The Lindenwood men's volleyball team (2-4, 0-0 MIVA) opens conference play this week, hosting #14 Lewis (5-3, 0-0 MIVA) on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. inside Hyland Arena. The Lions will then travel to Columbus, Ohio for a matchup with #6 Ohio State (6-2, 0-0 MIVA) for a 12:00 p.m. CT start.  Lindenwood is coming off a 3-0 sweep of King last Saturday.
 
SERIES INFORMATION - LEWIS
Overall: Lewis leads 24-3
In St. Charles: 2-10
In Romeoville: 1-14
Neutral: 0-0
Last Meeting: April 6, 2023, Lewis 3-0
 
SERIES INFORMATION – OHIO STATE
Overall: Ohio State leads 17-5
In St. Charles: 4-7
In Columbus: 1-10
Neutral: 0-0
Last Meeting: April 15, 2023, Ohio State 3-0
 
FIRST SERVE

• Last week, the Lions went 1-1, dropping a match to Maryville before bouncing back to Sweep King in three sets.
• This was Lindenwood's second sweep of the season, as the Lions also knocked off LIU in three sets earlier this season.
• Clay Wieter led the charge offensively, tallying 33 kills in the two matches, including a career-high 23 against the Saints.
• In the win over King, Lindenwood hit a season-high .452, including .696 in the first set.
• Three different players finished with double figure kills, led by Ian Schuller who had 11.
• The matchups against Lewis and Ohio State will be the second and third ranked teams the Lions have played this season. So far, the Lions are 0-2 against squads in the top 20.
• Lewis enters the matchup with a record of 5-3 and are coming off a loss to LIU.
• Lindenwood went 1-1 against the Flayers last season, picking up a 3-2 win in Romeoville on February 17.
• Ohio State enters the weekend with a record of 6-2 and have dropped two-straight to Penn State.
• The Lions went 1-2 against the Buckeyes last season, defeating them 3-2 in St. Charles, Mo.
• Ohio State knocked Lindenwood out of the MIVA Tournament a year ago.
• Connor Sheehan leads the conference in assists, with 11.56 per set.
• Lindenwood averages 13.53 kills per set, tops in the conference.
• Head coach Joe Kosciw enters his seventh season at the helm of the program and his 11^th at Lindenwood.

2024 OUTLOOK
The Lindenwood men's volleyball team currently has ten matchups against ranked teams on its 2024 schedule. The squad was picked to finished sixth in the Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Preseason Poll earning 41 points. Lindenwood returns key pieces to their lineup for 2024, including A.J. Lewis, RaShawn Bonner, and Ian Schuller, who all garnered all-conference honors a year ago. Lewis was named to the preseason all-MIVA team for the upcoming year. Last season, Lewis led the team with 39 service aces and was second on the team with 249 digs.

UP NEXT
Lindenwood will travel to Missouri S&T on Wednesday, February 7, before returning home on Saturday, February 10 for a matchup with Ball State. Both matches are set to begin at 7:00 p.m.