MVC Tournament Game 1: vs. Illinois State
Date	Thursday, April 1 | 12 p.m. ET
Location // Venue	Normal, Ill. // Redbird Arena
Match Notes	Indiana State Notes
Live Stats	Live Stats Feed
Watch	ESPN+
Social Media	@IndStVB // @IndStAthletics
Attendance Information	Pass List Only

NORMAL, Ill. – For the first time since 2017, Indiana State volleyball will compete in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, opening with tournament host and the top seed Illinois State on Thursday afternoon.
 
RETURN TRIP
Sycamore volleyball will be making their first appearance in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament since the 2017 season when they picked up their first-ever postseason victory, defeating Drake 3-0 before falling to #25 Missouri State. The Sycamores and Redbirds will meet for just the second time in the postseason, with Illinois State winning the matchup in 2003, 3-0. Thursday will mark just the 11th appearance in the Gateway/Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in the Sycamore program, with just three of those appearances taking place during the 2010s (2017, 2014, 2011).
 
ALL-FRESHMAN
Mallory Keller, a freshman from Hudsonville, Mich., was named to the MVC All-Freshman team and has tallied a team-high 184 kills for 2.56 kills per set, which is the 16th-best mark in the conference, in addition to hitting .191. She is also 24th in the Valley in points per set, averaging 2.76. On the defensive side of the net, Keller has recorded 27 block assists and one solo block on the year in addition to 30 total digs.
 
SCHOLAR-ATHLETES
Junior libero Melina Tedrow became the first Sycamore to earn consecutive first team honors since Bree Spangler was selected from 2014-2016. Tedrow owns a 3.71 GPA in finance and is currently eighth in school history in career digs, tallying 1179 digs. For the spring 2021 season, Tedrow has recorded 379 digs for an average of 5.12 digs per set, both of which lead the Sycamores. With her honorable mention honor, Williams earned the first scholar-athlete award of her career at Indiana State. Williams currently boasts a 3.61 GPA in marketing and leads the Sycamores with 56 total blocks throughout the season and she also boasts the second-best mark in total kills (171) and service aces (21).
 
CLIMBING THE LADDER
Melina Tedrow continued to climb the history books this weekend after digging in for 34 total digs last weekend against Missouri State. Tedrow sits in eight in school history, now boasting 1179 career digs. She needs just 11 more digs to move into seventh in ISU history and surpass Stacy Stanton. The junior recorded 24 digs and five assists on Saturday afternoon against the Bears.
 
DIGGING IN
The Sycamore defense has managed to maintain their impressive national numbers throughout the season. Melina Tedrow is currently 35th in the NCAA with 5.12 digs per set and Indiana State as a team averages 18.54 digs per set, the 17th-best number in the nation. Indiana State's 80-dig performance in a three set-match with Bradley is still the fourth-best number in the NCAA for a three-set match.
 
OFFENSIVE CHANGES
Last season Indiana State saw themselves towards the bottom of every major offensive statistical category. This season, ISU is first in the Valley in hitting percentage at .201 and is fifth in kills per set at 13.04. ISU also holds the second-best mark in the nation of total attacks in a three-set match with 163 from their Feb. 15 match with Bradley. They also have the fifth-best mark in the NCAA of total attacks in a four-set match from their Feb. 14 match with Bradley when they tallied 201. The Trees are also seventh in the nation in team attacks per set at 40.11 and 40th in total kills at 965.
 
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.