Volleyball Returns Home For Final Playoff Push

Friday, November 2

Racer Arena

7:00 p.m.

Murray State

Southeast Missouri

Photo by: Murray State Sports Information

11/1/2012 11:28:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

The Murray State volleyball team will return to Racer Arena this weekend for a pair of matches with major postseason implications. The Racers will host Southeast Missouri on Friday night at 7 p.m., followed by a 6 p.m., showdown with UT Martin on Saturday.

The Racers enter the weekend with two wins and are just three matches behind the two teams tied for eighth place, Eastern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky, with four matches left to play. Any scenario that includes the Racers grabbing one of the eight playoff spots has to involve them winning at least three, if not all, four of their final matches.

Murray State is coming off of a tough trip to Nashville last weekend where they dropped both matches. The Racers fell 3-0 to Belmont on Thursday night, followed by a sweep the following night at Tennessee State.

Freshman Taylor Olden enters the weekend leading the Racers in kills with 214 (2.8 per set), while senior Wendi Zickfield currently has the highest attack percentage at .239. Freshman Emily Schmahl has also played a key role for the Racers as she has 184 kills (2.75 per set) and an attack percentage of .159.

Defensively, junior Katlyn Hudson has a team-high 248 digs (3.33 per set) on the year, while Alyssa Lelm leads the team in blocks with 84 (1.09 per set).

Scouting The Opponents:

Southeast Missouri (17-11, 9-3 OVC): The Redhawks are currently second in the league standings and are coming off a split last weekend where the beat SIU Edwardsville and lost to Eastern Illinois. SEMO is currently the best digging team in the conference with 1,898 total digs and 17.57 per set. That total also ranks the Redhawks 24th in the nation in that category as well. Colleen Yarber leads the SEMO offense 354 kills, while Emily Coon has 119 total blocks.

The Series: Southeast Missouri currently leads the all-time series 44-19, but Murray State has won eight of the last 11 meetings. The Redhawks also hold a 17-10 advantage over MSU at Racer Arena; however the Racers have not fallen to SEMO since Sep. 24, 2005.

UT Martin (10-16, 6-6 OVC): The Skyhawks will come into Racer Arena tied for sixth in the conference standings after sweeping SIU Edwardsville and Easter Illinois last weekend. Emily Keaton leads the Skyhawk offense with 228 kills, while Amanda Crask has 733 assists. Defensively, Kasey Elswick has 534 digs, while Shelby Hoskins has a total of 70 blocks

The Series: Murray State holds a 35-19 advantage all-time over UT Martin and a 20-5 lead over the Skyhawks at Racer Arena. The Racers have not lost to UT Martin at home in over 10 years, last falling on September 24, 2002.

Block It Like It's Hot: Freshman Alyssa Lelm is making a name for herself when it comes to blocking this season. She currently ranks second in the OVC in league matches with 1.30 blocks per set and is fifth in all matches with 1.09. She now 10th all-time on the Racers' single-season total block lists with 84. Last weekend, she passed the previous No. 10 on the list, Ashley Nenninger, who tallied 83 during the 2008 season. She is also just one block assist from breaking into that categories' Top 10 with 66.

Adding To The Trophy Case: Several Racers have racked up honors this season for their performances in early season tournaments. Taylor Olden received All-Tournament honors for her performance at both the LaQuinta Inn & Suites Highlander Invitational and West Virginia's Gold & Blue Classic, while Emily Schmahl was named to the Hyatt Place Fort Wayne/IPFW Invitational All-Tournament Squad. After capturing the LaQuinta Inn & Suites Highlander Invitational tournament championship as a team, Lia Havili was named as the event's most valuable player.

Can't Make It To Racer?: There are two ways to follow Murray State volleyball matches away from Racer Arena this season. Both live stats and live video, courtesy of the OVC digital network, will be available for both matches this weekend and both options are free to all fans. Live Stats vs. Southeast Missouri Live Stats vs. UT Martin OVC Digital Network

What's Next: The Racers make their final road trip of the regular season next Tuesday when they make the short trip Clarksville, to take on Austin Peay at 7 p.m.