MACOMB, Ill. - The Western Illinois volleyball team opens up Summit League play this Friday and Saturday, September 25 and 26, as the Leathernecks travel to South Dakota and North Dakota State. Western will kick-off league play on Friday with a 5 p.m. contest against the Coyotes of South Dakota. Immediately following the match, WIU will head north and prepare for a Saturday, 7 p.m. start, against the Bison of North Dakota State. 

LAST TIME OUT: Western Illinois wrapped up the tournament portion of its schedule on Saturday, September  12, as WIU competed at the ISU Classic hosted by Illinois State. Western was unable to walk away with victory on the afternoon, dropping a 3-1 decision to Valparaiso and falling by a final score of 3-0 to Chicago State. Following the conclusion of play, senior Peyton Crosser was named to the All-Tournament Team.

SERIES HISTORIES: Western Illinois and South Dakota have met 9 times previously, with the Coyotes leading the all-time series, 7-2. USD swept the season series a year ago by a pair of 3-0 decisions. The two teams split the regular season series on 2013, with Western claiming a 3-2 victory in Macomb on November 17 to close out Summit League play. The two would then face off in the first round of The Summit League Tournament, with the Coyotes advancing, 3-0. The Bison and Leathernecks will be meeting for the 18th time when the two teams face one another on Saturday, with NDSU leading the series, 13-4. Western dropped the season series to the Bison a year ago, but collected a 3-0 sweep of NDSU on October 13, 2013. 

A LOOK AT THE OPPONENTS: South Dakota enters Summit League play with a 6-7 record and ride a two-match winning  streak. The Coyotes finished nonconference play by taking the final two matches at the Purdue Invitational, 3-2 victories over Notre Dame and Ball State. The Coyotes feature two main offensive targets in Sidney Dimke and Audrey Reeg, as they have collected 149 and 139 kills, respectively, on the season. Those attacks come from the hands of Brittany Jessen who leads the team with 438 assists and a team-high 17 aces. USD features a balanced defensive effort, as four different Coyotes have 100 or more digs, led by Lauren Mattison's 144. South Dakota is led by second-year head coach Leanne Williamson. The Bison, winners of three of their last four, hold a 9-4 mark in 2015. NDSU claimed two-of-three matches at the San Francisco Challenge, dropping Cal State Fullerton and Yale by 3-1 margins to end tournament play. Jenni Fassbender serves as the top target for the Bison offense, as her 176 kills paces the team. NDSU runs a two-setter offense, with Brianna Rasmusson (338 assists) and Monica Claxton (228) splitting the duties. Emily  Milligan (152 digs) and Mikaela Purnell (150) anchor the back line for fifth-year head coach Kari Thompson.

ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS: Junior Kaili Simmons made the most of her Western Illinois debut at the 2015 Hampton Inn Leatherneck Invitational. The transfer from Missouri State-West Plains was named to the All-Tournament Team following a weekend in which she led the team in digs (42) and aces (5). The captain followed that performance with her second-career 'All-Tournament' from the Evansville Tournament. For the Weekend, Simmons tallied  43 digs, including 18 in Western's victory over Jackson State. Freshman Sierra Bauder claimed her first collegiate accolade at the Kansas Invitational as she was named to the All-Tournament Team. On the Weekend, Bauder collected 11 kills and eight blocks, with two of the opponents receiving votes in the latest polls. Jordan Jackson collected 'All-Tournament' honors from the Evansville Tournament as she helped guide Western to its first victory of 2015. In the win over Jackson State, Jackson tallied a career high 18 kills and season highs in aces (2) and blocks (7). Jackson ended the weekend with 34 kills over three matches. Peyton Crosser received Western's final All-Tournament accolade following the ISU Classic. During the tournament, Crosser recorded a season-best 16 kills against Valparaiso.

THE COACHING STAFF: Western Illinois is led by first-year head coach Kelly Richardson.  After serving as an assistant coach at UT-Arlington a season ago, Richardson joins the Leatherneck family and is joined by assistant coaches Dan Brown and Taylor Szypulski. Richardson has long-standing ties with Brown as Richardson and Brown's wife were college teammates. Richardson also knows Szypulski well, as the two were both assistant coaches at UT-Arlington during the 2014 season.