Valparaiso (8-4, 0-0 MVC)
Friday, Sept. 27 - at Evansville (1-11, 0-0 MVC) - 6 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 28 - at Indiana State (3-9, 0-0 MVC) - 5 p.m. CT
Next Up For Valpo Volleyball: Missouri Valley Conference play gets underway for the Valpo volleyball team this weekend, as the Beacons open conference action with the in-state road trip, heading to Evansville Friday night and Indiana State Saturday evening.
Previously: The Beacons wrapped up nonconference action with a 2-1 record last weekend at the Terrier Invite, sweeping Presbyterian and South Carolina State before falling to host Wofford in five sets. Elise Swistek and Emma Hickey represented Valpo on the All-Tournament Team.
Looking Ahead: Valpo returns to the ARC next weekend, hosting two of the top three teams in the MVC preseason poll in UNI and Drake.
Following the Beacons: Valpo's match against Evansville will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Both matches will have live stats available, linked via ValpoAthletics.com.
Head Coach Carin Avery: In her 23rd season as head coach at Valparaiso, Carin Avery is the all-time winningest head coach across all sports in the history of Valpo Athletics. She has won 497 matches (497-247, .668) at the helm of the program and has led Valpo to three league regular season and tournament titles. The program has made seven postseason appearances under Avery, including three NCAA Tournament appearances, and advanced to the championship match of the 2021 NIVC. Avery has coached 62 All-League recipients over her tenure at Valpo, which has spanned three different conferences. She is Valpo's all-time leader in both victories and winning percentage, and owns a 552-271 (.671) record overall as a head coach.
Series History: Evansville - Valpo holds a 16-13 advantage in the all-time series, including an 11-3 mark over the Purple Aces since joining the MVC. In the lone matchup last season between the two programs, the Beacons earned a four-set win in Evansville. Miranda Strongman hit .500 with 15 kills to lead the attack as Valpo hit .293 as a team, while Elise Swistek posted 14 kills and a team-best 16 digs.
Indiana State - Valpo owns the slight 18-16 edge in the all-time series with the Sycamores, an advantage which is extended to 8-4 since Valpo joined the Valley. The Beacons eased to a sweep in Terre Haute last season in the lone matchup behind a balanced team effort. Maddie Moan paced Valpo in the win with nine kills on .500 hitting, while Mallory Januski registered nine blocks.
Scouting the Opposition: Evansville - The Purple Aces come into Friday's conference opener with a 1-11 record this year, with their lone victory coming over Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras. One of the nation's most prolific attackers, Giulia Cardona is averaging 4.96 kills/set on the season.
Indiana State - The Sycamores enter MVC play with a 3-9 record this season and will take on UIC Friday night before Valpo arrives in Terre Haute. Emma Kaelin leads the ISU attack with 3.35 kills/set, while Ella Scott is averaging an even one block per set at the net.
Valpo Picked Sixth in Preseason Poll: Valpo was picked to finish in sixth place in the Missouri Valley Conference in 2024, according to preseason polling of the conference's head coaches. The Beacons shared sixth position with Missouri State, while UNI topped the poll. In six of Valpo's seven seasons in the Valley, the program has met or exceeded its preseason prognostication.
Looking Back at Last Season: Valpo is coming off a third consecutive postseason appearance in 2023, as the Beacons earned an at-large berth in the NIVC. The program posted an 18-15 overall record and went 10-8 in MVC play, finishing in a tie for fifth place in the Valley standings. Miranda Strongman earned First Team All-MVC honors, while Mallory Januski was a Second Team All-MVC honoree.
Who's Back: This year's squad returns nine letterwinners from the 2023 team, a group which includes the team's leader in kills (Elise Swistek) and digs (Emma Hickey). The Beacons return a good bit of their back row defensive production, as 65.7% of the team's digs from last year are back in 2024.
Who's Gone: Valpo did graduate a talented class which accounted for a good portion of the team's front row production last year, as the Beacons return just 37.9% of the kills and 25.3% of the blocks from 2023. Middles Mallory Januski and Miranda Strongman, both All-MVC selections last year, ended their Valpo careers 1-2 in program history in career hitting percentage, while the team also graduated players who ranked among the top-10 in program history in career digs (outside hitter Bella Ravotto) and assists (setter Victoria Bulmahn).
Who's New: While there's a lot of production from last year to replace in 2024, there's also an exciting new class of rookies eager to take on the challenge of stepping up into contributing roles. This year's squad has nine players with freshman eligibility - one redshirt (Jessica Pickett) and eight true freshmen. The incoming class includes two players who were AVCA High School All-Americans last year (Ava Helming, Second Team; Lilly Merk, Third Team) and three others who were First Team All-State honorees as high school seniors (Jordyn Gove, Drew Glaser, Kadence Brumitt).
Opening Valley Play: Valpo is looking to start Valley play with a winning weekend for the second straight season, as last year's squad swept the opening weekend of MVC action at home over Missouri State and Southern Illinois. That was the second time since joining the Valley that Valpo had started at least 2-0, as the 2018 team opened conference play with four consecutive wins - notably, that year's squad began the MVC slate by winning both ends of the Indiana State/Evansville road trip.
At or Near the Top: It's become commonplace to see Valpo at or near the top of the Valley in digs/set, and this year has been no exception so far, as the Beacons enter MVC play ranked second in the conference and 13th nationally in digs/set. What's perhaps more eye-popping, however, is how many other categories Valpo is ranked highly in. The Beacons currently lead the MVC in aces/set (33rd nationally) and kills/set (36th nationally), while also ranking second in blocks/set.
Three Times the Honors: Senior Elise Swistek became just the second Valpo player in the tenure of head coach Carin Avery to earn All-Tournament Team honors three times in a single season at early-season tournaments this season. Swistek received recognition at each of the final three tournaments of nonconference play, most recently last weekend at the Terrier Invite. Through the first month of the season, Swistek - who cracked the program's top-20 in career digs earlier this month - leads the team with 3.18 kills/set and ranks second on the squad with 3.95 digs/set.
Leading the Way: Junior Emma Hickey enters MVC play tops in the nation in total digs, racking up 262 digs through the season's first four weekends. Her average of 5.82 digs/set ranks third nationally as well. With 1,625 career digs, Hickey - who cracked the program's career top-10 in digs earlier this season - has far and away the most digs of any D-I junior, as number two on that list - Montana State's Lauren Lindseth - sits at 1,150 career digs. In fact, Hickey ranks 28th nationally overall among D-I players in career digs.
1,500 For Hickey: Emma Hickey reached yet another career milestone Sept. 7 with her final dig of the weekend at St. Thomas, as it was the 1,500th dig of her collegiate career. Hickey reached the mark in her 72nd career match, becoming the fastest player in both Valpo history and MVC history to hit 1,500. She surpassed Illinois State's Courtney Pence, who reached the mark in 74 matches, as the fastest player in the MVC history to 1,500 career digs, and also bettered Rylee Cookerly and Taylor Root in Valpo's record books, as both Cookerly and Root hit the mark in 76 matches.
The Rookies Produce: Valpo's freshman class has stood out at the net through the season's nonconference action. The Beacons' rookies have accounted for 58.5% of the team's kills and 75% of the team's blocks over the first 12 matches. Freshmen have combined for 12 matches with double-figure kill totals and eight matches with five or more blocks.
I'm About to Play My Ace: Through the first month of competition, the service game has been much more of a weapon for this year's squad than in the program's recent history. The Beacons have 89 aces through the season's first nine matches, averaging 1.93 aces/set. To put the average into context, Valpo has not averaged more than 1.20 aces/set since the 2017 season, while its high in the 25-point era is 1.46 aces/set. Individually, Mara Thomas (8, Cornell) and Lilly Merk (6, Northern Illinois) have posted the program's two highest individual single-match ace totals of the 25-point era.
All-Tournament Honors: Five different combined for eight All-Tournament Team accolades at Valpo's four early-season tournaments. Beyond Swistek's three honors noted previously, Emma Hickey picked up a pair of accolades, representing the Beacons as an All-Tournament selection at the Terrier Invite and the IU Indy Hampton Inn Invitational. Freshman Jessica Pickett represented Valpo on the Popcorn Classic All-Tournament Team, junior Sam Warren earned All-Tournament accolades at the St. Thomas Invitational and freshman Ava Helming picked up an All-Tournament award at the IU Indy Hampton Inn Invitational.
Player of the Week: Junior Emma Hickey was tabbed the MVC Defensive Player of the Week for the fourth time in her career following opening weekend for her performance at the IU Indy tournament. She averaged 5.42 digs/set and 1.58 assists/set over the three matches, while also committing just one service reception error on 65 chances. Hickey posted 34 digs - her eighth career 30+ dig match - and 11 assists in the season-opening win over SIUE.
Big Debuts: Valpo's season-opening win over SIUE featured a number of standout collegiate debuts from the Beacons' freshmen. Leading the way was Ava Helming, who debuted with 20 kills on .282 hitting - the most kills by a Valpo player in a match since Nov. 11, 2022. The 20 kills set a program record for kills by a freshman in her debut, and also is the high-water mark for any Valpo player in a season opener. Defensively, Jessica Pickett posted nine blocks - also a program record for blocks by a freshman in her debut and the highest total for any Valpo player in a season opener. Lilly Merk tallied 11 kills and Kadence Brumitt added 10 kills as well, marking the first time in program history three Valpo players have posted double-figure kills in their respective collegiate debuts in the same match.
Winning Ways: The 2023 squad secured a winning season with an early-November win over Bradley, extending the tradition of the program's excellence. In 22 seasons under head coach Carin Avery, Valpo has posted a winning record 20 times. 18 of those times, the program has won at least 20 matches, and the team has averaged 22.2 wins per season in Avery's tenure.
Top Half Finishes: The Beacons ended the 2023 regular season in a tie for fifth-place finish in the final MVC regular season standings. Valpo has now finished in the top-half of the Valley standings in each of its seven years in the conference, the only MVC program to accomplish that feat. Going back further, Valpo has posted top-half conference finishes in 21 of Avery's 22 seasons - as well as qualifying for the conference tournament in each of her 22 seasons - and 30 of the last 31 years overall.
Postseason History: Last year's at-large bid to the NIVC extended the program's run of postseason appearances to three consecutive years and four of the last six seasons. Valpo's history with the NIVC is highlighted by the program's run to the title match in 2021, while its first NIVC trip in 2018 featured a trip to the quarterfinals. Previously, Valpo made three straight NCAA Tournament appearances with Avery at the helm from 2003 through 2005, while the program also appeared in an NCAA Tournament play-in match three straight years 1994-1996.
Digging Deep: Valpo continued its long tradition of strong back row play last fall, finishing 12th nationally with 17.17 digs/set. The program has ranked among the top-30 nationally in digs/set in each of the last 15 seasons, including 13 seasons among the top-20 and four seasons among the top-10 - highlighted by the 2017 campaign in which Valpo led the nation with 20.03 digs/set. Other top finishes include fourth nationally in the spring 2021 season (20.37/set), a fourth-place rank in 2010 and a sixth-place finish in 2015. Since the move to 25-point scoring, only seven teams have averaged more than 20 digs/set over the course of a season, and Valpo is the only program to have done it twice. 2018 saw Valpo lead the nation with 2,613 total digs - a mark which set a program single-season record and a Division I record in the 25-point era. Valpo also boasts two of the top-10 athletes in D-I history in career digs - Rylee Cookerly (2nd; 3,175) and Taylor Root (9th; 2,752).
Hickey Racks Up the Digs: Joining the long line of standout liberos at Valpo, junior Emma Hickey aims for a third straight season as one of the nation's prolific liberos. Hickey, who became the fastest player in Valpo and MVC history to surpass 1,000 career digs last season, finished the year 15th nationally in digs/set after ranking fourth in the same category as a freshman in 2022. Hickey already ranks ninth in program history with 1,625 digs - 28 away from seventh position - and has tallied 475 more digs than any other D-I junior. She also leads all active D-I players with 5.51 career digs/set.
Swistek as a Senior: Valpo reloads its attack this year, as the Beacons graduated three of their four most prolific attackers in terms of kills/set from last year's squad. Last year's leader in that category does return, however, as senior outside Elise Swistek registered 2.43 kills/set to pace the Beacons and also ranked second on the team with 3.39 digs/set. Swistek became the 26th player in program history to surpass 1,000 career digs late last season and currently ranks 20th in program history with 1,222 digs, while with 787 career kills, she has a shot at potentially reaching 1,000 career kills as well.
