Indiana State University Athletics

Match 26 at Southern Illinois | Match 27 at Missouri State
Match 26: Southern Illinois	Friday, Nov. 2, 2018 | 8 p.m. ET | Carbondale, Ill. | Davies Gym
	TV/Video: ESPN3 | Live Stats
Match 27: Missouri State	Saturday, Nov. 3, 2018 | 8 p.m. ET | Springfield, Mo. | Hammons Student Center
	TV/Video: ESPN+ | Live Stats | Tickets
Full Match Notes	Indiana State | Southern Illinois | Missouri State
Series History
	Illinois State: Southern Illinois leads, 50-19 | Last match: ISU won, 3-0, on 10/6/2018 | Streak: ISU, 1
	Missouri State: Missouri State leads, 64-1 | Last match: MSU won, 3-1, on 10/5/2018 | Streak: MSU, 51
Social Media	@IndStVB | #MarchOn | Facebook | @IndStVB | YouTube

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State hits the road for one final time in the 2018 regular season with a trip west of the Wabash Valley this weekend. The Sycamores will face Southern Illinois Friday followed by a Saturday tilt at Missouri State.
 
The final road weekend for the Sycamores (9-16, 2-11 Missouri Valley) comes as ISU needs to win to stay alive in the hunt for a spot in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Additionally, a win Friday over Southern Illinois would mark the Sycamores' first season sweep over the Salukis since 2004.
 
QUICK HITS
• Indiana State hits the road one last time in the 2018 regular season.
• The Sycamores look to win their second straight match with a Friday tilt at SIU.
• A win Friday at SIU would mark Indiana State's first sweep of SIU in the regular season since 2004.
• Laura Gross ranks 40th nationally with 1,007 total attacks.
• Jade York ranks 110th nationally with 394 total digs this season.
• Melina Tedrow has moved to setter, filling in for Makayla Knoblauch over the few weeks, and has posted a double-double in several matches since the position change.
• The 2018 campaign marks the second season for the Sycamores under the direction of Lindsay Allman.
 
DEFENSIVE TREES
Indiana State is among one of the better defensive teams in the nation, entering this week's action ranked 61st nationally in digs per set (16.43) while ranking 70th nationally in digs per set (1,512).

ONE MORE FOR THE ROAD
Indiana State will hit the road for the final time during the 2018 regular season with a trip to Southern Illinois (Nov. 2) and Missouri State (Nov. 3) this weekend.
 
FRESH START (NOT BY CHOICE)
Sometimes adversity thrusts you into a role you didn't expect. That has never been truer than for Indiana State Volleyball lately as an injury has sidelined setter Makayla Knoblauch and witnessing Melina Tedrow transition from defensive specialist to setter. While she did practice the position in preseason, it wasn't until Knoblauch's injury nearly midway through the conference season that Tedrow took the reins of the Sycamore offense.
 
IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD
Indiana State freshman Madeline Williams has not been intimidated by the collegiate level of play in her true freshman season. She currently leads the Sycamores with a .285 hitting percentage and is second on the team with 56 total blocks entering this week's action.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Southern Illinois: A team still in search of their first conference win, SIU is led by Maggie Nedoma and her 10.56 attacks per set, ranking 75th in the country. Nedoma's 3.40 kills per set ranks 146th nationally and sixth in the Valley.
 
Missouri State: The Bears enter the weekend as one of the most offensive teams in the country, ranking 35th nationally in attacks per set (37.65). But don't sleep on their defense, either. MSU ranks 36th in the nation and sixth in the Valley with 17.02 digs per set while Emily Butters ranks 37th nationally in both digs (460) and digs per set (5.05).

ON THE ATTACK
Laura Gross is relentless. The senior hitter from Indiana State ranks 40 nationally in total attacks (1,007) and 53rd nationally in attacks per set (10.95). She's also a force on the other side of the ball, ranking 166th nationally with 362 digs this season.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Volleyball team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.