Southern Illinois University
Drake University
Salukis return home to host Bulldogs, Panthers this weekend
10/07/2021 | 2:57:00 | Women's Volleyball
CARBONDALE, Ill. — The Southern Illinois University volleyball team hosts the Drake Bulldogs Friday, Oct. 8 at 6 p.m. before tangling with the UNI Panthers on Saturday, Oct. 9 at 5 p.m. inside Davis Gym. Admission is free to both contests and both matches will be streamed on ESPN+. The Bulldogs have lost two of their last three matches but continue to rank in the top-20 nationally in blocks per set with a 2.67 blocks per set average. The Panthers, meanwhile, have lost three-straight and four of their last five, and have had difficulties sustaining and ending rallies so far this season. UNI ranks last in the league in both hitting percentage (.154) and digs per set (12.68).
All-Time vs. Northern Iowa
• The Panthers hold a commanding 61-13 lead over the Salukis in an all-time series that dates back to 1982.
• UNI swept the season series from SIU a year ago.
• Northern Iowa has won nine-straight over SIU, with Southern's last win coming in a five-set thriller in Davies Gym on Sept. 23, 2016.
• In fact, 8 of SIU's 13 all-time wins over UNI have come on its home floor.
• SIU's last win over UNI: Sept. 23, 2016 (3-2 win)
All-time vs. Drake
• SIU holds a 45-24 advantage in the all-time series.
• The Salukis swept the season series from the Bulldogs in 2019 but Drake returned the favor in the spring with back-to-back wins in Des Moines.
• SIU is 25-11 all-time against the Bulldogs at home.
Ranked Nationally
• Anna Jaworski's 658 total assists are the fifth-most nationally and the most among NCAA DI freshmen.
• Jaworski's 10.44 assists per set average, meanwhile, are the eighth-most among NCAA DI freshmen.
• As far as Saluki freshmen records go, Jaworksi's 658 assists through 17 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.
Family Ties
• Rednour isn't the only Saluki to follow in her mother's footsteps.
• Anna Jaworski, SIU's starting setter, is the daughter of Helen (Malina) Jaworski, who played both volleyball and badminton at SIU. Anna is the fourth member of her immediate family to play collegiate volleyball. Her father, John, played at Purdue Fort Wayne, while her brother, John, is a junior at Daemen College, where he is a defensive specialist for the Wildcats.
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 18 aces and ranks 13th in the league in total blocks (46).
• 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.
Breakout sophomore season
• 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 10 of SIU's 17 matches this season.
• 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 an injury to Imani Hartfield, freshman Averi Vanderzille has been thrust into the spotlight in the middle.
• Vanderzille has notched at least one block in all nine matches that she has appeared, which includes a season-high five against Loyola on Sept. 25.
• 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 fourth in the Valley in total kills (202) and has proven to be Southern's go-to hitter.
• Garcia has put down at least 10 kills in five-straight matches and has done so in nine matches this season.
• The Coamo, Puerto Rico native has tallied five kill-dig double-doubles this season, which includes 21 kills-14 digs against Bradley on Oct. 1.
• The junior college transfer from Navarro College, who led the NJCAA with .73 aces per set in 2020, is tied for ninth in the MVC in total aces with 16. She has served at least one ace in eight of SIU's 17 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.
Coming up on a milestone
- Katy Kluge averaged 3.38 digs per set in SIU's two matches last week and is quickly approaching the 1,000 career dig plateau.
- The junior from Oconomowoc, Wis. has reached double figures in digs in 14 of SIU's 17 matches this season, which includes five matches with 20-plus digs.
- With 45 more digs, Kluge will become the 12th Saluki to reach the 1,000-career dig plateau and the first to join the club since Andrea Estrada in 2017.
Pin hitter secured
• Nsia Gittens set a career-high with 18 kills against Central Arkansas on Sept. 17.
• Gittens has now put down double-digit kills in 10 matches this season and in three of SIU's last five matches.
Getting More Involved
• Ryan Rednour has been seeing the floor more in the back row for SIU and tallied a career-high 11 digs against Tulsa on Sept. 18. Rednour dug out double-digit balls for the second time this season at Illinois State on Oct. 2.
• Rednour has also served at least one ace in six of the last eight matches, which included a career-best four aces against Loyola on Sept. 25.
Acing the competition
• The Salukis currently lead the Valley, and rank 40th nationally, with 99 total aces.
• Southern ranks third in the MVC in aces per set (1.57).
• Six different Salukis are already in double figures for aces on the season, led by Katy Kluge with 22.
- Southern has cut down its service errors during MVC play, as they have finished with five or fewer service errors in all four of its MVC matches this season.
Good First Pass
• Southern tied its season-low with just two receiving errors in the win over Alabama State on Sept. 11.
• The Salukis have given up just two aces in three matches already this season- all of which were wins.
• Southern's two aces allowed were its fewest in a match in the Ed Allen era.
Hit for high % = win
• Southern has hit over .300 in four matches this season, which includes a season-high .375 in a sweep of Mississippi Valley State on Aug. 28.
• The Salukis are 4-0 when hitting over .300 this season and have hit at least .200 in all five of their wins.
• Conversely, SIU is 0-11 this season when opponents hit .200 or better.
