(LEBANON, Ill., Feb. 19) – The McKendree University men's volleyball team is set to host its first Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) home matches on Thursday and Saturday. The Bearcats will face Lindenwood on Thursday at 7 p.m. and then Quincy University on Saturday at 7 p.m.

The game on Thursday night will act a special remembrance to men's volleyball's Kirk Jackson (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt West) who passed last January. This will mark the inaugural Kirk Jackson (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt West) Memorial Game that will continue to occur annually, always at the first home MIVA conference contest of the season, to remember a loving teammate, student, and son.

McKendree sits with a 7-6 overall record and are 1-2 in conference competition. In their last pair of matches, the Bearcats fell to Ball State University 3-1 on the road and then dropped a 3-0 match to No. 14 Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio.

Senior outside hitter Patrick Ross (Anthem, AZ/Boulder Creek) and senior opposite Zach Schnittker (Arlington Heights, IL/Buffalo Grove) lead the team in kills, Ross with 107 and Schnittker with 103. Junior Wyatt Dimke (Ham Lake, MN/Blaine) leads McKendree in hitting percentage with 79 kills on the season on 146 total attempts and just 13 errors for a .452 percent.

Defensively, sophomore libero Francisco Comas (Naperville, IL/Neuqua Valley High School) and sophomore setter Ryan Serrano (Anthem, AZ/Boulder Creek) lead the Bearcats in digs. Comas has collected 97 digs on the season for a 2.11 digs per set ratio while Serrano has earned 74 digs. Dimke and senior middle blocker Lucas Galifos (Mokena,IL/Lincoln Way East) lead the defensive efforts at the net for McKendree, Dimke with 45 total blocks and Galifos with 36.

The Bearcats will then embark on a four-game road stint with matches at Loyola Unviersity-Chicago, Purdue Fort Wayne, and back-to-back matches at the University of Charleston.