western Illinois played back and forth with South Dakota State each of the last two sets, with both sets having multiple ties/lead changes. Ultimately, the Leathernecks were not able to go on the late run needed to win either set, and the team dropped both with identical 22-25 scores, meaning that the final score was 3 sets SDSU to 0 sets Western Illinois.

The Leathernecks were led in kills by Georgia Haynes with 9, and Emilia Kouri and Kennedy Adair having 7 and 6 kills respectively. Both Jaleah Bauss and Alysia Perez had 12 assists, which was tied for the team lead and made them the only girls with more than 3 assists for the Leathernecks. Grace Ulatowski had 18 digs which led the team by a wide margin, with the next closest number being 9 by Kennedy Adair. Hillary Estes led the team with 3 block assists as well, with Georgia Haynes not far behind with 2 block assists.

Sylvie Zgonc led SDSU with 20 kills, the only Jackrabbit to have above 10 kills. Brooke Larson and Rylee Martin both had 19 assists, which was the Co-lead for the Jackrabbits. Joslyn Richardson led with 16 digs, and Claire Logeais led with 4 blocks.

The second match of the day was against Bradley, and was one that the Leathernecks fell by a score of 0-3. Much like the match against South Dakota State, the team improved each set, with the two final sets having multiple ties/lead changes, but the first set did end by a score of 15-25.

The first set was one where Western Illinois was down 6-1 early, and was unable to go on a run to cultivate a comeback.The second set saw the Leathernecks jump out to an early 6-4 lead, and were tied throughout the set, including scores of 16-16 and 20-20, but a late run by Bradley saw them capture the set 21-25.

The third and final set of the match ended by a final score of 22-25, and saw the Leathernecks go on a late run, being down 16-23 at one point, before going on a 6-2 run, which ultimately was too late for Western Illinois in this match.

The Leathernecks were led in this match by Hillary Estes in kills with 6, and followed by 3 different girls with 5 kills a piece, and 2 more girls with 3 kills. Jaleah Bauss had 15 assists, which led the Leathernecks, and Alysia Perez was not far behind with 9 assists. Kennedy Adair led the team with 7 digs, followed by Grace Ulatowski with 6 digs. The Leathernecks were able to hit .310 as a team, which has been the best mark of the season thus far.

Gracie Furlong led Bradley with 15 kills, the only Brave who surpassed the 10 kill mark. Maria Drapp had 30 assists in the game, which was by far the most for the Braves, with nobody else having more than 5. Gracie Furlong also led the team with 12 digs, with the next highest being Megan Depoorter.
 

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GREEN BAY 3, TENNESSEE STATE 0
AUSTIN PEAY 3, TENNESSEE STATE 0
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee State volleyball showed offensive improvement throughout Friday's opening day of the Golden Eagle Invitational, but the Tigers dropped a pair of matches to Green Bay and Austin Peay at the Eblen Center.

TSU (0-5) fell to Green Bay 25-14, 25-18, 25-13 before closing the day with a 25-16, 25-14, 25-18 loss to Austin Peay.

Sydney Robinson led the Tennessee State attack in the opener, finishing with 10 kills on 19 attempts and a .421 hitting percentage. Gabrielle Washington added four kills without an error on five swings for an .800 hitting percentage, while Carsyn Stansberry recorded four kills.

The Tigers improved offensively as the match progressed. After hitting .034 in the opening set, TSU increased its percentage to .185 in the second and .200 in the third. Tennessee State finished with 25 kills and a .136 hitting percentage.

Sydni Poston recorded two of TSU's service aces, while Triniti Jackson finished with 13 assists and Italya Carter added seven. Jackson, Robinson, Jordan Imperial and Poston each recorded four digs.

Green Bay hit .379 for the match and finished with 46 kills.

Washington provided one of the Tigers' strongest performances at the net in Friday's second match. The middle blocker finished with six kills on 11 attacks, hitting .364, and contributed five block assists.

Robinson and Wiktoria Jakubik each added seven kills. Jakubik also recorded four block assists, while Robinson served two aces. Jackson directed the offense with 21 assists and added a team-high 12 digs, two block assists and a solo block. Imperial finished with 10 digs.

TSU's defense at the net produced 10 block assists and one solo block. The Tigers also held Austin Peay to a .105 hitting percentage in the third set.

Tennessee State finished the match with 25 kills, 24 assists, 34 digs and three service aces.
 

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LINDENWOOD 3, PORTLAND STATE 0
DEKALB, Ill. - The Lindenwood women's volleyball team (3-1) earned a decisive 3-0 win over Portland State (1-3) in their opening match of the NIU Invitational on Friday afternoon. The Lions hit over .300 as a team for the first time since October 17th of last season.

Lindenwood trailed 21-20 in the opening set but finished the frame with five consecutive points to take a 25-21 win. Susanna Beretti, Ashley Geluck, and Kylee Richey each recorded four kills to lead the Lions.

LU led by as many as eight points in the second set, but after the Lions took an 18-10 lead, the Vikings put together an 8-2 run to cut their deficit to just a pair. However, following timeout, Lindenwood scored five of the next seven points to win the set 25-20. Lauren Ortwerth posted eight kills in the frame after a quiet opening set.

Lindenwood led for the entirety of set three to secure a 25-18 win and complete the sweep. The Lions hit .371 in the frame while limiting Portland State to a hitting percentage of .167. Ashley Geluck led LU with six terminations in the set.

Geluck finished the afternoon as Lindenwood's scoring leader, registering 14.5 points on 13 kills and three block assists. She was followed by Susanna Beretti, who was also in double digit kills with 11 terminations while adding one block.

Kaci Johnson had another strong outing with 30 assists, averaging 10 helpers per set and setting up the Lions for a .303 team hitting percentage.

Defensively, Dana Grib led Lindenwood with 13 digs (4.33 DPS) while Kylee Richey matched Geluck for the team lead in blocks with three rejections, including one solo effort.
 

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MARIST 3, SIUE 2
DENVER - SIUE volleyball battled Marist University through five sets Friday evening in their second match of the Denver Invitational, but the Cougars ultimately fell to the Red Foxes in a tightly contested match.  
 
SIUE claimed the first and third sets, taking a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth. Marist then responded by taking the fourth set to force a fifth, where they would ultimately rally from behind to claim the win.
 
The Cougars held the statistical advantage in several categories, recording more points, aces, blocks, assists, and digs than the Red Foxes. However, it was SIUE's 30 errors compared to Marist's 19 that they were unable to overcome.
 
Individually, Kennedy Pike led the Cougars with a career-high 15 kills, while freshman Georgia Bresnahan continued her strong start to her collegiate career, becoming the Cougars' first player to record a double-double on the season with 12 kills and 13 digs.
 

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GEORGIA TECH 3, SOUTHERN INDIANA 0
CAMPBELL 3, SOUTHERN INDIANA 1
ATLANTA - University of Southern Indiana Volleyball dropped a pair of matches to the Georgia Institute of Technology and Campbell University to open 2026's road matches at the Georgia Tech Classic.
 
To start the day, USI fell to Georgia Tech in three sets and wrapped up the night with a tough four-set battle against Campbell. The Screaming Eagles move to 2-3 for the season.
 
Georgia Tech was one spot out in the NCAA top 25 poll, as the Yellow Jackets received 126 votes. The match marks the first of four 2025 NCAA Tournament teams the Screaming Eagles will face over Labor Day weekend.
 
The Screaming Eagles came out strong in the first set against GT, falling just short of claiming the set. Senior Leah Coleman led the team's offense, adding four kills off nine swings for a .444 hitting percentage. Sophomore Mackenzie Nettles made her presence known defending the USI net, adding three blocks.
 
USI built off the first set, battling hard in the second frame. Coleman doubled her kills from the first set, tallying four more.  Setter Aysa Thomas snuck two kills over, keeping the Yellow Jacket defense on their toes. Senior Ashby Willis led the USI back row, picking up five digs
 
Maintaining hold of the lead up until the final two points, the Screaming Eagles fought hard the entirety of the final set. Junior Kerigan Fehr dropped two aces on the Yellow Jackets to help turn the tide in pivotal moments. Thomas dished out a balanced offense with 10 assists and giving kills to five different Screaming Eagles, along with tallying two more herself. Thomas and Nettles also stayed active on the net, adding two blocks each to the team's total.
 
Overall, USI competed well with its first Power-Four matchup of the season, out-blocking the Yellow Jackets 7-6 and hitting a .168 team hitting percentage.
 
Coleman led the team with her season-high 10 kills, along with two blocks. Thomas dished out a total of 24 assists, along with six digs and a season-high five kills. Nettles led the court with a career-high six blocks, along with three kills.
 
Sophomore Carley Wright started the game against the Campbells strong, landing five kills on nine swings and no errors. Willis closely followed her with four kills, while Thomas worked to dish out the offense with 10 assists and a team-high six digs.
 
The Screaming Eagles and the Camels went point-for-point in the second frame, as USI pulled ahead to win it in the final three points. Wright continued her set one performance, adding another six kills on ten swings with zero errors, hitting a game-high .600 percent. Thomas added another 10 assists and three digs.
 
Willis led the court in the third frame with six kills, while Wright followed close behind with three. The USI block slowed the Camels down as Willis and Nettles combined for two blocks. Fehr, Willis, and Wright all landed an ace each, and six different Screaming Eagles tallied at least two digs.
 
Wright had her best set of the game, battling until the very end for a win. She landed eight kills on 13 swings with just one error, hitting .538. Libero Audrey Small picked up seven digs, and Willis and Thomas added four each. Thomas tallied 14 assists, balancing the offense between Wright and Willis, who added six kills. With 20 kills and just eight errors, the USI offense had its most efficient frame of the day, recording a .273 hitting percentage.
 
Overall, Wright recorded a career-high 22 kills, and with just three errors, she recorded the most efficient game of her career at .463. The sophomore also tallied 10 digs, to mark one of three players with double-doubles in the match.
 
Willis finished with a season-high 20 kills and tied for a team-high 16 digs along with four blocks. Thomas dished out a season-high 44 assists with 16 digs.
 

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LONG BEACH STATE 3, EASTERN ILLINOIS 0
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Eastern Illinois suffered a setback against Long Beach State 3-0 at the BYU/Utah Nike Invitational. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 1-4 (0-0 OVC), while Long Beach State improves to 1-2 (0-0 Big West).  

The Panthers offense went cold through the first two sets, finishing with a .033% and .108, hindering EIU from finding their rhythm. Long Beach State outpaced the Panthers in kills 50-29.  

Eastern Illinois found a spark to build off in the third set, finishing with a 0.276% hitting percentage and 11 kills. The Panthers also limited their errors to just three in the set.  

EIU held a slim 15-14 lead heading into the media timeout but was unable to contain Long Beach State's high-powered offense. EIU fell 25-21, closing out the match in three sets.