TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State plays three home matches in a four-day span starting Friday when the Sycamores play host to Missouri State at 6 p.m.
Southern Illinois (Saturday, 5 p.m.) and Evansville (Monday, 6 p.m.) also pay a visit to ISU Arena during the homestand, with all three matches slated to be carried on ESPN+.
Matchday Promotions
Friday's match is the Sycamores' Dig Pink match for breast cancer awareness. All fans in attendance will receive a pink bracelet, and the Susan G. Komen Foundation of the Wabash Valley will be in attendance.
Saturday's match is a Blue Out, with all fans encouraged to wear royal blue for the match. It is also Alumni Night inside ISU Arena.
Monday's match is Student Organization Night. The Forest will have a table and will give away shirts to Forest members at Monday's match. There will also be a drawing for a pizza party for one of the student organizations in attendance at Monday's match.
Last Time Out
Indiana State is coming off an 0-4 road trip, which ended with three-set losses at Illinois State (25-18, 25-18, 25-22) and Bradley (27-25, 25-11, 25-14). 2023 MVC Freshman of the Year
Kira Holland made her season debut last weekend and had 13 kills and 14 digs across the two matches.
Holland had a team-high nine digs against Illinois State and led the Sycamores with eight kills against Bradley.
Emma Kaelin tallied 12 kills against Illinois State, while
Macy Lengacher had 15 digs against Bradley.
Home Sweet Home
Indiana State returns to the confines of ISU Arena for the first time since September 7 with this week's three-match lineup. The Sycamores' first two home conference matches were played inside Hulman Center.
Indiana State will become accustomed to playing matches in Terre Haute over the next few weeks, as the Sycamores play seven of their next nine matches at home. Nine of Indiana State's last 12 regular season matches are in the state of Indiana.
Block Party
Indiana State's blocking numbers have improved significantly since the calendar flipped to conference play. The Sycamores are averaging 2.11 blocks per set through their first six MVC matches, an increase from the 1.82 blocks per set that the Trees averaged during non-conference play.
Indiana State has three matches with double-digit blocks this season, most recently accomplishing the feat against Murray State with 11. The Sycamores also had back-to-back matches with 13 blocks against IU-Indianapolis and St. Francis (Pa.).
Three Sycamores had registered double-digit blocks since the start of conference play, led by
Ella Scott with 19 (1.00 per set).
Emily Weber has 18 blocks against conference foes, with her 0.95 blocks per set in conference play ranking first among MVC setters, while
Lily Mueller has 10 blocks in 16 sets against MVC competition (0.63 per set).
Milestone Moments
Indiana State has already had multiple athletes reach career milestones this season, with additional career marks also in reach in the opening weeks of conference play
Emily Weber surpassed 1500 assists for her collegiate career during the Sycamores' opening weekend of play, while also surpassing the 50-ace mark for her career during non-conference play.
Emma Kaelin reached 75 aces for her career during Indiana State's recent four-match road trip, and also surpassed 200 kills for the season during the road swing.
More career milestone marks are within reach for the Sycamores in conference play.
Ella Scott is four aces away from reaching 50 for her career, while both
Cadence Gilley (462) and
Macy Lengacher (480) are nearing 500 digs for their collegiate careers. Gilley is also nearing 50 aces for her career, sitting just two shy of reaching that milestone. Weber also sits just six kills away from reaching 200 for her career, 29 digs away from 500 in her career and 76 assists away from 2000 in her career. Kaelin sits 13 digs shy of reaching 750 for her career.
Milestone Moments
Indiana State has already had multiple athletes reach career milestones this season, with additional career marks also in reach in the opening weeks of conference play
Emily Weber surpassed 1500 assists for her collegiate career during the Sycamores' opening weekend of play, while both Weber and
Cadence Gilley went over the 50-ace mark for their careers during non-conference play.
Additional career milestone marks are within reach for the Sycamores in conference play.
Ella Scott is five aces away from reaching 50 for her career, while both Gilley (458) and
Macy Lengacher (432) are nearing 500 digs for their collegiate careers. Weber also sits just 11 kills away from reaching 200 for her career, 43 digs away from 500 in her career and 136 assists away from 2000 in her career.
Welcome Back
After missing the first six weeks of the season due to an injury sustained in the exhibition match against Ball State, 2023 MVC Freshman of the Year
Kira Holland made her season debut in last weekend's matches at Illinois State and Bradley.
Holland led the Sycamores with nine digs against Illinois State and also tallied a team-high eight kills against Bradley. She averaged 2.17 kills and 2.33 digs per set over the course of the weekend, marks which both ranked second on the team across the two matches.
Aced It
Despite a slight drop from its non-conference numbers, Indiana State has still been among the best teams in the MVC from the service line this season. The Sycamores rank second in the conference with 1.65 aces per set, while the Trees' 107 service aces are the fourth-most in the MVC.
Indiana State features a pair of athletes who have already surpassed 20 service aces this season in
Emma Kaelin and
Ella Scott, while four other Sycamores (
Cadence Gilley 19,
Emily Weber 15,
Emmy Sher 13,
Macy Lengacher 10) have also recorded double-digit aces this season.
As a team, Indiana State already has a trio of matches with double-digit aces this season after having just four such matches in all of 2023. The Sycamores had 12 aces against Georgia State and 10 against both South Dakota State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
This Weekend's Opponents At A Glance
Missouri State enters the weekend at 7-12 overall and 1-6 in conference play. The Bears lead the nation in total digs with 1381 this season. Freshmen Aniya Joseph and Rilynn Finley both average more than three kills per set, while three Bears average more than three digs per set.
Southern Illinois sits at 9-9 overall and 2-5 in conference play. The Salukis feature a pair of athletes averaging more than 2.5 kills per set in Annabelle Sulish and Kelly Franklin, while Cecilia Bulmahn averages more than four digs per set. Eva Krakowski has 52 blocks in 60 sets.
Evansville sports a 2-16 overall record and a 1-5 mark in conference play. The Purple Ace attack revolves around Giulia Cardona, who averages 5.17 kills per set and is responsible for more than half of Evansville's kills. Cardona is four kills away from reaching 2000 in her career.
Series History vs. This Weekend's Opponents
Indiana State is 4-73 all-time against Missouri State, though the Sycamores have won two of the last three times the teams played in Terre Haute. The Bears won both matches in four sets last year.
Indiana State is 25-55 all-time against Southern Illinois, with the Salukis having won each of the last four meetings in four sets. Indiana State's last win in the series came in Carbondale in 2021.
Indiana State is 47-37 all-time against Evansville, though the Purple Aces have won each of the last five meetings. Each of the last four meetings have gone four sets, while Indiana State's last win in the series was a three-setter in 2021 in Terre Haute.
Up Next
Indiana State travels to Iowa to face the top two teams in the conference, Drake (Oct. 25, 7 p.m.) and Northern Iowa (Oct. 26, 7 p.m.)
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