Who | UT Martin

Where | Macomb, Ill

When | Friday (Oct. 25 ), & Saturday (Oct. 26) | 6:00 PM & 2:00 PM

Social Media | @WIUVolleyball (Twitter) + wiu_volleyball (Instagram) + WIU Volleyball (Facebook) 

 

Macomb, Ill- Coming off of their first conference road sweep of the year, the Leathernecks are looking to add to the success they have had inside of Western Hall this season when they host the Skyhawks of UT Martin. WIU is 4-1 at home in conference play, with sweeps over SIUE and Eastern Illinois. Their lone loss at home came to conference-leading Lindenwood in five sets. The Leathernecks currently sit in fourth place in the OVC with a 6-3 conference record behind only Lindenwood (8-1), SEMO (6-1), and Little Rock (7-2). 

 

Breaking Records

Coming into this season, WIU was projected to finish in ninth place in the Ohio Valley Conference. Sitting with an overall record of 12-8, the Leathernecks have won the most games in a season since 2013, when they finished 12-18 that season. They are three wins away from their first winning season since 2005 when they finished 17-14. 

Maggie Craker, Karli Wenzel, and Keyana Cruse have combined to win eight Player of the Week awards so far this season, which is the most in program history. Cruse has received Player of the Week honors four different times, which is the most by a Leatherneck Volleyball player since 2004. One more Player of the Week award would tie for the most awards earned by a single player in a single season in program history. 
 

About UT Martin 

The Skyhawks come to Macomb after defeating Southern Indiana on Tuesday in three sets. Both of their wins in conference play have come against Southern Indiana, with the other win coming on the road winning in five sets. 

UT Martin is led offensively by Freshman Outside Hitter Kylie Surratt. Surratt has won Freshman of the Week honors twice so far this season in the OVC, and is the first player to win multiple Freshman of the Week awards in UT Martin history. She currently has 186 kills on the season with an average of just under three kills per set (2.95). 

Defensively, the Skyhawks are led by Senior Libero Dylan Mott. Mott has 325 total digs on the year averaging 5.16 digs per set this season. They are also led by Middle Blocker Kristin Phillips and Opposite Hitter Addy Vaughn who both have a total of 36 blocks on the season. 
 

A look ahead

The Leathernecks will be competing with one of the top teams in the conference as WIU will travel to Arkansas to take on Little Rock next Friday and Saturday. Friday's match is scheduled for 6 p.m. with Saturday's match scheduled for 2 p.m. 

Follow the Leathernecks 

For all the latest information on Leatherneck Volleyball, please visit GoLeathernecks.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Leathernecks on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook.