Southern Illinois University
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Saluki Volleyball opens 2021 season at Southern Miss Classic
08/26/2021 | 11:31:00 | Women's Volleyball
The Southern Illinois University volleyball team will open the 2021 season in Hattiesburg, Miss. for the Southern Miss Classic. The Salukis will open their season against the University of Louisiana at Lafayette on Friday at 12:30 p.m. Southern will then take on Southern Miss at 7:30 p.m. on Friday before closing out play on Saturday against Mississippi Valley State at 2:30 p.m.
Scouting the oppositionÂ
University of Louisiana at LafayetteÂ
- Under the direction of first-year head coach Kristi Gray, the 2021 roster for Louisiana features nine returning players and nine newcomers who are back from a 2020 season that saw the Ragin Cajuns' post back-to-back double-digit win seasons in Sun Belt Conference play. Back for Louisiana are 2020 All-Sun Belt performers Kelsey Bennett and Kara Barnes. Last season, Bennett averaged a career-best 3.2 kills and digs per set while Barnes hit .311. The Ragin Cajuns went 17-7, which included 11-5 in Sun Belt play, during the 2020 season.
- Friday's matchup will mark the first-ever meeting between the Salukis and the Ragin Cajuns.
- Southern is 8-15 all-time against Sun Belt foes, with its last win over a Sun Belt opponent coming on Aug. 31, 2012 in a 3-1 win over South Alabama at the Billiken Invitational. Friday's matchup marks the first time since 2018 that SIU has faced off against a Sun Belt opponent.
University of Southern Mississippi
- Head coach Stephanie Radecki, now in her fourth season with Southern Miss, has 13 returners from last season's squad that went 9-10 during the spring. Senior outside hitter ??Duquesne Moratzka returns following a strong 2020-21 season where she earned Second Team All-Conference USA honors.
- This weekend's matchup will mark the first-ever meeting between the Golden Eagles and the Salukis. Southern holds a 10-6 all-time record against Conference USA foes, with its last win over a C-USA opponent coming on Aug. 31, 2019 with a four-set win over Middle Tennessee State at the Maria Hamilton Classic, hosted by St. Louis.
Mississippi Valley StateÂ
- Mississippi Valley State went 0-10 during the spring season. The Devilettes won just one set during a challenging spring and were picked to finish 12th in the SWAC Preseason Poll.
- Southern and MVSU will tangle for the first time in program history on Saturday.Â
- The Salukis hold a perfect 4-0 all-time record against SWAC opponents. SIU has knocked off a SWAC program in two of the last three seasons, with its last win over a SWAC opponent coming on Sept. 14, 2019 in a five-set win over Alabama State.
Season OpenersÂ
- The Salukis are 27-20 all-time in season openers. Southern's last win in its season opener came during the 2018 season in which the Salukis downed IUPUI in four sets on Aug. 24, 2018.
Past history in Hattiesburg
- SIU head coach Ed Allen is no stranger to Hattiesburg. Allen sports a 6-3 all-time record against the Golden Eagles, which includes a 4-1 record against Southern Miss while at Tulsa.Â
- Allen's Tulsa teams finished either first or second in the Conference USA standings in three of his five seasons with the Golden Hurricanes, which included a 2010 season in which Tulsa lost just seven sets in conference matches en route to a perfect 20-0 record in Conference USA play.
Exhibition Win
- Salukis were victorious in their lone exhibition match of the fall, taking down SIUE in five sets. Junior transfer Nataly Garcia led the way with a team-high 17 kills and 11 digs. Southern's freshman setter Anna Jaworski, meanwhile, hit .444 with five kills on an efficient nine swings to go along with 42 assists and seven digs.
- Redshirt freshman Nsia Gittens, who played in four matches in the spring, joined Garcia in double figures with 13 terminations. Imani Hartfield hit .294 and put down eight kills to go along with six digs while Tatum Tornatta chipped in six kills.
Looking to start fresh
Southern is looking for a win in its season opener for the first time since 2018. The Salukis haven't started 2-0 since 2016, which was also the last time they began a season with three-straight wins. The 2016 Salukis won their first three-straight matches to claim the IUPUI Tournament title.
Last time we started 1-0 - 8/24/2018 (3-1 win over IUPUI)
Last time we started 2-0 - 8/27/2016 (3-0 win over Duquesne)
Last time we started 3-0 - 8/27/2016 (3-1 win at IUPUI to claim IUPUI Tournament title)
Last time we started 2-1 - 8/25/2018 (3-2 win over UT-Martin)
Lots of new faces
Southern's roster consists of 17 student-athletes- all of which have, at least, three seasons of eligibility remaining. The Salukis have just three upperclassmen listed on the roster, of which two are junior college transfers (Nataly Garcia, Bryleigh Buchanan).Â
1,000 Digs Watch
- Southern's libero Katy Kluge technically has three seasons of eligibility left after she redshirted her freshman season (2018) and was given an extra year of eligibility back a year ago thanks to the NCAA's COVID-19 policy. Â
- Kluge is 311 digs shy of 1,000 for her career, and should she reach that, would become the 12th member of the 1,000th dig club in program history, and the first to do so since Andrea Estrada in 2017.Â
- The Oconomowoc, Wis. native has posted back-to-back 300-plus digs seasons, which included 356 digs a year ago after taking over the reigns as SIU's libero.
Help Right Away
- Junior transfer Nataly Garcia, who posted a double-double with 17 kills/11 digs in SIU's exhibition win over SIUE, will provide immediate help along the outside.Â
- A 2021 NJCAA First-Team All-American at Navarro College, Garcia averaged 3.35 kills and 3.3 digs per set while leading the nation in aces. The right-handed outside put down double-digit kills in 14 of the 22 games in 2021, which included eight kill-dig double-doubles.
Taking over the setting duties
- Anna Jaworski will take over the setting duties as a true freshman for the Salukis. Jaworski played her prep ball at Naperville North, where she was an All-State honoree and the DuPage Valley Conference Player of the Year after she led the Huskies to an unblemished 10-0 record during her senior year.Â
