LOUISVILLE, Ky. - IUPUI women's volleyball struggled to get things going on the offensive end as the Jags lost in four sets to both Southern Illinois and UT-Martin to begin the 2018 season on Friday (Aug. 24). 

In the loss to the Salukis, senior Maggie Gibson posted IUPUI's (0-2) first triple-double since 2007, tallying 13 kills, 15 digs and 25 assists. Gibson almost had another triple-double against UT-Martin, finishing with eight kills, 13 digs and 13 assists. 

Against SIU, Elizabeth Scott and Rebecca Schlechte each posted their first double-doubles of the season. Scott led the Jags with 16 kills and had 15 digs, while Schlechte had 21 assists and 14 digs. Rhiannon Schuenemann led the Jags with 20 digs.

In the match against UT-Martin, freshman Hannah Oehlberg led the Jags with 11 kills and added five digs. Schlechte finished with 13 assists and nine digs, while Schuenemann had 18 digs and eight assists.

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 3, IUPUI 1
IUPUI dropped the opening match of the 2018 campaign to Southern Illinois in four sets as the Jags struggled to get in to an offensive rhythm for most of the match. The Jags hit just .187 for the match, hitting .200 or lower in three of the four sets.

IUPUI got down early in the first set falling behind 6-1 and eventually 10-5 before Elizabeth Scott scored three of the next four points for IUPUI and Maggie Gibson's kill tied the set at 10. Three-straight points by Southern Illinois with the score tied at 12 gave the Salukis a lead they would not relinquish. The Jags never pulled within less than two the rest of the way and SIU took the first set 25-18.

Set two began close with kills by Maddie Dean and Kaitlyn Johnson pulling the Jags within one. Three-straight Saluki points made it 10-6. IUPUI got it within three at 12-9 after a kill and a block by Haley Hoffman but that sparked a 4-0 run by SIU to make it 16-9. From there Southern Illinois controlled the rest of the set on route to a 25-19 win, taking a 2-0 lead in to the break.

The Jags came out in set three with a much better rhythm, hitting a match-high .265. The set begat with both teams trading points until, with the score 11-10 in favor of IUPUI, the Jags scored the next five points. A service error by SIU followed by a Saluki attack error put IUPUI up two. Rhiannon Schuenemann followed with a service ace and kills by Dean and Gibson put the Jags up 16-10.

Another 3-0 run, featuring a kills by Gibson and Hoffman and an ace from Gibson put the set out of reach and IUPUI finished off the third set with a kill by Johnson to win the set 25-18.

The fourth set saw Southern Illinois take an early lead but IUPUI responded with back to back kills by Scott giving the Jags their first lead of the set at 13-12. IUPUI then went on a 4-0 run that featured kills from Gibson and Scott and was capped by Gibson and Shakana Norfleet combining for a block.

The momentum shifted as SIU tied the match on back-to-back service aces and then took the lead after a Jaguar error and a kill. IUPUI managed to tie the set up at 20 with a kill by Gibson and block by Hoffman and Johnson but three-straight from the Salukis put the match out of reach and Southern Illinois closed out the match with a 25-22 set win.

UT-MARTIN 3, IUPUI 1

After struggling on offense in the first match of the year, IUPUI struggled again, hitting only .099 against the Skyhawks. 

The first set began with a service ace from Schlechte but UT-Martin followed with six-straight points to take control of the set. Two attack errors from UT-Martin pulled the Jags within three but 5-1 run spread the gap even further. IUPUI would not get any closer than five points the rest of the way in set one as UT-Martin won the set 25-16. 

Set two began with IUPUI jumping out to a 10-0 lead fueled by kills from Gibson and Oehlberg and multiple errors by UT-Martin. After the Skyhawks pulled within three, the Jags got a kill from Scott, an ace from Elli Gaskill and a block from the combination of Shakana Norfleet and Kaitlyn Johnson to get back up six. The Jags continued to hold the lead the rest of the way and Johnson finished up the set with a kill to tie the match at one. 

IUPUI began the third set with another strong run, scoring the first six points with kills by Norfleet and Gibson, and a Haley Hoffman block highlighting the run. With the Jags up 10-4 UT-Martin used a 6-0 run to tie the set and things would go back and forth until a 4-1 run by the Skyhawks made the score 18-15. UT-Martin had an answer for every IUPUI attempt to get back in the set and the Skyhawks closed out the set with a 25-22 win.

Needing to win the set to keep the match going, IUPUI started set four slowly, losing the first five points and faced an early 12-4 deficit. Hoffman would get a kill on the next point, followed by a kill from McKayla Wright to start a run for the Jags. Two Skyhawk errors sandwiched a Hoffman kill that pulled the Jags to within three. Hoffman combined with Wright for a block on the next point and an ace by Scott saw the Jags down one. Wright stepped up and back-to-back kills by the junior gave the Jags their first lead of the set three. 

After a kill from UT-Martin ended the run, Wright picked up another kill and Gaskill's ace, moved the Jags ahead by two. A kill by Gibson gave IUPUI a 17-15 lead but things quickly changed as the Skyhawks went on a 5-0 run to take a 20-17 lead. Kills by Oehlberg kept the Jags within two late but a 4-1 run by UT-Martin closed out the Jags comeback.

IUPUI will be back in action to finish out the Cardinal Classic with a match against the host Louisville Cardinals on Saturday at 5 p.m. The match will be on ACC Extra.