Racers to Close 2025 Season at Racer Arena

Thursday, November 13

Murray, KY

6 p.m.

Murray State

Belmont

11/13/2025 9:53:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

Murray State will host Belmont and Northern Iowa

By: Charlie Williams

Dates (Times): Thursday, Nov. 13 (6 p.m. CT), Friday, Nov. 14 (6 p.m. CT)
Opponents: Belmont Bruins, UNI Panthers
Locations (Venues): Murray, Kentucky (Racer Arena)
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoRacers.com

The Murray State Racers are closing out the 2025 season with a pair of home Missouri Valley Conference matches.

The Racers (4-19, 2-12 MVC) sit at the bottom of the conference standings while the Bruins (16-9, 7-7 MVC) are in fifth and the Panthers (21-5, 14-0 MVC) are in first.

Senior Ella Vogel currently totals 1276 career kills, tying her for fifth in Racer volleyball history with Jill Doty. Doty was a Racer from 1988-91 under head coach Oscar Segovia. On the season, Vogel leads the team with 329.5 points and 299 kills with an average of 3.60 per set, third highest in the MVC. She is second on the team in blocks with 45.0 on the season. Outside hitter Federica Nuccio is averaging 2.11 kills per set, third best on the team and her highest average since 2022. She is second on the team with 152 kills on the year and also leads the team with 25 aces. Outside hitter Mija Pristovnik is third on the team with 128 kills and a per set average of 1.64. She also features 13 aces and 159 digs. Junior Paige Brock is 13th in the MVC with 398 assists on the year, with freshman Katie Titus right behind at 14th with 381. Brock averages 5.61 assists per set, 10th in the league, while Titus averages 5.29, good for 12th. Freshman Halle Forester leads the Racers with 184 digs on the season across 56 sets, with her average of 3.29 per set being ninth best in the MVC. Another freshman, Samantha Nelson, has seen time at the libero position, with 128 digs on the season and an average of 1.73 across 74 sets.

The Bruins have won two straight, sweeping Valparaiso and beating Southern Illinois in five sets. One of the top hitting teams in the MVC, the Bruins are led offensively by Brooke Gilleland with 318 kills and a per set average of 3.53 and Brenna Kauffeld with 201 and an average of 2.23 per set. Gilleland also leads the MVC in aces with 46 on the season as the Bruins also lead the MVC in total aces with 188. Jordan Czajkowski has put up 552 assists on the year, with her average of 5.94 per set being eighth in the MVC. Lily Lutz and Erin McMullen anchor the defense, as Lutz has 400 digs on the season while McMullen has tallied 77 blocks on the year.

The Panthers come into the weekend as one of the hottest teams in volleyball. Ranked 28th in the RPI, UNI has won 17 straight matches, dating back to Sept. 14. Cassidy Hartman leads the Panthers and the MVC in kills and kills per set, with 365 on the year and an average of 4.15, while Lily Dykstra is second on the team, and in the league, with 319 on the season and a per set average of 3.63. Reese Booth is the starting setter for the Panthers and is third in the MVC with 555 assists this season. Defensively, Maryn Bixby leads the Panthers with 98 blocks on the season while Jadyn Petersen leads the way with 387 digs.

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