2017 Chicago State Tournament
Tournament Information
Dates: Sept. 15-16, 2017
Teams: Southeast Missouri State, Wright State, Eastern Michigan and Chicago State
Location: Chicago, Ill.
Venue: Jacoby D. Dickens Center
 
Friday, Sept. 15, 2017
Match Information
Southeast Missouri (5-6)
vs. Wright State (3-7)
Start Time: 11 a.m., CT
Series: First Meeting in Division I Program History
 
Media Information
Live Stats: GoSoutheast.com
 
Match Information
vs. Eastern Michigan (7-6)
Start Time: 3 p.m., CT
Series: EMU leads series 1-0
 
Media Information
Live Stats: GoSoutheast.com
 
Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017
Match Information
at Chicago State (7-4)
Start Time: 4 p.m., CT
Series: SEMO leads series 4-0
 
Media Information
Live Stats: GoSoutheast.com
Live Stream: WAC Digital Network
 
Follow the Redhawks on Twitter for in-match updates @SEMOvb.
 
Complete Match Notes: GoSoutheast.com
 
Chicago State Tournament
SEMO ventures to the Windy City for the Chicago State Tournament this weekend to conclude non-conference play with matches against Wright State, Eastern Michigan and tournament host, Chicago State. The Redhawks roster features nine players from Illinois who will be returning to their home state this weekend for the tournament in Chicago.

Illinois natives on the current Southeast roster are Ally Dion, Krissa Gearring, Marie Less, Keegan Fornoff, Emily Boggetto, Madeline Grimm, Krista Berns, Annie Wehrheim and Nzingha Clarke. 

Let's Recap
The Redhawks lost a five-set thriller to regional rival, Southern Illinois, on Tuesday night in Carbondale, Ill. and enter this weekend's tournament with a 5-6 record. Southeast Missouri is currently on a four-game skid and has posted a 1-6 record (0-3 away, 1-3 neutral) in matches away from Cape Girardeau, Mo. The Redhawks however are a perfect 4-0 on their home court this season and are two wins away from matching their win total from last season.
 
Redhawks Milestones
Sophomore outside hitter Mikayla Kuhlmann posted a career-high 20 kills to lead the SEMO offense in Tuesday's match against the Salukis. Kuhlmann saw limited action in her freshman campaign due to injury and is currently second on the team in kills with 98 (2.72 kills/set). She has also recorded 57 digs and was two digs shy of her third double-double on Tuesday.
 
Senior Nzingha Clarke notched 12 kills against Southern Illinois and has now compiled 802 kills in her Redhawks career. Clarke is third on the team with 88 kills and leads the OVC in hitting with .366. She also has totaled 46 blocks this season for best in the conference.  
 
Double-Doubles for Days
Senior outside hitter Krissa Gearring recorded her team-high fourth double-double of the 2017 campaign on Tuesday after she accumulated 13 kills and 15 digs. Gearring now has 37 double-doubles in her Redhawks career after she posted her second-straight double-double of the campaign at SIU.  
 
That's a Redhawks ACE!
Southeast leads the conference with 74 service aces and is third in the OVC with an average of 1.64 service aces per set. Freshman Ally Dion leads the team with 14 aces and is second in the OVC. Sophomore Emily Boggetto has chipped in eight aces this season and has recorded two aces in each of the past four matches.
 
Scouting the Opponents
Wright State (3-7)
The Raiders come to the Chicago State Tournament after going 1-2 at their Holiday Inn Invitational this past weekend in Dayton, Ohio. Wright State opened the tournament with a loss to Harvard followed by a 3-1 win over Tennessee Tech of the OVC. The Raiders then capped the tournament with a loss to West Virginia. Freshman outside hitter Abby Barcus was named to the all-tournament team after she totaled 42 kills to lead Wright State offensively. Senior libero Jessie Thornton led the Raiders in digs at the tournament with 52 and is currently third in the Horizon League with 178 digs (4.81 digs/set). Senior middle blocker Megan Hopkins tops Wright State with 38 blocks (1.03 block/set). 
 
Eastern Michigan (7-6)
The Eagles have won five of their last seven contests and are currently on a two-match losing streak. EMU went 4-1 over the past weekend at the Towson Tournament with wins over Quinnipiac, George Mason, Cal State Fullerton and Lafayette before losing to Towson to close the tournament. Freshman outside hitter Franki Strefling was named to the all-tournament team after she totaled 52 kills (2.89 kills/set), 45 digs, 16 blocks and seven service aces. EMU then lost to Fort Wayne on Tuesday, 1-3. Jordan Smith leads the Eagles offensively with 133 kills (2.89 kill/set).
 
Chicago State (7-4)
Tournament host, the Chicago State Cougars, claimed first place at last weekend's EIU Panther Invitational with victories over Western Illinois, Eastern Illinois and Alabama A&M. Freshman setter Lacee Adams was named tournament MVP after she dished out 144 assists and junior outside hitter Lauryn Dela Cruz earned all-tournament honors. Dela Cruz totaled 60 kills at the tournament and also earned her second 2017 Western Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week. The Cougars then snapped their six-game winning streak on Sunday with an 0-3 loss to the UIC Flames. DeLa Cruz leads the WAC with 185 kills (4.40 kills/set) and junior outside hitter Carmen Carvajal ranks second in the conference with 163 kills (3.88 kills/set).
 
Series History
Southeast meets Wright State in the first-ever Division I meeting between the two volleyball programs on Friday at 11 a.m. The Redhawks then face Eastern Michigan for the second time at 3 p.m. EMU won the series opener, 3-2, on Sept. 6, 1991. SEMO closes out the weekend on Saturday against tournament host, Chicago State, in the fifth meeting between the two squads. Southeast holds a perfect 4-0 record against the Cougars and last beats CSU, 3-0, on Aug. 25, 2012 at the Hawkeye Challenge in Iowa City, Iowa.
 
Roster Breakdown
The Redhawks squad includes 15 student-athletes with the bulk of the team made up of upperclassmen (five seniors and five juniors). Nine members from the 2016 team return this season with four returnees being regular starters last season. The 2017 roster features five newcomers, two of which are true freshman and the other three players transferring from other institutions.
 
OVC Preseason
SEMO was chosen to finish ninth in the 2017 Ohio Valley Conference preseason poll. The Redhawks received 70 points in the survey voted on by OVC Coaches and Sports Information Directors. Belmont was picked as the 2017 preseason favorite. The Bruins garnered 10 of the 24 first place votes for 223 points. Austin Peay (214 points) finished second with six first-place votes. SIUE (199 points) took two first-place votes for third and 2016 OVC Champion, Murray State, (188 points) received six first-place votes to place fourth. Senior outside hitter Krissa Gearring and senior middle blocker Nzingha Clarke were both named to the 2017 Preseason All-OVC Team.
 
Looking Ahead
The Redhawks open their conference schedule on the road against Tennessee Martin on Sept. 19.