UNI volleyball slated to open Valley play this weekend against Salukis, Bears

UNI volleyball (5-7 / 0-0 MVC) vs. Southern Illinois Salukis (6-4 / 1-0 MVC)

6 p.m. CT | Sept. 27, 2024
McLeod Center (6,650)
Cedar Falls, Iowa
ESPN+ (Brad Wells: Play-by-Play / Beth West: Analyst)
Panther Sports Radio Network (Chris Kleinhans-Schulz: Play-by-Play)
LIVE STATS
TICKETS

UNI volleyball (5-7 / 0-0 MVC) vs. Missouri State (6-7 / 0-1 MVC)

5 p.m. CT | Sept. 28, 2024
McLeod Center (6,650)
Cedar Falls, Iowa
ESPN+ (Eric Braley: Play-by-Play / Beth West: Analyst)
Panther Sports Radio Network (Chris Kleinhans-Schulz: Play-by-Play)
LIVE STATS
TICKETS

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The two-time defending Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) regular season and tournament champion UNI volleyball team will begin its title defense starting Friday night as the Panthers open a two-match weekend against the Southern Illinois Salukis on Friday at 6 p.m. CT and Saturday vs. the Missouri State Bears at 5 p.m. CT.

Both matches can be watched live on ESPN+, with additional radio coverage available on the Panther Sports Radio Network.

Tickets can be purchased online at unipanthers.com, by contacting the UNI Ticket Office at 319-273-4849 or by email at tickets@uni.edu.

Fans are encouraged to the gold as part of Friday night's Gold Out in support of the fight against childhood cancer with a special $2 nacho deal also available at the concessions stand. Saturday's match will feature $5 youth tickets, as well as adult and youth slushies.

Northern Iowa continues its five-match homestand following a tough performance in matches against Texas A&M and No. 22 SMU over the weekend. The Panthers pushed the Aggies to four sets in last Thursday's match, and did the same on Sunday against the Mustangs. Despite the three losses, UNI has proven to be a tough team to beat at home, posting a 23-4 record inside the McLeod Center since the start of the 2022 season.

The Panthers have won 18 consecutive MVC regular season matches after last year's undefeated conference record, and have won 22 straight contests overall against MVC challengers since the 2022 MVC Tournament. UNI was voted as the preseason favorite to repeat as the league's regular season champion last month with ten of 12 first-place votes. Northern Iowa is attempting to complete the MVC's third-ever regular season three-repeat after previously doing so itself from 1998 to 2002 and 2009 to 2011.

Cassidy Hartman leads the UNI offense with 151 total kills through 12 matches, with Preseason All-MVC attacker Kira Fallert close behind with 147 terminations. Erin Powers's 15service aces leads the way for the Panthers while her 197 total digs this year are seventh-most in the MVC. Setters Sydney Golden and Reese Booth have split time on the court with the veteran Golden averaging 5.9 assists per set, with Booth notching 4.4 assists per frame, while graduate middle blocker Kacie Rewerts is second in the MVC with 1.1 blocks per set. Rewerts, who recorded her 500th career block assist earlier this season against Rice, is the NCAA's active career leader in total blocks (580) across all divisions and is fourth with 1.33 blocks per set in her career.

SCOUTING SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
The Salukis visit the McLeod Center after winning two of three matches hosting the Saluki Invitational at Davies Gym over the weekend. SIU opened league play with a five-set win over Missouri State and also beat SEMO in five sets while falling to SIU Edwardsville, 3-1.

Southern Illinois finished fourth in the league standings with a 20-win season in 2023, falling to UNI in the semifinal round of the MVC Tournament and the opening round of the NIVC to DePaul. The Salukis are one of eight opponents on the Panthers' 2024 schedule who made a national postsea- son tournament last year.

UNI holds a commanding 67-13 all-time record against SIU with 14 consecutive wins over the Salukis. The Panthers are also 44-6 against SIU under head coach Bobbi Petersen.

The Salukis are second in the conference and are top-ten nationally with 1,878 total attacks on the season and 836 total digs. SIU is also top-15 in Division I in team assists (596) and team kills (633). • Cecilia Bulmahn anchors the SIU defense with 226 total digs, tenth-most in the nation.

SCOUTING MISSOURI STATE
The Bears have dropped five of their last six matches, which included three five-set matches at the Saluki Invitational last weekend in Carbondale, beating SEMO and falling to Southern Illinois and SIU Edwardsville.

Posting a 16-16 record last season, Missouri State went 9-9 in MVC play in 2023 for a seventh-place finish, falling in the conference tournament quarterfinals to UIC in three sets.

UNI has won four straight matchups with the Bears, including nine of the last 11 meetings.

Missouri State leads the nation in team digs (985) and is third in kills (709) and assists (662). The Bears are also fourth in Division I in digs per set (18.2). • Morgan Sprague ranks tenth nationally with 470 total assists this season, with Kate Owen sitting 25th in Division I with 212 digs.

UNI volleyball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Volleyball), X (@UNIVolleyball) and on Instagram (@univolleyball). The full 2024 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.

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