SOUTHERN INDIANA LIVE STATS | SOUTHERN INDIANA LIVE VIDEO

(LEBANON, Ill., Sept. 14)--The McKendree University volleyball team continues its season-opening 11-match road trip this weekend when it debuts in the Great Lakes Valley Conference this weekend. The Bearcats will head to the University of Southern Indiana for a Friday night match before taking on Kentucky Wesleyan College Saturday afternoon.

McKendree enters the weekend with a 4-4 record after winning the championship at the Arkansas Tech University Spikefest Sept. 7-8. The Bearcats won all four matches, including a pair of five-set thrillers on the final day of the event against Lindenwood University and host Arkansas Tech. Freshman Lauren Apetz (Glenwood, FL/DeLand) earned tournament Most Valuable Player honors after registering 56 kills in the four matches. Junior Abby Hanger (Belleville, IL/Belleville West) joined Apetz on the All-Tournament team as she collected 184 assists on the weekend.

Junior Maddie Kelly (Lake Saint Louis, MO/Timberland) anchored the back row in the Bearcats' tournament victory at Arkansas Tech. She had 91 digs in the four wins. For her efforts, Kelly was named as the GLVC Defensive Player of the Week, becoming the first McKendree volleyball player to be honored by the league.

Southern Indiana -- which is located in Evansville -- has an overall record of 2-7 on the year. The Screaming Eagles dropped their first seven matches before winning the last two, including a four-set victory over Cedarville University on Tuesday. Southern Indiana is in the midst of a four-match home stand.

Heading into its GLVC opener on Friday against Bellarmine University, Kentucky Wesleyan is 3-6 overall. The Panthers enter the weekend on a two-match losing streak after winning three of four in the Kentucky Wesleyan Classic last weekend in Owensboro, Ky.

McKendree, Southern Indiana and Kentucky Wesleyan are all based in the East Division of the GLVC. In the conference's pre-season poll, McKendree was picked to finish seventh in the league. Southern Indiana earned the No. 3 spot in the ranking in the East Division, while Kentucky Wesleyan grabbed the No. 8 spot.

Through eight matches, Apetz leads McKendree with 97 kills and 19 blocks. She ranks third in the GLVC in kill percentage (.363) and is ninth in overall kills per set (3.13). Hanger has a team-high 313 assists, averaging nearly 10 per set. Hanger is sixth in the GLVC in assists per set. Kelly has posted 159 digs in the eight matches, and her 4.97 dig-per-set average is second in the conference.

Bearcat fans can follow the live stats and watch live video from Friday's match at Southern Indiana by clicking on the links listed above. There are no live events scheduled for the Kentucky Wesleyan contest.