Bears Host Shockers, Travel to Evansville
October 29, 2015 | Women's Volleyball
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Opponents:
Wichita State, Saturday, Oct. 31 7 p.m.
Evansville, Monday, Nov. 2, 7 p.m.
Locations:
Sat. - Springfield, Mo.
Mon. - Evansville, Ind.
Sites:
Sat. - Hammons Student Center
Mon. - Carson Center
Live Stats: | UE
Live Video: ESPN3 (Wichita State only)
Promotions: Free "Wichita is Not a State" t-shirts to first 50 MSU students
Missouri State (15-8, 6-4 MVC) enters the final month of the season this week, with a home match against league-leading Wichita State (18-6, 9-1) at 7 p.m. Saturday and a road contest at Evansville (8-16, 2-8) at 7 p.m. Monday. The Bears are currently among a group of five teams within one game of each in the MVC standings, and play five of their final eight league matches at Hammons Student Center before hosting the conference tournament on Thanksgiving weekend.
The Opponents
Wichita State is 18-6 overall and sits atop the MVC standings with a 9-1 league record. Abbie Lehman leads a balanced WSU offensive attack with 2.83 kills per set and a .402 hitting percentage, and the Shockers hit .258 as a team compared to .206 for the opposition. Wichita State averages 13.92 kills, 15.85 digs, 1.30 aces and 1.96 blocks per set.
Evansville is 8-16 overall and 2-8 in MVC play entering weekend matches at Bradley and Loyola. Genesis Miranda leads the league with 4.31 kills and 5.04 points per set, and the Aces hit .175 as a team while surrendering a .242 attack efficiency. UE averages 11.62 kills, 15.15 digs, 1.82 block and 1.21 aces per set.
The Series
Missouri State holds a 45-27 all-time series edge over Wichita State, though WSU has won 21 of the last 30 meetings. Of those 30 matches, 13 have gone the full five sets.
Missouri State leads Evansville by a 40-3 margin, losing just twice since 1999.
First Meeting This Season
The Bears defeated Wichita State by a 3-1 score on Oct. 2 in Wichita. Lily Johnson had 20 kills and 21 digs, the first 20-20 match by an MSU player since 2006, while Paige Perego added 10 kills.
