Volleyball hosts Saluki Invitational at SIU Arena this weekend

CARBONDALE, Ill. — The Southern Illinois University volleyball team hosts the annual Saluki Invitational this weekend, welcoming Alabama A&M, Miami (Ohio) and Murray State to the SIU Arena.

All SIU matches will be shown on ESPN3, with live stats available for all six matches this weekend.

Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/siu/wvball
SIU vs. Alabama A&M: Watch
SIU vs. Miami (Ohio): Watch
SIU vs. Murray State: Watch

Full Schedule
Friday, August 31
11am - SIU vs. Alabama A&M
1 pm- Miami (Ohio) vs. Murray State
5 pm- Alabama A&M vs. Murray State
7 pm- SIU vs. Miami (Ohio)

Saturday, Sept. 1
Noon- Miami (Ohio) vs. Alabama A&M
3 pm- SIU vs. Murray State

Scouting the Opponents

Alabama A&M
Lost 12-straight to start the 2017 season before rallying to finish 14-20 overall and 14-4 in the SWAC. They advanced to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship thanks to earning an automatic bid where they fell to Georgia in first round, 3-0. Last season's SWAC Freshman of the Year, setter Meredith Sieck, is back to pilot the Lady Bulldogs offense after she led the conference in assists (8.31/per set) as a freshman and was recently named to the Preseason All-SWAC team. Alabama A&M was picked to finish third in the SWAC and got the 2018 season off to a 2-1 start with back-to-back wins over North Carolina Central and South Carolina State.

All-Time vs. Alabama A&M

This will mark the first-ever meeting between the Lady Bulldogs and the Salukis and the first time in school history that Southern has taken on an opponent from the SWAC. It is the first of two matches this season against a SWAC opponent, as the Salukis take on Jackson State at the A-State Invitational on Sept. 15.

Miami (Ohio)

The two-time defending Mid-American Conference champion Miami RedHawks are coming off a 23-9 season in 2017 that culminated in a return trip to the NCAA Tournament. The RedHawks lost four starters plus their libero from last season's squad but return middle hitter Margaret Payne, who was selected to the Preseason All-MAC East Division Team. Payne hit .424 with a team-high 35 kills to lead the RedHawks to a 2-1 start to the 2018 season with wins over St. Louis and Cincinnati. Miami (Ohio) is currently ranked No. 17 in Volleyballmag.com's Mid-Major Poll.

All-Time vs. Miami (Ohio)

The Salukis are 4-2 all-time versus the RedHawks, but Miami (Ohio) has won the two most recent meetings between the two schools. The RedHawks swept the Salukis a year ago, 3-0 on their home floor behind nine kills from Payne. Prior to that meeting, the two programs hadn't met since 1996- a 3-1 RedHawks win in West Lafayette, Ind. Southern won the first four meetings between the two programs, including a 2-0 record vs. Miami (Ohio) on its home floor, from 1978-91.

Murray State

Murray State went 22-9 last season and advanced to the OVC title match as the #3 seed, where it lost to Austin Peay in 5 sets. The Racers return all six starters plus their libero from last season's squad and were picked to finish first in the OVC Preseason Coaches Poll. The Racers have won the conference in three of the past four seasons and got the 2018 season off to a 2-1 start with back-to-back sweeps of Omaha and New Orleans.

All-Time vs. Murray State

Southern is 17-3 all-time against the Racers in a series that dates back to 1975. The Salukis have never lost to Murray State at home, sporting a perfect 14-0 record all-time on their home court. The Salukis had won eight-straight matches over the Racers before last season's 3-2 loss in Murray, Ky. Southern is 85-34 (.714) all-time versus current OVC schools, and comes into having won 20 of its last 23 matches against Ohio Valley schools dating back to 2006.

Picking up where she left off

Patience Brown hit .403 for the weekend, which included .481 in the season opening win over IUPUI on Aug. 24. She put down double-digit kills in each of SIU's wins at the Cardinal Classic to earn All-Tournament team honors. The senior from Bloomington, Ill. has hit over .400 in 10 matches during her Saluki career and currently ranks second in the Valley in hitting percentage.

Strong debut

Kat Wagner finished with nine kills on 42 swings in SIU's 3-1 win over IUPUI on Aug. 24. Her nine kills were the most by a Saluki freshman in a season opener since Taylor Pippen put down nine kills in Southern's 3-1 loss to Eastern Michigan on Aug. 24, 2012 and are tied for the sixth-most kills by a freshman in a season opener in school history. Her 42 attempts, meanwhile, were a program record for a first-year in a season opener.

Nedoma's hot start

Maggie Nedoma set career-bests in kills (23), digs (11), attempts (61) and aces (2) at the Cardinal Classic en route to earning a spot on the All-Tournament team. Nedoma's 23 kills in the win over UT Martin were the most by a Saluki since 2015 while her 60-plus attempts were the most by a Salukis since 2013.

Keeping the ball off the floor

The Salukis recorded 89 digs in their win over IUPUI on Aug. 31- which were their most digs in a single match since Southern recorded 95 in a five-set win over Northern Iowa on Sept. 23, 2016.

20-plus digs

Alison Thomas recorded a career-high 25 digs in SIU's win over IUPUI on Aug. 24 and added 23 digs in Southern's five-set win over UT Martin on Aug. 25. Her 55 total digs through SIU's first three matches are the most by a Saluki since Kristy Elswick tallied 61 digs, including back-to-back 20-plus dig outputs, to open the 2006 campaign.

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