INDIANAPOLIS – The IUPUI volleyball team returns home this weekend to host a pair of Summit League tilts against South Dakota State and North Dakota State at The Jungle.
 
The Jags, who are coming off a split last weekend, are 3-1 in Summit League play entering the weekend and they will square off against the 0-3 Jackrabbits on Friday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m., before meeting the 2-3 Bison on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 5 p.m.
 
South Dakota State comes to town with a 1-18 overall record and it is led by first-year head coach and former IUPUI associate head coach Nicole Cirillo. Cirillo spent seven years with the Jaguars helping them earn three Summit League regular-season titles and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2013. Cirillo's squad is led by Ashley Beaner and her 2.13 kps, while Mikala Hora is just behind her at 2.08 kps.
 
NDSU is 11-7 overall entering the weekend and as a team it ranks third in the conference in hitting percentage at .225. Jenni Fassbender leads the team offensively with 3.44 kps, which ranks fourth in the conference, and she also is one of the team's best blockers posting 17 solo blocks at the halfway point of the season.
 
After a 2-0 start in league play, the Jags dropped a tough four-set match at league-leader Oral Roberts last weekend before bouncing back with a three-set sweep over Western Illinois on Sunday. The Jags rank first in the conference in league-only matches in kills per set and hitting percentage, thanks to Kaitlyn Hickey's 3.80 kps and Kelly Wachtel's .492 clip.
 
IUPUI is 10-6 all-time against the Jackrabbits and 6-12 against the Bison, winning seven straight in the series with SDSU and six straight against NDSU.