Southern Illinois University
Illinois State University
Salukis return home to host Redbirds and Braves
10/28/2021 | 12:28:00 | Women's Volleyball
CARBONDALE, Ill. — The Southern Illinois University volleyball team hosts the Illinois State Redbirds on Friday, Oct. 29 at 6 p.m. before tangling with the Bradley Braves on Saturday, Oct. 30 at 5 p.m. inside Davies Gym. Admission is free to both contests and both matches will be streamed on ESPN+. The Redbirds have won five-straight, and seven of their last eight matches, heading into Friday's match while the Braves have won back-to-back matches coming into Saturday's tilt.
All-Time vs. Illinois State
• The Salukis and the Redbirds will meet for the 92nd time in a series that dates back to 1975.
• Illinois State holds a commanding 77-13-1 lead in the all-time series, which includes a 39-7-1 all-time record vs. the Salukis in Carbondale.
- Seven of SIU's 13 wins have come in Davies Gym, which included Southern's most recent win over the Redbirds- a 3-1 victory on Oct. 25, 2019.
• The Redbirds have won nine of the last 10 matches in the series.
Last time they met
- The Salukis fell in three sets to the defending MVC Champion Illinois State Redbirds on Oct. 2, 2021.
- SIU hung around with Illinois State for much of the three sets, as both schools produced high dig counts thanks to numerous long rallies and hustle plays on both sides of the net. Southern's 53 digs were its most in a three set match this season.
- Nataly Garcia led the Salukis with 11 kills and added seven digs. Tatum Tornatta chipped in nine kills, five digs and four blocks while Nsia Gittens added five kills.
All-Time vs. Bradley
- The Braves and the Salukis will meet for the 72nd time Saturday in a series that dates back to 1975.
- SIU leads the all-time series, 46-25, which includes a 22-11 record against Bradley in Carbondale.
- Bradley swept the season series a year ago with a pair of four-set wins and took the first meeting of this season in five sets.
- Southern's last win over the Braves in Carbondale came on Oct. 29, 2016 when the Salukis swept Bradley
- The two sides have split the last 10 meetings in Carbondale dating back to the 2010 season.
Last time they met
- After the Braves took the opening set, 25-18, the Salukis bounced back with an emphatic 25-20 second set win and held on for a 25-23 win in a third frame that featured three lead changes and six ties.
- Bradley, however, answered with a 25-10 win in the fourth set to force a winner-take-all fifth set. The Braves hit .368 in the fifth frame and ran away from the Salukis late to seal the win.
- The Salukis had three hitters reach double figures in kills, which included the fifth kill-dig double-double of the season for Nataly Garcia.
Leading all freshmen
• Anna Jaworski's 895 total assists are the sixth-most nationally and the most among NCAA DI freshmen.
• Jaworski's 10.23 assists per set average, meanwhile, are the 10th-most among NCAA DI freshmen.
• As far as Saluki freshmen records go, Jaworski's 895 assists through 23 matches already ranks her fourth in school history. Debbie Barr-Rednour, mother of SIU's Ryan Rednour, holds the SIU freshman record with 1433 assists in 1996. Jaworski needs 94 assists to pass Holly Marita for third on SIU's all-time list for assists by a freshmen.
SIU freshmen assists record
- Debbie Barr - 1,433
- Hannah Kaminsky - 1,194
- Holly Marita - 978
- Anna Jaworski - 895
1,000 Career Digs and counting
- Katy Kluge became the 12th Saluki in program history to reach the 1,000 career dig plateau on Oct. 11 at Indiana State.
- Kluge tallied 15 digs against the Sycamores to become the first Saluki since Andrea Estrada in 2017 to join the club.
- The junior from Oconomowoc, Wis. has reached double figures in digs in 20 of SIU's 23 matches this season, which includes six matches with 20-plus digs.
- Kluge is the ninth active player in the Missouri Valley Conference to reach the 1,000 dig milestone.
Rylee Cookerly, Valpo - 2,914
Kylee Macke, Drake - 2,360
Hannah Thompson, Bradley - 1,748
Melina Tedrow, Indiana State - 1,520
Brittany Anderson, Valpo - 1,176
Alondra Vazquez, Evansville - 1,140
Amelia Flynn, Missouri State - 1,052
Katy Kluge, SIU - 1,061
Katy Weimerskirch, Illinois State - 1,049
Putting Down Kills
• Tatum Tornatta, who put down double-digit kills in five matches during the spring season, tied her career-high with 18 kills on .485 hitting against Loyola on Sept. 25.
• Tornatta has tallied double figure kills in 13 of SIU's 23 matches this season, of which six have come during conference play.
• The Evansville, Ind. native has also been adept at changing up her shots to find open holes on the floor- she has hit over .300 in eight matches, which includes five matches in which she has hit over .400.
Filling in
• Due to injuries to both Imani Hartfield and Maggie Wallenberger, freshman Averi Vanderzille has been thrust into the spotlight in the middle.
• Vanderzille has notched at least one block in all 15 matches that she has appeared, which includes multiple blocks in nine matches this season.
• The Carterville, Ill. native also tied her season-best with five kills and hit at a .364 clip against Bradley on Oct. 1.
Swinging from anywhere
• Nataly Garcia ranks first in the Valley in total attacks (895) and has proven to be Southern's go-to hitter.
• Garcia has put down at least 10 kills in 10 of her last 11 matches and has done so in 14 total matches this season.
• The Coamo, Puerto Rico native has tallied eight kill-dig double-doubles this season, which includes 21 kills-16 digs against Drake on Oct. 8.
• The junior college transfer from Navarro College, who led the NJCAA with .73 aces per set in 2020, is tied for eighth in the MVC in total aces with 18. She has served at least one ace in nine of SIU's 20 matches this season.
• Her six aces in SIU's 3-0 sweep of Mississippi Valley State on Aug. 28 were the most aces by a Saluki since Jennifer Berwanger served up seven at Drake on Nov. 3, 2007. It is tied for the 15th-most in a match in program history.
Putting down kills on the outside
• Nsia Gittens set a career-high with 18 kills against Central Arkansas on Sept. 17.
• Gittens has now put down double-digit kills in 12 matches this season.
Getting More Involved
• Ryan Rednour has been seeing the floor more in the back row for SIU and tallied a career-high 17 digs against Indiana State on Oct. 11.
- Rednour has dug out double-digit balls in four matches this season.
• Rednour set a new career-best earlier this season with four aces against Loyola on Sept. 25.
Getting more acclimated
• Margherita Giani, who appeared briefly in just one set during the Spring 2021 season, has taken over the role as SIU's serving middle.
• Giani has 22 aces and is 11th in the league in total blocks (65).
• Giani has taken on a larger role in the offense due to the injury of Imani Hartfield, who was leading the MVC in hitting percentage before she went down.
- The Maissana, Italy native had a career match against Missouri State on Oct. 16, as she hit a career-high .563 and put down 10 kills on just 16 swings. It marked the fourth time that Giani has put down double-digit kills this season and the third time this season that she has hit over .500.
