OVC VOLLEYBALL REPORT
THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE
Wednesday, September 25
*Tennessee State at Morehead State, 4:00 p.m.
Friday, September 27
*Tennessee Tech at Tennessee State, 6:00 p.m.
*Southeast Missouri at Southern Indiana, 6:00 p.m.
*SIUE at Western Illinois, 6:00 p.m.
*Eastern Illinois at Lindenwood, 6:00 p.m.
*UT Martin at Little Rock, 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, September 28
*SIUE at Western Illinois, 2:00 p.m.
*Eastern Illinois at Lindenwood, 2:00 p.m.
*UT Martin at Little Rock, 2:00 p.m.
*Morehead State at Tennessee Tech, 4:00 p.m.
*Southeast Missouri at Southern Indiana, 4:00 p.m.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Offense
Keyana Cruse, OH, Sr., 6-1, Bonner Springs, Kan. – Western Illinois
Cruse averaged 5.22 kills/set, 1.22 blocks/set and 6.22 points/set while leading Western Illinois to a 3-0 record on the week. The senior recorded a match-high 16 kills with a hitting percentage of .417 in a three-set sweep at Charleston Southern. She followed up with a match-high 15 kills and a service ace to help the Leathernecks sweep Norfolk State. The outside hitter closed out the week with another 16 kill performance against Sacred Heart, finishing with a hitting percentage of .469. Cruse was selected to the Buc Dome Invitational all-tournament team and was named the Tournament MVP. She leads the OVC in total kills, kills/set, points, and points/set.
Others Nominated: Lilli Amettis, Eastern Illinois; Rebecca Janke, Lindenwood; Jeila Fullerton, Little Rock; M.E. Hargan, Morehead State; Abby Johnson, Southeast Missouri; Nicole Medlin, SIUE; Bianca Anderson, Southern Indiana; Jayla Holcomb, Tennessee State; Madolyn Isringhausen, Tennessee Tech.
Co-Defense
Jessie Seidel, L, Sr., 5-7, Waterloo, Ill. - Lindenwood
Seidel averaged over 5.00 digs this weekend at the Kangaroo Klassic. She led the team with 57 digs over three matches including 22 against Bradley in four sets. Seidel had 17 digs in a three-set win over Kansas City before ending the weekend with 18 against Montana in a four-set win. The libero also chipped in 15 assists.
Storm White, Ut, Grad, 5-11, Murfreesboro, Tenn. – Tennessee State
White led the team with 19 blocks for a 1.26 block/set over four matches. The graduate-student’s biggest performance came in the weekend opener versus Texas A&M Commerce where she recorded a career high nine block assists, averaging 1.8 blocks/set.
Others Nominated: A’lanae Margaritha, Little Rock; Olivia Hogan, SIUE; Keira Moore, Southern Indiana; McKenna Young, Tennessee Tech; Karli Wenzel, Western Illinois.
Setter
Carly Sobieralski, S, Sr., 5-10, Indianapolis, Ind. – Southern Indiana
Sobieralski recorded a season-high 57 assists in the rivalry match against Evansville on Friday along with recording a career high 25 digs. She also dropped 49 assists on Tuesday in round one of the crosstown battle - combining for 108 assists in two matches against the Aces. The senior extended her 20-plus assists streak to 12 games in the win against IU Indy. Sobieralski paced USI to a 3-0 record, beating UE twice for the first time as both teams are NCAA Division I programs.
Others Nominated: Allie Otten, Lindenwood; Alyse Drifka, SIUE; Janke Pretorius, Tennessee State; Jordan Karlen, Tennessee Tech; Maggie Craker, Western Illinois.
Freshman
Autumn Bax, RS, Fr., 6-2, Jefferson City, Mo. - Lindenwood
Bax led Lindenwood in kills with 36, averaging 3.27/set. Her 86 attacks were second on the team while hitting .302. The freshman had over 10 kills in all three matches at the Kangaroo Klassic. Starting off in a 3-0 win over UMKC, Bax had 10 kills while hitting .474. She followed with a weekend-high 15 kills versus Bradley before adding another 11 against Montana. She led the team in total points with 36.5.
Others Nominated: Megan Holder, Southeast Missouri; Taya Nordmann, SIUE; Layla Gonzales, Southern Indiana; Alayna Pierce, Tennessee Tech.