Saturday will be the annual "Think Pink! Breast Cancer Awareness Night" with all fans attending the game asked to wear pink to show their support for breast cancer research.

The Sycamores (9-8 overall and 1-5 in the Valley) had a tough road trip this past weekend as they dropped a 1-3 decision at Drake and then lost 0-3 at Creighton. Indiana State is 1-1 on the home court in Valley action this season and is looking for a pair of victories this weekend to break a three-game losing streak as they near the halfway point of the MVC campaign. The Sycamores are 5-4 in the ISU Arena this season including a 4-3 non-conference mark.

Sophomore Molly Murphy had her best game as a Sycamore against Creighton Saturday night and recorded her first double-double with 12 kills and 13 digs. Murphy knocked down a career high 12 kills on a career high 41 attempts with just six errors for a .146 hitting percentage while also posting a career high 13 digs in the contest.

Sophomore Monique Morris recorded her fourth double-double of the season at Drake on Friday as she led Indiana State with 14 kills and 22 digs. She also had two service aces and an assist in the contest.

Salukis working hard for victories

Southern Illinois has been working hard for victories recently with three of their last five games going five sets and the other two going four. Junior setter Rachael Brown has been a big reason that SIU has won three of their last four contests averaging 11.61 assists per set over the last four games. She currently ranks fourth on the Saluki all-time career list with 2,816 career assists.

Evansville goes five sets in three of last six games

The Purple Aces are mired in a six-match losing streak but the record has not been indicative of their play. Half of those losses have come in five sets while another was in four. The main stat that jumps out from the five-set losses has been the Aces performances in the deciding game. UE has failed to score more than 12 points in all three of the fifth sets while spotting early leads to the opposition.

SCOUTING INDIANA STATE -

The Indiana State Sycamores (9-8, 1-5) dropped a pair of Missouri Valley Conference games on the road last weekend as they fell 1-3 (13-25, 21-25, 25-23, 20-25) at Drake on Friday and lost 0-3 (23-25, 12-25, 10-25) at Creighton on Saturday.

Junior outside hitter Morgan Dall continues to pace the Sycamore offense with an average of 4.58 kills per set while sophomore outside hitter Monique Morris is averaging 2.45 kills per set, senior middle blocker Stacy Qualizza 2.29 kills per set, and junior right side hitter Shea Doran 2.00 kills per set.

Senior Shelbi Fouty and sophomore Loni Mackinson continue to share the setting duties with Fouty averaging 7.31 assists per set and Mackinson 4.23 assists per set. Senior libero Kiya James keys the defense with 4.67 digs per set while Doran also leads ISU in blocks with 0.80 per set.

SCOUTING SOUTHERN ILLINOIS -

The Southern Illinois Salukis (8-6, 2-3) have won three of their last four games including the last two in five sets in defeating SIU Edwardsville 3-2 (25-21, 25-21, 16-25, 23-25, 15-7) and Evansville 3-2 (25-18, 16-25, 24-26, 25-19, 15-10).

Sophomore middle blocker Jessica Whitehead leads the SIU attack with 3.41 kills per set while junior outside hitter Laura Thole is averaging 3.26 kills per set and junior middle blocker Alysia Mayes is averaging 2.67 kills per set.

Junior setter Rachael Brown is averaging 10.12 assists per set while junior defensive specialist Bailey Yeager keys the defense with 3.71 digs per set. Mayes is also the top blocker on the team at 0.86 blocks per set.

SCOUTING EVANSVILLE -

The Evansville Purple Aces (11-9, 1-4) have dropped six straight games, three of them in five sets and one in four. Evansville hosted Lipscomb in a non-conference battle last week and dropped a 1-3 decision (25-15, 24-26, 22-25, 21-25) and then lost at Southern Illinois Friday in an MVC contest 2-3 (18-25, 25-16, 26-24, 19-25, 10-15).

Senior outside hitter Brooke Maher leads the offense with 3.15 kills per set while senior middle hitter Kaisi Nixon is averaging 2.55 kills per set, sophomore outside hitter Lauren Seyller 2.54 kills per set, sophomore middle hitter Rachael TenHoot 2.41 kills per set, and freshman outside hitter Ashley Ring 2.02 kills per set.

Senior setter Ellen Sawin is the top set up artist for the Purple Aces with 10.28 assists per set while Maher leads the defense at 3.48 digs per set. Nixon also leds UE in blocks at 0.89 blocks per set.

SERIES NOTES:

VS. SOUTHERN ILLINOIS - This is the 55th meeting between Indiana State and Southern Illinois in a series which dates back to 1977. The Salukis hold a 39-15 edge in the series including a 16-7 edge in games played in the ISU Arena. Indiana State had dropped 11 straight to Southern Illinois before winning 3-2 in the regular season home finale. The Salukis won in Carbondale, Ill., 3-2.

VS. EVANSVILLE - This is the 60th meeting between Indiana State and Evansville in one of the longest running rivalries for the Sycamores since the two teams first met in 1981. Indiana State leads the series 32-27 and has been dominant on the home court with a 19-9 advantage over the Purple Aces including a 3-0 win over Evansville last season. That win snapped a 13-game losing streak to the Purple Aces which included a 3-0 setback in Evansville last year.

FOLLOWING THE SYCAMORES: Live stats for this weekend's games can be found at:

Live stats for the Indiana State vs. Southern Illinois game can be found at:

http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=2491

Live stats for the Indiana State vs. Evansville game can be found at:

http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=2492