SLIAC Game of the Week: Blackburn vs. Eureka
Posted: Sep 11, 2018

SLIAC Game of the Week: Blackburn vs. Eureka

 

At a Glance

This week's SLIAC Game of the Week will take place on the volleyball court when Blackburn College hosts Eureka College as part of a conference quad on Saturday. Both teams have already notched a conference win this season and will be continuing their early season pursuit of a playoff spot. 

     
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Blackburn College 'BEAVERS'

Blackburn notched their first win of the season, and the first win for new head coach Carlos Jimenez, by holding on in five sets against MacMurray last week. The Beavers will take on St. Mary of the Woods on Wednesday night before hosting the Red Devils on Saturday.

The Beavers are among the conference leaders in aces with 38 this season with the duo Kendall Burleyson and Kendall Knop leading the way with 11. Knop also is the team leader at 2.17 kills per set while Burleyson leads the team at 5.65 assists per set. Middle hitter Shelsie Timmermeier is hitting .239 with five blocks while Alanni Young leads the team with a .286 hitting percentage. 
        

Eureka College 'RED DEVILS'

Eureka found the win column for the first time in conference play with a 3-0 sweep of Spalding last Saturday. The Red Devils will face Knox and Iowa Wesleyan during the midweek before heading to Carlinville this weekend. 

Eureka comes into the week averaging 9.93 kills per set, 5th best in the league. They are also 3rd in blocks per set thanks to Caitlin Miller and McKenzie Reiners. Lexi Dooley leads Eureka at 2.71 kills per set while McKenna Cleer leads the defense with 5.11 digs per set. Sara Worrell (4.61 a/s) and Katlyn Arrenholz (3.61 a/s) share the setting duties for the team.
 

Last Meeting
 Blackburn rallied from down two sets to one in their last meeting, October 27, 2017. The Beavers topped the Red Devils 25-19, 10-25, 14-25, 25-23, 15-12 to close out their conference action last year. The Beavers won despite being out-hit .278 to .107 as a team, thanks in large part to 12 service aces.

Game Notes

  • Blackburn starts the week with a 1-4 overall record and a 1-0 SLIAC mark while Eureka is currently 2-6 overall and 1-2 in the SLIAC.
  • Eureka leads the all-time series against Blackburn 17-4 with the Beavers snapping a three-match losing streak to the Red Devils in their final meeting last year.
  • Eureka's McKenna Cleer ranks 3rd in the SLIAC in digs with 143 at the start of the week.
  • Blackburn senior Alanni Young is currently 3rd in the conference with a .286 hitting percentage and 3rd with 1.00 blocks per set.