LEBANON, Ill. - McKendree University men's volleyball prepares to play three non-conference games this week as the Bearcats take on Missouri S&T on Wednesday, March 6, Erskine College on Friday, March 8, and Maryville University on Saturday, March 9.
McKendree enters the week with a 9-6 overall record and a 6-3 record in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association after sweeping Lindenwood and Quincy last week and appearing in the AVCA Top 20 rankings for the first time this season. The Bearcats continued the sweep with the MIVA Player of the Week awards as redshirt senior setter Tyler Poulsen was named the Offensive and freshman right side hitter Nathan Flayter was named the Defensive Player of the Week. Poulsen, who averaged 13.5 assists per set for the two victories, earned national recognition as the AVCA Player of the Week. In national statistics, McKendree ranks first in digs and second in kills; Poulsen is fourth nationally with an average of 10.76 assists per set.
The Bearcats face Missouri S&T for the second time this season on Wednesday evening as they first met on Feb. 3 and the Bearcats came away with a 3-0 victory. The Miners sport an 8-8 record heading into this week's game. Most recently, Missouri S&T traveled all the way to the University of Hawaii to play two matches.
Erskine and McKendree meet for the first time in program history on Friday night at 6 p.m. The Flying Fleet are 9-6 overall and 5-3 in the Conference Carolinas league. Erskine's last match featured Belmont Abbey College and resulted in a close 3-2 loss for the Flying Fleet.
Maryville comes to McKendree on Saturday evening for the third-ever matchup between the Saints and Bearcats in men's volleyball. The Saints are 15-3 overall with a current 11-game winning streak after most recently defeating Tusculum University in two matches, 3-0. Maryville faces Missouri S&T on Tuesday and Quincy on Friday before coming to Lebanon.
Wednesday's match will be streamed on Missouri S&T's GLVC Sports Network channel while Friday and Saturday's games will be streamed at glvcsn.com/mckendree. On Thursday, McKendree hosts a neutral site game between Lindenwood and Erskine.
