Shocker volleyball falls to Southern Illinois, returns to defend home court

After an eight-game win streak, the Wichita State volleyball team was defeated in five sets by the Southern Illinois Salukis on Monday by scores of 26-28, 28-26, 20-25, 25-22 and 10-15.

Leading the now 19-7 (10-2) Shockers in the match was Mikaela Raudsepp with 17 kills, Emily Hiebert with 46 assists and Dani Mostrom with 18 digs.

Senior Katie Reilly was named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week after her performance against Missouri State, in which she averaged 4.33 kills and 2.67 digs per set.

Next up on the schedule is a home match against No. 7 Drake at 7 p.m. Friday at Charles Koch Arena.

The Bulldogs have an overall record of 14-16 and 5-8 in the MVC, and fell to Wichita State at their last meeting in October of this season.

Led by head coach Darrin McBroom, their biggest offensive threat is Makena Schoene, who is averaging 3.16 kills per set.

Drake has an average hitting percentage of .167, while WSU hits .258 percent.

The Shockers will face a tougher opponent, the No. 3 University of Northern Iowa Panthers again at home at 7 p.m. Sunday.

Wichita State also won this matchup earlier in the season, when they played UNI in early October.

The Panthers are coached by Bobbi Petersen, and led offensively by Kayla Haneline, who averages 3.20 kills and 1.08 blocks per set.

The Shockers remain ranked No. 1 in the MVC as the end of regular-season play draws near.

Both games will be broadcast live on ESPN3 and online at goshockers/watch.