Match #7
Lindenwood (2-4, 0-0 OVC)
vs. Southern Illinois (5-2, 0-0 MVC)
Match Information:
Date: Friday, Sept. 13
Start Time: 3:00 p.m. CT
Location: St. Charles, Mo. | Hyland Arena
All-Time Series: 0-1
Last Meeting: 3-1, Southern Illinois (9/6/2023)
Live Stats: Stats
Watch: ESPN+

Match #8
Lindenwood
vs. Austin Peay (1-5, 0-0 ASUN)
Match Information:
Date: Saturday, Sept. 14
Start Time: 4:00 p.m. CT
Location: St. Charles, Mo. | Hyland Arena
All-Time Series: 0-1
Last Meeting: 3-0, Austin Peay (9/1/2023)
Live Stats: Stats
Watch: ESPN+

Match #9
Lindenwood
at Missouri (3-3, 0-0 SEC)
Match Information:
Date: Sunday, Sept. 15
Start Time: 4:00 p.m. CT
Location: Columbia, Mo. | Hearnes Center
All-Time Series: First Meeting
Live Stats: Stats
Watch: ESPN+

Matchup
Lindenwood's women volleyball returns home to Hyland Arena for their first two home matches of the season this weekend as they take on Southern Illinois and Austin Peay at the Lindenwood Invitational. The Lions went 2-1 last season hosting this tournament.

Sunday also marks Lindenwood's first-ever meeting with in-state opponent Missouri out of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Lindenwood has only ever played one Power Four school in their Division I history (Indiana - 9/8/2023).

Coming into their first home matches of the season, Lindenwood has a 2-4 record after going 0-3 last weekend in Boston, Mass. at the Northeastern Tournament. The Lions lost a tough five-set match against Florida Gulf Coast to start the weekend before dropping matches against Northeastern and Dartmouth.

Lindenwood has some familiarity with Southern Illinois and Austin Peay. Last season, the Lions dropped a match against SIU in Carbondale, Ill. by a score of 3-1. Austin Peay returns to the Lindenwood Invite where they defeated LU with a 3-0 sweep. Lindenwood and Missouri will face-off for the first time on Sunday.

Preseason OVC Rankings
The OVC released their 2024 women's volleyball preseason poll last week where Lindenwood was selected to finish in fifth place. The Lions had the third best record in the conference last season earning the third seed at the OVC Tournament.

Southeast Missouri State was voted as the preseason favorite in 2024 with six first-place votes and a total of 167 points. Last year's OVC Champions Eastern Illinois was picked to finish right behind them with 166 points and five first place votes.

Morehead State (163 points/five first-place votes), Tennessee Tech (152 points/four first-place votes) and Lindenwood (145 points/one first-place vote) round out the top five in the OVC poll. The top five schools were separate by just 22 points.

Lindenwood also landed two players on the Preseason All-OVC team. Nyah Wilson and Jessie Seidel were selected after both received Second Team All-OVC honors last season. Allie Otten was voted as a player to watch as she returns for her sixth season.

Last Weekend Recap
Lindenwood traveled to the East Coast last weekend to Boston, Mass. for the Northeastern Tournament where they went 0-3. The Lions struggled offensively with 92 attack errors and a .112 hitting percentage. Seidel was named to the All-Tournament Team.

Rebecca Janke was the most efficient Lion last weekend with a .239 hitting percentage and 21 kills. In the opening match against FGCU, Janke had 10 kills on a .290 hitting percentage. She also had a total of nine blocks.

Seidel was all over the court defensively for the Lions picking up a team high 52 digs across three matches. She averaged 4.33 digs over the course of 12 sets. Offensively, Seidel also had 14 assists and five aces.

Lindenwood's two leading attackers Addy McAleer and Wilson led the Lions in kills in Boston with 35 and 29 respectively. McAleer had 16 and 12 kills in her first two matches. Wilson had 10 kills in each of the final two matches. She also had a season-high 23 digs in the opening match vs. FGCU.

Player To Watch
Graduate student Allie Otten has led the Lions so far this season as the lead setter. Through six matches, Otten has 245 assists averaging 9.42 per set. Otten currently leads the Ohio Valley Conference in total assists and ranks third in assists per set. She has had over 30 assists in all six matches and has posted double-digit digs in all but one match.

OVC Top Ten Stats
Janke currently ranks sixth in the OVC in hitting percentage (.315). Of those ranked in the top ten in HP%, Janke ranks third in total kills with 54. McAleer also ranks in the top ten in kills per set with an average of 2.77.

Otten ranks third among setters in assists per set with an average of 9.42. She leads the conference in total assists with 245. Seidel rounds of the group of Top Ten Lions ranking eighth in digs per set with an average of 4.35. She ranks third in total digs with 113.

Scouting the Opponent
Southern Illinois Category Leaders    
Kills: Kelly Franklin - 83
Assists: Anna Jaworski - 151
Aces: Cecilia Bulmahn - 11
Digs: Cecilia Bulmahn - 124    
Blocks: Larissa Seger - 26.0

Austin Peay Category Leaders
Kills: Sarah Carnathan - 47
Assists: Maggie Duyos/Kayleigh Ryan - 73
Aces: Maggie Duyos - 6
Digs: Tayler Baron - 84  
Blocks: Payton Deidesheimer- 18.0

Missouri Category Leaders
Kills: Mychael Vernon - 85
Assists: Sierra Dudley - 177
Aces: Jordan Iliff/Janet deMarrais - 6
Digs: Maya Sands - 102
Blocks: Colleen Finney - 16.0

Up Next:
Lindenwood will end the non-conference at the Kangaroo Classic in Kansas City, Mo. on the campus of Kansas City. The Lions will take on the Roos along with Bradley and Montana. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.