UPCOMING SCHEDULE
2018 OVC Volleyball Championship (@Clarksville, Tenn.)
First Round – November 15
Match 1 – No. 3 Morehead St. vs. No. 6 SE Missouri – 11 a.m. (ESPN3)
Match 2 – No. 2 Murray State vs. No. 7 UT Martin – 1:30 p.m. (ESPN3)
Match 3 – No. 4 Jacksonville State vs. No. 5 SIUE – 4:30 p.m. (ESPN3)
Match 4 – No. 1 Austin Peay vs. No. 8 Tennessee State - 7 p.m. (ESPN3)
Semifinals – November 16
Match 5 – Match 1 winner vs. Match 2 winner – 2:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Match 6 – Match 3 winner vs. Match 4 winner – 5 p.m. (ESPN+)
Championship – November 17
Match 7 – Match 5 winner vs. Match 6 winner – 12 p.m. (ESPN+)
ALL TIMES CENTRAL
2018 OVC Players of the Week - Nov. 12
Offensive:
Olivia Lohmeier, OH, So., 6-0, Cincinnati, Ohio - Morehead State
Lohmeier led the team with 34 kills and a .377 hitting percentage as Morehead State went 2-0 last week to clinch the No. 3 seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. Against Tennessee State, she had 18 kills and 4 errors on 45 swings for a .311 attack percentage. She followed that up with 16 kills and just one error on 32 swings for a .469 hitting percentage versus Belmont. She added one service ace, four blocks and six digs on the week.
Others Nominated: Cecily Gable, Austin Peay; Cassie Knutson, Eastern Kentucky; Kaylee Frear, Jacksonville State; Dacia Brown, Murray State; Julie Pierson, Tennessee State
Defensive:
Becca Fernandez, L, So, 5-2, Carol Stream, Ill. - Murray State
Fernandez recorded a team-high 54 digs as Murray State went 2-0 to earn the No. 2 seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. She set a new school record for most digs in a three-set match during the rally-scoring era with 38 against Eastern Illinois. She followed that with 16 at SIUE. Fernandez also had six assists and a service aces in the two matches.
Others Nominated: Ginny Gerig, Austin Peay; Chloe Rojas, Eastern Kentucky; Jessie Wachtman, Morehead State; Rachel Henderson, Tennessee State; Brooke Gyori, UT Martin
Setter:
Kristen Stucker, S, Sr., 5-10, Johnston, Iowa - Austin Peay
Stucker dished out 89 assists as Austin Peay went 2-0 to capture its second straight OVC regular season title and the No. 1 seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. She helped the Govs hit .257 as a team. Stucker had 41 assists and two kills at SIUE. She followed that up with 48 assists, three kills, 15 digs, one block and one ace in the win at Eastern Illinois.
Others Nominated: Carly Mason, Belmont; Rachel Woody, Eastern Kentucky; Lexi Libs, Jacksonville State; Chandler Clark, Morehead State; Ashley McBee, Murray State; Laken Te'o, Tennessee State
Newcomer:
Taylor Floyd, OH/RS, Fr., 6-1, Louisville, Ky. - Belmont
Floyd recorded 23 kills and 24 digs over Belmont's two matches last week. She recorded her fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 17 kills and 11 digs at Eastern Kentucky. Against Morehead State posted, six kills and a match-high 13 digs.
Hope Everett, MB, R-Fr., 6-3, Norris City, Ill. - SIUE
Everett recorded 22 kills over the two matches with Austin Peay and Murray State. She posted a .298 hitting percentage for the week with five blocks.
Others Nominated: Addie Halverson, Jacksonville State; Allison Whitten, Morehead State; JoJo Kruize, Tennessee State; Taylor Dorsey, Tennessee Tech
2018 Ohio Valley Conference Volleyball Team Notes
Austin Peay (14-2 OVC; 25-4 overall): Austin Peay defeated SIUE and Eastern Illinois last week to win its second straight OVC regular-season title. The Govs also earned the No. 1 seed and the right to host the OVC Volleyball Championship. Senior Cecily Gable recorded her second 20-kill outing in 2018 with 21 versus Eastern Illinois. She has just one error versus EIU for a .465 hitting percentage. Against SIUE she had eight kills. Junior Ginny Gerig recorded 32 digs over the two matches, including 20 versus SIUE. Senior Kristen Stucker dished out 89 assists last week and helped Austin Peay record a .257 team hitting percentage. Top-seeded Austin will play No. 8 Tennessee State on Thursday in the first round.
Belmont (5-11 OVC; 5-23 overall): Belmont fell to Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State last week to conclude the 2018 season. Freshman Carly Mason recorded 66 assists and 11 digs last week. She had a match -high 41 assists to go with six digs versus Eastern Kentucky. Freshman Taylor Floyd recorded 23 kills and 24 digs over the two matches. She notched her fifth double-double of the year with 17 kills and 11 digs against EKU. At Morehead State, she had six kills and a match-high 13 digs. Murray State finished the season with a 5-23 overall record and a 5-11 OVC mark.
Eastern Illinois (5-11 OVC; 10-21 overall): Eastern Illinois fell to Murray State and Austin Peay to close out the 2018 campaign. Senior Taylor Smith recorded 15 kills, 35 assists and 32 digs over the two matches. She notched her fifth triple double with 10 kills, 18 assists and 11 digs versus Austin Peay. She also had 21 digs against Murray State. The Panthers finished the season with a 10-21 overall mark and went 5-11 in the OVC,
Eastern Kentucky (4-12 OVC; 5-23 overall): Eastern Kentucky defeated Belmont and fell to Tennessee State last week to close out the season. Senior Cassie Knutson led the Colonels with 50 kills over the two matches. She was also second on the team with nine assists. She notched a career-high 32 kills, the most by an OVC player this year, versus Tennessee State. She also had four assists and 11 digs versus TSU. Against Belmont, Knutson had a team-best 18 kills to go with five assists and eight digs. Junior Rachel Woody dished out 89 assists over the two matches. She posted 38 assists, eight kills and 12 digs in the win over Belmont. She had a match-best 51 assists and 25 digs against Tennessee State. EKU finished the 2018 season with a 5-23 overall mark and a 4-12 OVC mark.
Jacksonville State (9-7 OVC; 15-13 overall): Jacksonville State defeated Tennessee Tech and Southeast Missouri last week to earn the fourth seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. Junior Kaylee Frear recorded 19 kills and a .545 hitting percentage over the two matches. She had 11 kills and .526 hitting clip at Tennessee Tech. Against SEMO, she had eight kills and a .571 hitting percentage. Sophomore Lexie Libs dished out 63 assists and helped the Gamecocks hit . 234 as a team. Libs is just the fifth different Gamecock to register more than 1,200 assists in a season in JSU's Division I history. Freshman Addie Halverson had a team-high nine kills versus Southeast Missouri. She finished the week with 15 kills and 15 digs. Senior Mackenzie Rombach needs just eight kills to become the 20th member of Gamecocks's 1,000-kill club. Fourth-seeded Jacksonville State will face No. 5 SIUE in the first round of the OVC Volleyball Championship on Thursday.
Morehead State (11-5 OVC; 20-9 overall): Morehead State defeated Tennessee State and Belmont last week to earn the third seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. Sophomore Olivia Lohmeier led the team with 34 kills and a .377 hitting percentage last week. She had 18 kills versus Tennessee State and followed that up with 16 against Belmont. Senior Jessie Wachtman led the team with nine blocks over the two wins. She also had 20 kills and seven blocks. Sophomore Chandler Clark recorded 79 assists to help the Eagles hit .238. She had 48 assists versus TSU and had 31 against Belmont. Freshman Allison Whitten recorded 26 digs last week. Third-seeded Morehead State will face No. 6 Southeast Missouri in the first round of the OVC Volleyball Championship on Thursday.
Murray State (13-3 OVC; 19-9 overall): Murray State recorded wins over Eastern Illinois and SIUE last week to capture the No. 2 seed in the upcoming OVC Volleyball Championship. Dacia Brown led the team with 30 kills over the two matches. She had 16 against EIU and 14 versus SIUE. Sophomore Becca Fernandez recorded a team-high 54 digs last week. She set a Murray State record against EIU with 38 digs n a three-set match in the rally-scoring era. She added 16 digs versus the Cougars. Sophomore Ashley McBee recorded 98 assists to help the Racers hit .207 as a team. She had 54 assists, the most by a Racer in a three-set match during the rally scoring era, versus EIU. She had 44 assists against SIUE. McBee had 13 digs in each match to give her a double-double in her last eight contests. Second-seeded Murray State will face No. 7 UT Martin in the first roud of the OVC tourney on Thursday.
Southeast Missouri (8-8 OVC; 16-13 overall): Southeast Missouri fell at UT Martin and Jacksonville State last week. The Redhawks earned the No. 6 seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship and will face No. 3 Morehead State in the first round on Thursday.
SIUE (8-8 OVC; 9-19 overall): SIUE fell to Austin Peay and Murray State last week to clinch the fifth seed for the OVC Volleyball Championship. It marks the third straight OVC tourney appearance for the Cougars. Freshman Hope Everett recorded 22 kills and five blocks last week. She now has a team-leading 81 blocks for the season, marking the first time since 2010 that a freshman has led the Cougars in blocks. Fifth-seeded SIUE will face No. 4 Jacksonville State in the first round of the OVC Volleyball Championship on Thursday.
Tennessee State (7-9 OVC; 9-18 overall): Tennessee State fell at Morehead State and defeated Eastern Kentucky last week to earn the No. 8 seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. Junior Julia Pierson recorded a career-high 25 kills in the win over EKU. She also had two service aces and six block assists versus the Colonels. She had 11 kills and 11 digs versus Morehead State. Senior Rachel Henderson has 10 kills, 12 digs and 8 blocks in the win over EKU. She had four blocks, six digs and 11 kills versus the Eagles. Junior Laken Te'o recorded 75 assists and 18 digs last week. She notched her 15th double-double of the season with 45 assists and 10 digs at EKU. Junior JoJo Kruize recorded 15 kill and 11 digs over the two matches. Eighth-seeded Tennessee State will face No. 1 Austin Peay in the first round of the OVC Volleyball Championship on Thursday.
Tennessee Tech (5-11 OVC; 11-19 overall): Tennessee Tech fell to Jacksonville State and UT Martin to close out the 2018 season. Freshman Taylor Dorsey recorded a team-high 19 kills and six blocks last week. In the match with UT Martin, she led Tech with 13 kills and five blocks. Tennessee Tech finished the season with a 11-19 overall mark and went 5-11 in the OVC.
UT Martin (7-9 OVC; 14-16 overall): UT Martin defeated Southeast Missouri and Tennessee Tech last week to earn the No. 7 seed in the OVC Volleyball Championship. Senior Brooke Gyori recorded 27 digs in only three sets versus Southeast Missouri. She followed that with 22 digs at Tennessee Tech. Hannah Phillips led the team with 21 kills and a .246 hitting percentage last week. Seventh-seeded UT Martin will face No. 2 Murray State in the first round of the OVC Volleyball Championship on Thursday.