MTSU Travels to Western Kentucky for Two-Match Series – Middle Tennessee State University Athletics

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee volleyball will be continuing Conference USA play, traveling to Bowling Green to take on Western Kentucky on Oct. 8 and 9. MTSU will be looking to hand Western Kentucky their first conference loss since the 2018 season. The Blue Raiders last victory vs. the Hilltoppers was back in 2011. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats can be found at Stat Broadcast.

This past week, Middle Tennessee volleyball swept FIU to finish the week with a 2-0 record and get back to .500 in Conference USA play. Freshman setter Andi Spies took home CUSA Freshman of the Week honors for the third time this season for her efforts vs. FIU. The Fort Atkinson, Wis. native recorded 79 assists across seven sets, good for 11.29 assists/set. She also added nine kills and four service aces to her offensive output. Defensively, Spies tallied 16 digs and six blocks. Amongst Conference USA, Spies ranks eighth in service aces with 21 and is second in assists/set with 9.23. Nationally, Spies ranks 41st in the nation in total assists with 572.­­

The previous week, senior Laure Jansen took home CUSA Defensive Player of the Week honors after setting an all-time program record of 39 digs and 9.75 digs/set in a single match at Sam Houston on Sept. 26. On the week, Jansen recorded 74 digs, good for 7.4 digs/set. In addition to the CUSA award, the Valburg, Netherlands native took home the ­­­ Sports Writers Association Player of the Week. Jansen leads Conference USA in digs with 279 and is third in service aces with 26.

Scouting WKU

This will be the 71st and 72nd matchups between the Blue Raiders and the Hilltopers in their respective program’s histories. MTSU holds a record of 16-54 in those matchups, with WKU taking the last 21 matches. The Tops are off to an 11-6 start thus far with a 4-0 record in CUSA play.

WKU is led by head coach Travis Hudson who has been at the helm since 1995. Hudson has a career record of 752-227. WKU volleyball has won eight CUSA Tournament Championships since joining the conference in 2014.

The Hilltoppers are led by Kaylee Cox, the preseason CUSA player of the year. Cox, coming off a First-Team All-Conference USA season, leads the team with 211 kills, ranking fourth in CUSA. The Hilltoppers are also led by setter Callie Bauer who leads CUSA in assists and assists/set. Defensively, the Tops are led by Izzy Van De Wiele who leads CUSA in total blocks.

Quick Facts

• Freshman Andi Spies recorded the first triple-double in program history, during the 25-point era, earning her CUSA Freshman of the Week (Sept. 9). Spies took home two more CUSA Freshman of the Week’s (Sept. 16, Oct. 7) making her the second student-athlete to win multiple in the same season (Adriana Rhoda).
• Senior Laure Jansen took home CUSA Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 30) after her record-setting performance at Sam Houston on Sept. 26 where she set an all-time program-record with 39 digs in a single match.
• On Sept. 17 vs. UVA, Laure Jansen reached historic the historic milestones of 100 career service aces and 1000 career digs, doing so on the same night.
• On Sept. 27 at Sam Houston, Adriana Rhoda set a new program record, during the 25-point era, for kills/set in a single match with 7.33.
• Freshman Emma Nilson recorded the highest single-game blocks/set ratio for a freshman in program history during the 25-point era vs. Arkansas State, recording 3.0 blocks/set.

 
 
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