ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Lindenwood women's volleyball (8-6, 2-0 OVC) swept Eastern Illinois (4-8, 0-2 OVC) for the second straight day to start Ohio Valley Conference play 2-0. It marked the first time in Lindenwood's Division I era that they have posted back-to-back sweeps and the first time since 2021.

"I thought as a team we did a great job of managing the game from a scouting perspective," said head coach Will Condon. Eastern has a full roster of players they utilize so it was important we were able to adjust from point to point and have a good understanding of what was happening on their side of the net. More importantly, I thought we did a great job of setting a high bar for ourselves and maintaining that level from set to set."

Setter Allie Otten spread the wealth on offense for the Lions as six different Lions posted at least five kills. Autumn Bax led the team for the second straight match against EIU with nine kills. Bax now has 100 kills during her freshman season. LU has five different Lions with at least 100 kills this season. Middle hitters Ashley Geluck and Rebecca Janke also posted seven kills each. Otten also had 34 assists and 10 digs against the Panthers.

"I believe that the balance in our offense is one of our strengths," said Condon. "Everyone is going to have their sets where they are a little off and we are able to shift our focus and let each one of our hitters have their moments and runs. Allie did a great job of managing that for us all weekend. We challenged her to be more of a presence, offensively and she did that for us."

Lindenwood's blocking was stout on Saturday as they posted seven team blocks with four different Lions earning a solo block. Bax had a season-high two solo blocks in the win while Janke added one solo and two block assists. Libero Jessie Seidel continued her streak of double-digit digs with 13 vs. EIU. She also tied the Lindenwood NCAA era record in sets played in a career with 446. Defensive specialist Dana Grib also added seven digs.

"Our role players, Dana and Lexi, did a great job all weekend of going in and making an impact immediately. Both Dana and Lexi had some key runs of serves that allowed to build leads."

The first set started with Lindenwood taking a 13-3 lead after a 10-1 gave the Lions a big lead. Six different Lions had multiple kills including a set high three by Janke. EIU was held to six kills after hitting -.107 with nine attack errors.

Bax led the Lions' group in the second set after putting down four kills. Lindenwood hit .205 in the second with 14 kills. Their defense stopped Eastern Illinois in the second set with three blocks and forced them into eight attack errors.

Lindenwood started off the third and final set hot taking a 20-10 lead. EIU made a small comeback late but it was too much as Lindenwood closed the match winning their second straight vs. EIU. Lindenwood has now won four out of their last five matches.

"This team has high expectations for themselves, and they have worked hard to create their opportunities," said Condon.

The Lions will continue OVC play next weekend when they travel to Macomb, Ill. to take on Western Illinois on Tuesday, Oct. 1. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.