(LEBANON, Ill., Oct. 29) – The McKendree University volleyball team will make the short commute to St. Louis this weekend for a pair of Great Lakes Valley Conference matches. The Bearcats take on the University of Missouri-St. Louis on Friday night at 7 p.m. and have a Saturday afternoon matchup with Maryville at 3 p.m.
McKendree is 15-9 overall and 9-2 in the GLVC. The Bearcats are currently in second place in the GLVC East Division and sit just one game out of first place.
McKendree sophomore outside hitter
Arela Williams (San Diego, CA/LaJolla Country Day) leads the team in kills (311) and digs (316). Williams is currently fifth in the GLVC in kills per set averaging 3.38. Junior middle hitter
Sophie Fairman (Staunton, IL/Staunton) is second on the team with 216 kills and a team high .357 attack percentage, which ranks third in the GLVC. Fairman also leads the Bearcats in blocks with 105 at a rate of 1.17 per set. Junior outside hitter
Allison Schneider (St. Louis, MO/Lindbergh) rounds out the top three scorers with 204 kills along with 219 digs.
Junior setter
Aubry Dickmann (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) leads McKendree with 567 assists averaging 6.23 per set to go along with 170 digs. Freshman setter
Morgan Melchert (Mt. Vernon, IA/Mt. Vernon) has also seen significant court time with 379 assists and 154 digs. Other Bearcats to watch for include sophomore outside hitter
Amanda Geiger (Tomball, TX/Concordia Lutheran) who has put down 143 kills, senior right side
Taylor Voss (Breese, IL/Breese Central) who adds 122 kills and 51 blocks, and senior middle hitter
Lauren Apetz (Glenwood, FL/DeLand) who has tallied 104 kills. Sophomore middle blocker
Carissa Lorenz (New Lenox, IL/Lincoln-Way West) has totaled 66 blocks and sophomore libero
Ashly Schmitt (Johnsburg, IL/Johnsburg) averages 2.92 digs per set to aid McKendree defensively.
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS
The Tritons come into the weekend with a record of 11-13 including a 5-6 mark in the GLVC. Missouri St. Louis has played well of late snagging wins in three of its past four matches. The Tritons are paced by freshman outside hitter Maddy Russel who has 190 kills and 180 digs. Senior right side Hannah Miller is second on the team with 166 kills and has 48 blocks. Senior middle blocker Jessica Ploss is third in kills with 152 and leads the team in blocks with 96, averaging 1.26 per set. Senior setter Lindsay Meyer tops the Tritons with 554 assists, adding 202 digs. Other contributors for Missouri-St. Louis include junior middle blocker Lexi Rogers who leads the Tritons in attack percentage at .304 with 136 kills on 310 attempts. Freshman libero Alivia Brinker averages 4.33 digs per set with 212 in 49 sets. Missouri-St. Louis is 6-4 versus common opponents with McKendree, while the Bearcats are 6-3. The Tritons split the season series with McKendree a year ago topping the Bearcats 3-0 on Sept. 14th and falling 3-2 on Nov. 5th.
ABOUT MARYVILLE UNIVERSITY
Maryville has struggled in the GLVC this season with just a 2-9 record, with an overall record of 10-14. The Saints have a three pronged attack led by sophomore middle blocker Maddie Timmermann, who leads the team in kills (231) and attack percentage (.315) averaging 2.66 kills per set. Timmerann adds 72 digs and 58 blocks. Senior outside hitter Laura Welling is second on the team with 210 kills and sophomore middle blocker Ashley Selman is right behind her with 202 kills and a team high 63 blocks. Other notable players for Maryville include senior outside hitter Hana Michael who is second on the team in attacks with 613. Michael has 158 kills and 297 digs for the Saints. Junior libero Ali Lampen has done well from the back row posting 481 digs, averaging 5.53 per set, good enough for second in the GLVC. Maryville is 3-6 against common opponents of McKendree, while the Bearcats are 7-2 in those matches. McKendree downed the Saints 3-1 in their only meeting a year ago.
