Racers Set to Open OVC Play This Weekend

Dates: Sept. 21 and Sept. 22, 2018
Match Times: 21st – 6 p.m., 22nd – 2 p.m.
Opponents: UT Martin and Southeast Missouri State
Site (Venue): Martin, Tenn. (Skyhawk Fieldhouse) and Cape Girardeau, Mo. (Houck Field House)
Live Stats: UT Martin | SEMO
Live Video: SEMO
MSU Record (Streak): 6-6 (L1)
UTM Record (Streak): 6-7 (L3)
SEMO Record (Streak): 8-5 (W2)
All-Time Series vs. UT Martin (Streak): 45-20 (W1)
All-Time Series vs. Saint Louis (Streak): 30-46 (W11)
MSU Next Matches: Sept. 25 at Austin Peay

This Weekend
The Murray State volleyball team opens up OVC play with two matches on the road. They will take on UT Martin, Friday at 6 p.m. before battling Southeast Missouri State, Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. The Racers will look to avenge a loss in Martin last season while trying to extend an 11-match winning streak against SEMO.

Last Weekend
At the Billiken Invitational, the Racers went 2-1 as they took down host Saint Louis, but fell to UNLV and UMKC. Dacia Brown was named to the all-tournament team, her third all-tournament team selection this season, after racking up 40 kills while hitting .245. Becca Fernandez had double-digit digs in all three matches, extending her streak to nine and Callie Anderton dished out 86 assists.

Conference Leaders
Murray State currently has the top two kills leaders in the OVC. Junior Rachel Giustino averages 4.20 kills per set, the only player in the OVC to be above four, while Dacia Brown is second in the conference, averaging 3.80. Both of them are also in the top 80 in the country.

Scouting UT Martin
The Skyhawks are coming off a trip to Arizona, last weekend, where they fell to the Wildcats, UC Davis, and New Mexico State. Senior Megan Fair was named to the all-tournament team after accumulating a team-high 19 kills, 33 digs, and three service aces in the three matches. Fair leads UT Martin in kills (2.36), while Gintare Mackeviciute is not far behind, averaging 2.33. Kenzie Hinshaw leads the team with 7.96 assists per set while Brooke Gyori and Justine Walker pace the team defensively with 4.87 digs per set and .83 blocks per set, respectively. As a team, the Skyhawks have 81 service aces, good enough for 17th in the nation.

Scouting Southeast Missouri
The Redhawks open OVC play facing the top two teams in the preseason poll, taking on Austin Peay, Friday night before battling the Racers, Saturday. In their last match, a five-set win over Northern Illinois, Laney Malloy had 16 kills and 19 digs. Claire Ochs dished out 48 assists en route to being named OVC Newcomer of the Week, the second straight for SEMO, as Malloy earned the honor the week prior. Ochs is currently 27th in the nation with 490 total assists.

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Players Mentioned

Callie Anderton

Dacia Brown

Becca Fernandez

Rachel Giustino

Murray State University Athletics