Jessica Whitehead Assistant Coach | Southern Illinois University Athletics Website
Jessica Whitehead Assistant Coach | Southern Illinois University Athletics Website
Southern Illinois' Women's Volleyball team will commence its 2024 season at the Betty Austin Invitational on Friday, August 30, in Huntsville, Alabama. The event is hosted by Alabama A&M.
The weekend schedule for the Salukis includes matches against Chattanooga on Friday at 6 p.m., Idaho on Saturday at 11 a.m., and Oral Roberts on Sunday at 10 a.m.
In the previous season, Southern Illinois concluded with a record of 20-12 overall and 11-7 in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC), finishing fourth in the MVC standings. They made their second-ever postseason appearance by earning a bid to the 2023 National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC). In the annual coaches' MVC preseason poll for this year, Southern Illinois was picked to finish fifth. UNI led the poll with 141 points and received ten out of twelve first-place votes, followed by UIC (129), Drake (110), Illinois State (98), and SIU (85).
Eight players from last year's roster are returning, including three outside hitters, two setters, and three middle hitters. Among these returners is Ema Stermenska, who was selected for the MVC All-Freshman team in 2023. Stermenska ranked eleventh in assists within the MVC with a total of 673 and fourth in service aces with 48.
Senior Anna Jaworski also returns this season; she currently stands sixth all-time in Saluki history with 3,148 assists. The team has added eight newcomers to its roster, including five freshmen and three transfers. Junior Larissa Seger joins from Santa Fe College where she placed third in blocks per set (95 total) in the Mid-Florida Conference and recorded 143 kills as a sophomore last year.
Head Coach Ed Allen enters his sixth season with Southern Illinois after surpassing the milestone of 700 career wins in 2023. He ranks sixth among active coaches with a total of 705 wins.
Fans can follow live stats throughout the tournament.
For updates on Southern Illinois' Women's Volleyball team, follow them on X (@SIU_Volleyball), Instagram (@SIU_Volleyball), and Facebook (SalukiVolleyball). Additionally, fans can download the "Salukis" Mobile App available on both the App Store and Google Play Store.
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