Redhawks Invitational
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo. 
Venue: Houck Field House
 
Friday, Sept. 6, 2019
Match Information
Southeast Missouri (1-2)
vs. Jackson State (3-1)
First Serve: 12:30 p.m., CT
Series: SEMO leads 1-0
Live Stats: StatBroadcast

Match Information
vs. Western Illinois (1-2)
First Serve: 7 p.m., CT
Series: SEMO leads 8-2
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
 
Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019
Match Information
vs. Evansville (0-0)
First Serve: 2 p.m., CT
Series: SEMO leads 18-6
Live Stats: StatBroadcast

Non-SEMO Schedule
Friday, Sept. 6
Game 1 – Western Illinois vs. Evansville | 10 a.m. | Live Stats
Game 3 – Evansville vs. Jackson State | 4:30 p.m. | Live Stats

Saturday, Sept. 7
Game 5 – Western Illinois vs. Jackson State | 11 a.m. | Live Stats
 
Complete Match Notes:
Southeast Missouri
Evansville
 
Southeast Opens Home Schedule with Redhawks Invitational
Southeast Missouri women's volleyball opens its home schedule with the 2019 Redhawks Invitational Friday and Saturday at Houck Field House. Southeast welcomes Jackson State, Western Illinois and Evansville to Cape Girardeau. The Redhawks face Jackson State at 12:30 p.m. Friday and then take on WIU at 7 p.m. that evening before closing out the tournament against Evansville Saturday at 2 p.m.  
 
Promotions
Friday
• Integrity Week
Saturday
• World Beard Day
    - The first 200 non-bearded fans will receive a FREE foam beard, courtesy of Hanai Salon & Tan.
    - The first 50 bearded fans will receive a FREE hot dog. 
    - There will be beard-theme games played in between the Redhawks match.
 
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.
 
Fifth Annual Redhawks Invitational 
SEMO opens their home schedule with the fifth annual Redhawks Invitational presented by Drury Hotels. The Redhawks kicked off both the 2015 and 2016 campaigns with the tournament. 
 
Southeast posted a perfect 3-0 record at the 2017 Redhawks Invitational to win the tournament title. SEMO swept Morgan State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff before battling past Evansville, 3-2, to capture the Championship at the Show Me Center. Ally Dion was named to the all-tournament team with Krissa Gearring (MVP) and Nzingha Clarke. Gearring joined the 1,000 career digs and kills club in the final match of the tournament against Evansville. 
 
Last season, Southeast won its opener over Louisiana Monroe at Houck Field House before falling to Radford and Northwestern State to close the tournament at Saxony Lutheran High School. Claire Ochs dished out 28 assists in the match with NSU and totaled 91 assists at the tournament with 26 digs and 10 kills to earn Redhawks Invitational All-Tournament honors.
 
Scouting the Opponents
Tigers
Jackson State enters the weekend after falling to Northwestern State, 0-3, in its home opener on Tuesday in Jackson, Mississippi. Alexandra Burney and Jylen Whitten paced JSU with nine kills apiece as Dekyra Dennis passed out 15 assists and Damassy Thompson added 12. Alana Washington led the defense with 18 digs. The Tigers swept their season-opening Southwestern Athletic Conference/Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Volleyball Challenge tournament with wins over Delaware State, South Carolina State and Florida A&M.
 
Marina Brito was named to the preseason All-SWAC First-Team as the Tigers were pegged to finished fifth overall in the league. 
 
Leathernecks
Western Illinois posted a 1-2 record in their campaign-opening StarkVegas Classic at Mississippi State of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). WIU won their opener, 3-0, over Mississippi Valley State before falling to Chattanooga and tournament host, Mississippi State, in five. Against MSU, the Leathernecks totaled 28 blocks led by Mackenzie Steckler's personal best of 12. Steckler also added 24 kills in vs. MVSU. Mariah Mitchell was named to the all-tournament team. 
 
Steckler and Mitchell were both named to the Summit League's Preseason Players to Watch as the Leathernecks were picked to finish last in ninth. 
 
Purple Aces
Evansville will make their season debut at the Redhawks Invitational this weekend. The Purple Aces were scheduled to face Providence and East Carolina in San Juan, Puerto Rico, this past weekend but they were cancelled due to the threat of Hurricane Dorian. Evansville played a scrimmage at Southern Indiana last Friday.
 
The Purple Aces were selected to finish last in 10th for the 2019 season. Evansville returns three starters from its 2018 team that finished 10-21 (4-14 MVC). Fernando Morales takes over as interim head coach. 
 
Series History
Tigers
Southeast leads the series with JSU, 1-0, as the teams last met in 1988. The Redhawks swept the Tigers, 3-0, at home in that meeting. 
 
Leathernecks
The Redhawks have an 8-2 lead in the series with Western Illinois. Southeast traveled to Macomb, Illinois, last season on Sept. 11, 2018, and edged the Leathernecks, 3-2, in the penultimate non-conference match of 2018. SEMO has won each of the last two matchups including a 3-2 thriller on Labor Day (Sept. 4) in 2017 at Houck Field House.
 
Purple Aces
SEMO has an 18-6 edge on Evansville in the series. The Redhawks have beat the Purple Aces each of the past two matchups. SEMO swept Evansville in Evansville, Indiana, on Aug. 28, 2018. The year prior, the Redhawks overcame the Purple Aces, 3-2, to capture the 2017 Redhawks Invitational title at the Show Me Center on Sept. 2, 2017.  
 
O Captains! My Captains!
Southeast Head Coach Julie Yankus announced on Tuesday 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.
 
Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational Recap
Southeast posted a 1-2 record in its season-opening Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational held at Missouri State. The Redhawks were edged by the BIG EAST's DePaul, 2-3, before picking up their first victory of 2019 – a 3-1 decision over Jacksonville. In the tournament finale, SEMO fell to host Missouri State, 1-3, for third at the Invitational. 
 
Laney Malloy led SEMO with 45 kills to earn all-tournament honors at the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational. Malloy finished with a pair of double-doubles as she added 30 digs. She opened the tournament with a 17-kill and 12-dig performance against DePaul with a personal best four aces. Malloy chipped in 20 kills on a .352 hitting clip with 10 digs in the Redhawks win over Jacksonville. 
 
Annie Wehrheim finished with 32 kills as she posted 15 against DePaul on a .306 hitting clip and 12 in the win over Jacksonville State.
 
Krista Berns paced the Redhawks defensively with 18.0 total blocks. She opened the tournament with eight (two solo, six assists) against DePaul. Berns followed that with six in Southeast's win over Jacksonville and finished the Invitational with four against Missouri State. Berns also added 13 kills and six digs.
 
Ally Dion tallied 43 digs this past weekend including 22 vs. Jacksonville. 
 
Claire Ochs dished out a team high 121 assists and posted two double-doubles as SEMO hit .192 over the three matches. She opened the tournament with a double-double of 41 assists and 12 digs with five kills Friday against DePaul. In the Redhawks win over Jacksonville, she had 47 assists with 14 digs as Southeast hit at a .256 clip. Ochs also had a career best seven kills and five total blocks. She finished with 33 assists against MSU.   
 
Redhawks Debuts
Colby Greene, Tara Beilsmith and Talia Gouard each made their Redhawks debuts at the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational.
 
Greene compiled 26 kills on a .340 hitting clip, making two starts. In the first two matches of the tournament, she totaled six kills twice against DePaul and Jacksonville State (.455 hitting clip). Greene knocked a career best 14 kills on a .370 hitting clip in the meeting with MSU. She also added six blocks, two assists and two digs over the three matches.
             
Beilsmith totaled 36 digs with 13 against both Jacksonville and MSU. She started in one contest and added six assists and a service ace. 
 
Gouard recorded 11 kills over the three matches and started in two including a 7-kill outing in the win over Jacksonville. In her first collegiate match against DePaul, she totaled five blocks, finishing the weekend with 11. 
 
Record Books
Ally Dion totaled three services at the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational to improve her career total to 72 which ranks seventh overall in SEMO history during the 25-point rally scoring era (2008 to present). Dion entered the season eighth in the record books with 69 behind Andrea Baylin who posted 71 from 2010 to 2014.
 
Krista Berns ranks sixth overall at Southeast (25-point rally scoring era from 2008 to present) for career solo blocks (35), block assists (198) and total blocks (233). Berns led the Redhawks at the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational with 18 total blocks (two solo, 16 assists). She is eight total blocks away from tying Emily Hughes (2008-2010) with 259 total blocks in her career for fifth.
 
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 Assistant Coach Loni Kreun
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
After the Redhawks Invitational, Southeast travels to Carbondale, Illinois, to face regional rival Southern Illinois on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Davies Gym. SEMO then competes in its third tournament of the season at the Panthers Invitational in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Sept. 13-14. The Redhawks open the tournament on Sept. 13 at 12:30 p.m. against Milwaukee which is the alma mater of head coach Julie Yankus before facing Western Michigan at 5 p.m. SEMO closes out the Invitational against Butler at noon on Sept. 14.