Southeast Missouri (12-8, 4-2 OVC)
vs. Morehead State (14-5, 5-1 OVC) 
Match Information
Date: Friday, Oct. 18, 2019
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo. 
Venue: Houck Field House
First Serve: 5 p.m., CT
Series: Southeast leads 27-23
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats:  StatBroadcast
 
vs. Eastern Kentucky (7-13, 2-4) 
Match Information
Date: Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo. 
Venue: Houck Field House
First Serve: 2 p.m., CT
Series: Southeast leads 37-10
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats:  StatBroadcast
 
Match Notes: Southeast Missouri
Match Notes: Morehead State
  
Southeast Wraps Homestand Friday and Saturday against Morehead State and EKU
Southeast Missouri women's volleyball (12-8, 4-2 OVC) concludes its four-match homestand Friday and Saturday at Houck Field House. Southeast takes on Ohio Valley Conference leader Morehead State (14-5, 5-1 OVC) Friday at 5 p.m. before facing Eastern Kentucky (7-13, 2-4) Saturday at 2 p.m.
 
Promotions
• Post Match Autographs
- The 2019 Redhawks volleyball team will be signing autographs at the conclusion of both Friday and Saturday's matches.
 
Follow the Redhawks
• Stats will be available for Friday and Saturday's matches on GoSoutheast.com.
• @SEMOvb, the official Twitter page of Redhawks volleyball, will feature live in-game updates all season long.
 
Scouting the Opponents
Eagles
Morehead State defeated Eastern Kentucky and Austin Peay last week. Olivia Lohmeier recorded 31 kills and eight blocks over the two matches. She had 17 kills versus Eastern Kentucky and added 14 against Austin Peay. Mia Swearingen recorded 11 blocks on the week to earn OVC Co-Defensive Player of the Week honors. She had a career-high eight blocks versus Austin Peay and also recorded 25 kills over the two matches. Bridget Bessler tallied 83 assists and 21 blocks last week. She notched a double-double with 45 assists and 13 digs against Austin Peay. Morehead State dropped a 1-3 decision to West Virginia on Tuesday in Morehead, Kentucky. Lohmeier posted 21 kills to become the 20th player in MSU program history to reach 1,000 career kills.
 
The Eagles were picked to finish 2019 third in the OVC and are currently tied for first with Jacksonville State with a 5-1 conference mark. 
 
Colonels
Eastern Kentucky fell to Morehead State before defeating Murray State last week. Abby Noll recorded 41 kills and 24 digs over the two matches to garner OVC Newcomer of the Week. She had a season-high 29 kills coupled with 18 digs in the win over Murray State. Dena Tekavec posted 41 digs last week. Tekavec posted a match-high 25 versus Murray State and had 16 against Morehead State. The Colonels will face UT Martin on Friday prior to their match with SEMO on Saturday. 
 
EKU was selected to conclude 2019 last in the league. Currently the Colonels are tied for eighth with Tennessee State and UTM. 
  
Series History
Eagles
Southeast has a 27-23 advantage on the Eagles in the all-time series. 
 
Morehead State won both matchups in 2018 including the most recent meeting in the First Round of the Ohio Valley Conference Championship in Clarksville, Tennessee, on Nov. 15, 0-3. 2018 Second-Team All-OVC honorees Annie Wehrheim and Haley Bilbruck led the offense. Wehrheim notched seven kills and Bilbruck tallied six. Mikayla Kuhlmann also had six kills. 
 
SEMO last beat Morehead State on Oct. 20, 2017 with a 3-0, sweep at Houck Field House behind a season-high hitting percentage of .371. Krissa Gearring led Southeast with 11 kills and Bilbruck notched 10 kills on a .643 hitting clip. Kuhlmann and Nzingha Clarke each added nine kills with identical .444 hitting percentages.
 
Colonels
Southeast leads the all-time series with the Colonels, 37-10, and were victorious in their most recent contest as SEMO swept EKU in Richmond, Kentucky, on Oct. 12, 2018. Annie Wehrheim paced the offense with 18 kills and Claire Ochs dished out 35 assists as Southeast tallied a team-hitting clip of .318. Ochs added 11 digs defensively.
 
The Redhawks last overcame the Colonels in Cape Girardeau, on Oct. 9, 2015, 3-1. Nzingha Clarke tallied 14 kills and Krissa Gearring added 11 with 24 digs. Katarina Rotta totaled 42 assists. 
 
About Last Week…
Southeast split its third week of OVC matches. The Redhawks swept Eastern Illinois on Friday before dropping a 2-3 battle to SIUE on Saturday. SEMO is 8-2 in its last 10 matches. Saturday's loss was the first for the Redhawks at Houck Field House in 2019 as the team possesses a 5-1 home mark in Cape Girardeau. 
 
Krista Berns led the offense this past week with 20 kills on a .447 hitting clip. Berns posted a team high eight kills Friday in Southeast's sweep of EIU. On Saturday, she registered a career best 12 kills while connecting at a .357 rate. Berns also chipped in six blocks, two digs and an assist. Claire Ochs dished out 74 assists this past weekend to pace Southeast. Ochs totaled 30 on Friday against EIU as Southeast had a .253 hitting clip. She also had nine digs with four kills and two aces in the 3-0 sweep. On Saturday, Ochs compiled a match high 44 assists with 16 digs for her 30th career double-double performance. 
 
BLOCK PARTY
Southeast registered a program-best 23.0 total team blocks on Oct. 4 at Austin Peay. Maggie Adams led the Redhawks with a career best 11 while Krista Berns added seven. Mikayla Kuhlmann and Annie Wehrheim each had career highs of six. Claire Ochs had four and Laney Malloy chipped in three. 
 
The Redhawks lead the conference with 183.0 total blocks (2.37 blocks/set) in 2019. In conference play, SEMO tops the league with 65.0 total blocks (2.71 blocks/set). Adams is first in the OVC in strictly conference matches with 36 total blocks (1.50 blocks/set). Overall, in all matches, she is fifth with 67 total blocks (1.03 blocks/set) and Berns ranks ninth with 62 total blocks (1.00 blocks per set).
 
Another Ace for Southeast
Southeast ranks first in the conference and fifth nationally with 132 service aces in 2019. SEMO is also 27th in all of NCAA Division I (1st in the OVC) with 1.71 aces per set.
 
Laney Malloy tops the conference with 33 aces (0.41 aces/set) which ranks 15th nationally. The Redhawks are also second, fourth and sixth in the league for total aces with Claire Ochs (27), Ally Dion (24), and Emily Boggetto (23) respectively. 
 
Boggetto registered a career-best five service aces last Friday against Eastern Illinois. 
 
Malloy is tied for third with 33 service aces in a single-season at Southeast during the 25-point rally scoring era from 2008 to present.
 
Da Ally D Show
Junior defensive specialist Ally Dion tied Jade Mortimer (2013-2016) for first in Southeast program history (25-point rally scoring era from 2008 to present) with 93 career service aces. She needs one service ace for the top overall spot in SEMO school history.
 
Ochs the Setter, Not the Tree
Claire Ochs ranks second in the league with 709 assists this season. Ochs averages 9.21 assists per set for fifth in the OVC. As a team, the Redhawks are third in the conference with 852 assists and 11.06 assists per set.
 
I Dig this Beilsmith Character
Freshman libero Tara Beilsmith tops the conference with 360 digs. She is also fourth in the OVC with 4.83 digs per set. Beilsmith has registered 20 or more digs in nine matches. 
 
As a team, the Redhawks are first and third in the league for team digs (1,252, 12th NCAA) and digs per set (16.26). 
 
Redhawk Open OVC Play with Victory
Southeast opened Ohio Valley Conference play on Tuesday, Sept. 24 with a 3-1 (25-13, 25-17, 22-25, 25-13) win over UT Martin in front of 823 fans at Houck Field House for the annual Redhawks Houck "Filled" House match.
 
Mikayla Kuhlmann (.400) and Laney Malloy led the Southeast offense with 11 kills each and Annie Wehrheim added 10. Malloy chipped in 11 digs for the double-double outing. Claire Ochs also tallied a double-double with 10 digs to complement her 36 assists. Kylie Plant was perfect on both of her swings, registering her first two career kills as a Redhawk down the stretch in the first and fourth sets. 
 
Non-Conference Recap
Southeast concluded non-conference play with an 8-6 mark that featured a pair of tournament championships and a four-match win streak entering the OVC slate. SEMO last won two tournaments in 2012 when the team registered a 21-13 record.
 
Southeast captured its Redhawks Invitational Championship with victories over Jackson State, Western Illinois and Evansville. SEMO posted wins over Toledo, North Alabama and Memphis to conclude non-conference play and grab the Beale Street Challenge Championship. The Redhawks also defeated Saint Louis for the first time since 2013 on Sept. 17 and had a win over Jacksonville at the season-opening Missouri State Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational. 
  
500th NCAA Win
Southeast captured the 2019 Redhawks Invitational Championship on Sept. 7 after registering a perfect 3-0 record with three consecutive, 3-0 sweeps. SEMO opened the tournament with wins over Jackson State and Western Illinois before a sweep of Evansville. The victory over Evansville in the tournament finale marked the 500th NCAA Division I win for the Redhawks in school history. Southeast joined the NCAA Division I and the Ohio Valley Conference in 1991. 
 
Redhawk Debuts
Five members of the 2019 team have made their Southeast debuts this season. Freshmen Zoey Beasley and Kylie Plant both made their Redhawk debuts in the win over Jackson State at the Redhawks Invitational Sept. 6. Sophomore Colby Greene and freshmen Tara Beilsmith and Talia Gouard saw action at the season-opening Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational at Missouri State Aug. 30-31. 
 
O Captains! My Captains!
Southeast Head Coach Julie Yankus announced on Sept. 3, Claire Ochs, Laney Malloy and Emily Boggetto were selected as team captains for the 2019 season. The trio were chosen to the leadership positions by their teammates.
 
Redhawk Scrimmage Recap
Southeast competed in the Redhawk Scrimmage Aug. 24 at Houck Field House in preparation for the 2019 season. Head coach Julie Yankus coached the red team while assistant coach Loni Kreun was at the helm of the black team. The red team edged the black team in three sets, 25-15, 25-14, 25-15. Colby Greene paced the red team with a match-high 11 kill outing while Laney Malloy added nine with 12 digs and Talia Gouard tallied eight kills. Krista Berns had six kills to complement her five service aces and four blocks. Claire Ochs dished out 26 assists with 11 digs. Ally Dion finished with a double-double of 13 assists with 16 digs and two aces on black.
 
Missouri Baptist Exhibition Recap
The Redhawks edged Missouri Baptist, 3-0, in the program's third consecutive exhibition match Aug. 12 at Houck Field House. SEMO swept the Spartans by scores of 25-12, 25-16 and 25-20. Colby Greene led the Redhawks with six kills, while Laney Malloy, Krista Berns and Claire Ochs followed close behind with five each. Ochs added a double-double of 29 assists with a match-high 14 digs. The Redhawks added seven blocks, as well.
 
Roster Breakdown
The 2019 Southeast team includes 16 student-athletes and features seven upperclassmen (four seniors and three juniors). SEMO returns 12 players from the 2018 OVC Tournament Team and only lost four letter winners. The 2019 squad also includes four newcomers. 
 
Annie Wehrheim returns for her senior season, moving to the right side hitter position after a Second-Team All-OVC performance in 2018 at outside hitter. Wehrheim was named to the 2019 Preseason All-OVC volleyball team after she was third on SEMO last season with 204 kills.
 
Other top returners for the Redhawks offensively are Laney Malloy and Krista Berns. Malloy paced Southeast with 299 kills and Berns was fifth on the team, chipping in 134 kills.
 
Claire Ochs returns at setter for her sophomore campaign and totaled 1,104 assists while starting in all but one match in 2018. Ochs ranks fourth all-time for assists in a single season during SEMO's 25-point rally scoring era. She also notched a team-best 18 double-doubles last season including a 57-assist and 21-dig outing at Eastern Illinois.
 
Defensively, junior Ally Dion returns at the libero/defensive specialist position after she led the team in 2018 with 395 digs (3.53 digs/set). Senior Emily Boggetto also returns for her final collegiate season at Southeast.
 
Maggie Adams topped the team in 2018 with 105.0 total blocks and Berns tallied 80.0. Berns ranks sixth overall in the SEMO record books for career solo blocks (35), block assists (198) and total blocks (233).
 
Redhawks Add Kreun as Assistant Coach
Head coach Julie Yankus added assistant coach Loni Kreun in May. Kreun most recently spent a season as the Volunteer Assistant Coach at UNC Charlotte where she gained experience in scouting, recruiting, and practice organization. She coordinated logistics for team travel and helped develop the team's social media presence.
 
Before transitioning to coaching, Kreun was an outside hitter at Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina. During her senior year, she led the Camels with a team best 332 kills, which ranked fifth in the Big South Conference. Kreun was named to the Big South Second-Team after competing in 121 sets over 31 matches.
 
OVC Preseason Poll
SEMO was predicted to finished the 2019 campaign sixth overall in the league, the OVC announced Aug. 15. The Redhawks received 146 points in the poll voted on by OVC coaches and sports information directors. Murray State, the 2018 OVC Champions, were selected to repeat this season and Austin Peay was picked second followed by Morehead State, Jacksonville State and SIUE. The Racers earned 12 first-place votes. Rounding out the poll are UT Martin, Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech, Belmont, Eastern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky from seventh through 12th.
 
Redhawks Crushing it in the Classroom 
Southeast racked up multiple academic awards in the offseason. The Redhawks earned a NCAA Public Recognition Award based on their most recent multiyear Academic Progress Rates for the fourth-straight season. SEMO was also awarded their 12th American Volleyball Coaches Association AVCA Team Academic Award for the 2018-2019 season after registering a 3.60 cumulative GPA.
 
Maggie Adams, Madara Bajare, Krista Berns, Haley Bilbruck, Caroline Draver, Keegan Fornoff, Colby Greene, Madeline Grimm, Laney Malloy, Elissa Moylan, Claire Ochs and Annie Wehrheim each were named to the OVC's Commissioner's Honor Roll for the 2018-19 academic year after they achieved at least a 3.25 grade point average. 
 
Keegan Fornoff and Madeline Grimm both earned OVC Medal of Honors after they posted perfect 4.0 grade point averages during the 2018-19 academic year.
 
Looking Ahead
Southeast next hits the road for three away conference matches. The Redhawks venture to the Music City to face Tennessee State and Belmont on Friday, Oct. 25 at 6 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 26 at 2 p.m. in Nashville, Tennessee. SEMO then makes the short trip to UT Martin for the second-meeting of the season with the Skyhawks on Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 6 p.m. in Martin, Tennessee.