Saluki Volleyball Reverse Sweeps Valparaiso

Friday, October 2

Carbondale, IL

6 PM

Southern Illinois University

9-6,3-0MVC

Valparaiso

9-7,1-3MVC

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Valparaiso	25	25	24	24	5	2
Southern Ill.	15	22	26	26	15	3

Ella McFarland sets a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Alexandria Arrington attacks a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Beatriz Piaia serves a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Natalie Vance and Valentina Zevallos go up for a block.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Natalie Vance attacks a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Photo by: Dani Scott

McKenzie Moeller sets a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Photo by: Dani Scott

Ella Swansiger attacks a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Lillian Dempkey sets a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Head Coach Brittany Harry points to her team in direction.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Ella McFarland and Ella Swansiger high five in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Isabella Del Real serves a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Jillian Shaneyfelt serves a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Ella McFarland serves a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

McKenzie Moeller serves a ball in the match.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Photo by: Dani Scott

McKenzie Moeller prepares to serve a ball.

Photo by: Dani Scott

Photo by: Dani Scott

Ella Swansiger and Valentina Zevallos go up for a block.

Photo by: Dani Scott

10/02/2026 | 9:40:00 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Corey Crombar, SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Saluki Women's Volleyball team started slow, but quickly bounced back and completed the reverse sweep against the Valparaiso Beacons on Friday at Davies Gym.

Set one was all Beacons. Starting off with a kill from Valparaiso's Jessica Pickett, the Beacons took the lead and never looked back. The Salukis did not help themselves out by any means, though. Notably, the Salukis had 9 kills and 9 errors on 35 total attacks, for a hitting percentage of 0.000. To add the icing on the cake, the set ended with a service ace from the Beacons, sealing set one, 25-15.

The Salukis picked it up in set two. Coming off a not-so-kind first set, they wanted to get back in the fight. The Salukis cleaned up the errors and began to play as a more cohesive unit. Despite the positive improvements from SIU, Valparaiso continued to play a gritty style of volleyball. Set two was evenly matched throughout. What started as a tight contest quickly went to a seven-point lead for Southern, but Valparaiso quickly answered, tying the match at 20 apiece. From there on out, the Beacons closed the set on a 5-2 scoring run, taking the set 25-22.

At this stage in the game, all momentum was in favor of the Beacons as they looked to complete the sweep of Southern. But, the Dawgs answered. The Salukis marched out to a commanding 15-7 lead at the third set's technical timeout. Valparaiso did not back down however. They were able to go on a run of their own, even taking the lead in the set at 21-20. At that moment, the Dawgs knew it was do or die - so they went to work. Gritty, emotion-filled volleyball propelled the Salukis to another 26-24 set victory, with the last two points coming of Beacon attack errors.

Set four was the turning point for this match and the Salukis. SIU jumped out to another eight-point lead, this time holding a 9-1 advantage. Once again, Valparaiso did not back down. Capitalizing on some Saluki errors and going on a run of their own, they trailed 15-12 at the technical timeout. To the chagrin of SIU, Valparaiso eventually held the Dawgs at set and match point, 24-23. This time, it was truly do or die for the Dawgs. SIU caught a break on Valparaiso's match point serve as the Beacons had a service error. The stage was set for the fourth set - 24-24 - and it was anyone's set. A dominant showing at the net tonight for Beatriz Piaia continued as she and McKenzie Moeller collected a block to give the Salukis the point advantage. To cap off the set, Jillian Shaneyfelt recorded a service ace, giving the Dawgs the set, 26-24.

The stage was set. Two set victories for each team. A new, clean slate in the fifth set for both teams. Both squads looking to close it out. It was go time. The set started tight with some back-and-forth and a narrow 7-5 lead for SIU. From that moment forward, one word describes the set: dominance. The Salukis went on an 8-0 run, with seven of the eight points coming off Beacon attack and service errors. At 8:34 p.m., the ball landed out of bounds from a Valparaiso attack, sealing the point, set, and match for the Dawgs. SIU dominantly took set five, 15-5.

After the match, Head Coach Brittany Harry said, "This team showed a lot of grit tonight. Things were not going our way in a lot of areas but we kept fighting to build momentum which carried us into some tight wins in sets 3 and 4. Set 5 was just awesome to watch because you were finally seeing the volleyball our team is capable of playing. Talk about toughness, Swans, Bia, and Jilly absolutely carried us through. You love to see your older kids leading the way for this young team. That's a big time win for Saluki volleyball."

UP NEXT
The Salukis will face off against the UIC Flames on Saturday at 5 p.m. at Davies Gym in Carbondale.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on X (@SIU_Volleyball), Instagram (@SIU_Volleyball) and Facebook (SalukiVolleyball). Fans can also download the Salukis Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.