The Basics
Drake volleyball will look to extend their winning streak to double digits this weekend with a pair of home MVC matches. The Bulldogs are set to conclude the regular season series with Missouri State on Friday, Nov. 11 and Southern Illinois on Senior Night, Saturday, Nov. 12.
Bulldogs by the Numbers
Drake enters the weekend as one of the hottest teams in the nation. Drake has won eight matches in a row with six of those victories coming via sweep. The Bulldogs currently hold records of 22-6 overall and 13-2 in Valley play. Drake is also looking to remain unbeaten at home with an active 6-0 record at the Knapp Center this season.
Drake is led by a pair of elite hitters in
Haley Bush and
Mariana Rodrigues with 382 kills and 336 kills respectively. Addison Beagle, the Bulldogs' four-time MVC Freshman of the Week, leads Drake with 1,169 assists and 37 service aces. Defensively,
Jada Wills' 539 digs top the Drake roster while
Kacie Rewerts leads both the team and the conference at large with 128 kills.
Scouting Missouri State
Missouri State currently sits at 9-18 overall and 6-9 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bears have been up-and-down this season including a 2-2 split in their last four matches. Most recently, Missouri State swept MVC cellar-dweller Indiana State on Nov. 5.
Just two Bears have logged over 200 kills led by Manuela Ibarguen with 336 and Iva Halacheva with 202. The Missouri State offense is burgeoned by prolific setter Morgan Sprague with 1,056 assists and a team-high 28 service aces. Defensively, Kate Owen leads the MSU crew with 430 digs while Azyah Green's 106 blocks pace the team.
Missouri State is led by third-year head coach Steven McRoberts. In his 26th year as an NCAA head coach, McRoberts has led the Bears to a 41-38 record in three seasons.
Drake trails in the all-time series with Missouri State by a 54-11 margin. The Bears captured 19-straight wins in the rivalry before Drake won the two most recent matches. The Bulldogs picked up a five-set win in this season's first tilt in Springfield, Mo.
Scouting Southern Illinois
The Salukis of Southern Illinois bring a 17-10 overall record and 10-5 MVC mark into this weekend's action. SIU has won three of its last four matches with all three victories coming in four sets. Most recently, the Salukis took down Evansville at home on Nov. 5.
Southern Illinois utilizes a versatile offensive attack with three primary hitters. Nataly Garcia leads the Salukis with 374 kills followed by Tatum Tornatta with 350 and Imani Hartfield with 247. Anna Jaworski orchestrates the SIU charge with a league-best 1,192 assists and a team-high 36 aces. Claudia Bobb and Brinley Burdette provide defensive leadership on both levels with 426 digs and 72 blocks, respectively.
The Bulldogs will face off against another veteran head coach in Southern Illinois' Ed Allen. The Salukis coach has been at the Division I level for over 30 years with four seasons in charge of the SIU program. Allen has amassed nearly 700 career wins with a 38-72 record at Southern Illinois.
Drake has won the last five matches in their all-time series with the Salukis including a 3-1 victory in Carbondale, Ill. earlier this season. Despite the Bulldogs' recent ownership of the rivalry, SIU holds a 42-26 advantage.
Up Next
Drake will conclude their 2022 regular season campaign with a home match against UNI. The Bulldogs and Panthers will face off in a rematch of the current first and second place teams in the MVC on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 6 p.m.
