The Southern Illinois University volleyball team begins Missouri Valley action this weekend on the road as the Salukis head to Murray State Friday with first serve set for 6 p.m. Following Friday’s match, Southern will travel to Nashville on Saturday to take on the Belmont Bruins beginning at 5 p.m.
Scouting Murray State
• The Racers finish non-conference action with a 4-6 record after dropping two in a row at the Samford Invite last week (3-2 Clemson, 3-1 Samford).
• Murray State will make its MVC debut on Friday night after finishing 5th in the Ohio Valley Conference in 2021.
• The Racers were selected to finish 10th in the 2022 MVC Coaches Poll, totaling 43 points.
• Freshman Federica Nuccio leads the Racers with 156 kills (3.71 K/S).
All-Time vs. the Racers
• The Salukis and the Racers will meet for the 22nd time Friday night.
• Southern leads the all-time series, 17-4, although the Racers have won the last two.
• SIU and Murray State last met in 2018 in Carbondale where the Racers won 3-0.
Scouting Belmont
• The Bruins enter MVC play currently sitting at 4-9 on the season.
• Belmont will begin its inaugural MVC campaign just ahead of Saturday’s match as they host Missouri State Friday night.
• The Bruins were selected to finish 11th in the 2022 MVC Coaches Poll, totaling 26 points.
• After a slow start, Belmont has won its last two matches, and three of its last four.
All-Time vs. the Bruins
• SIU and Belmont last met in September 2006, when the Bruins swept the match 3-0. The match was the first and only between the programs.
Hot Non-Conference Start
• Entering conference play, the Salukis sit at 7-5 on the season.
• It’s the teams first winning record in non-conference play since the 2019 season.
• SIU has won six of its last eight matches including five clean sweeps for the Salukis during that stretch.
Four Salukis Hit the Century Mark
• Tatum Tornatta currently leads the Saluki’s offensive attack with 138 kills on the season, fifth most in the Valley.
• Along with Tornatta; Nataly Garcia (110), Imani Hartfield (108), and Ceci Bulmahn (102) all surpassed the century mark on the season during the Saluki Invite last weekend.
• Hartfield currently has the third highest hitting rate in the Valley at .321.
Serving Up Aces
• The Salukis currently lead the Valley in both aces (88) and aces per set (2.00)
• Bailey Neuberger leads Southern with 16 aces through 12 matches, tied for fifth most in the Valley.
• SIU finished the Saluki Invite with a total of 27 aces through the three matches played.
