Week 12 Storylines
1) Missouri State (9-20, 6-9 Missouri Valley Conference) has won five of its last nine matches and sits a half game out of the final MVC Tournament spot heading into the team's final road trip of the season. The Bears visit one of the two teams directly in front of them in the standings Friday at 6 p.m. when they take on Evansville, then head to Indiana State for a 4 p.m. Saturday contest to complete the weekend.
2) MSU's sophomore class leads the Bears in most statistical categories this season, ranking 1-4-5 in kill average (
Amelia Flynn,
Sarabi Worsley-Gilbert,
Chloe Rear), 2-3-5 in total kills (Rear, Flynn, Worsley-Gilbert), 1 in assists (Rear), 1-3-4 in digs (
Leah Vokolek, Rear, Flynn), and 1-2 in aces (Rear, Vokolek). Meanwhile, freshman
Azyah Green leads the team in total blocks.
3) Missouri State has been decimated by injury this season, with seven players missing a total of 77 matches so far for health reasons. MSU had 11 or fewer players active in each of the season's first 20 matches.
4) Chloe Rear has four triple-doubles on the season, the most in a single season at Missouri State since 1989, and fourth nationally in 2019. Those four triple-doubles also tie current MSU assistant
Carly Thomas for the most in a career during the rally scoring era (since 2001). Rear averages 8.2 kills, 17.0 assists and 7.8 digs on a per match basis.
5) Missouri State's series records against Indiana State (68-1) and Evansville (49-3) rank as the first- and third-best winning percentages for any MVC opponent against another in league history.
The Opponents
Evansville is 15-10 overall and 6-8 in league matches. Melanie Feliciano (4.17) and Rachel Tam (3.89) rank second and fourth in the league in kill average, and the Aces hit .188 as a team with a .207 opponent percentage. UE averages 13.22 kills, 1.29 aces, 17.96 digs and 1.56 blocks per set.
   Indiana State is 5-19 overall and 3-11 in MVC play. The Sycamores hit .155 as a team and allow a .206 efficiency with averages of 11.70 kills, 1.03 aces, 18.15 digs and 1.78 blocks per set.
Series Histories
The Bears lead Evansville by a 49-3 margin, losing just twice since 1999.
   MSU leads the all-time series with Indiana State by a 68-1 margin, with the Bears' lone loss occurring in five sets in Springfield 1994. Since then, the Bears have reeled off 54 straight wins against the Sycamores.
First Meetings This Season
Missouri State dominated Evansville in most statistical categories on Oct. 19, but the Aces escaped Springfield with the 3-1 win after netting 10 more total points than MSU at the service line.
   The Bears earned a 3-2 win over Indiana State on Oct. 18 in Springfield.
Chloe Rear had a triple-double,
Laynie Dake tallied 17 kills, and MSU hit .500 in the fifth set.
Last Week
Missouri State split two home matches, losing 3-1 to Loyola and rebounding with a five-set victory over Valparaiso.
   Friday, the Ramblers hit .235 compared to .121 for the Bears, adding 13.5 blocks to claim the last three sets after a slow start.
Laynie Dake led MSU with 12 kills.
   Saturday, Dake hit .323 with 14 kills, and the Bears closed out the fifth set on a 9-2 run to claim the win.
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