TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The IUPUI volleyball team will embark on its third tournament of the 2021 season this week as the Jaguars participate in the three-day Sycamore Invitational, hosted by Indiana State at ISU Arena. 

IUPUI (2-4) will face Indiana State in the opener on Thursday (Sept. 9), before facing Austin Peay on Friday (Sept. 10). The Jags will round out the event against Western Michigan on Saturday (Sept. 11). 

Head coach Lindsey Froehlich's squad put up a solid showing at its own Hampton Inn Invitational, claiming a five-set win over Western Illinois and falling to both Chattanooga and Toledo. The Jags won the opening set against Chattanooga and had the first set seemingly in hand against Toledo, but squandered the opportunity en route to a 3-0 loss. Sophomore middle Emily Alan earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team after registering 23 kills and hitting .246 for the week. She also added 8.0 blocks, including a season-high six in the win over Western Illinois. Offensively, Briana Brown had a team-high 34 kills in the three matches while Brooke Phillips averaged 9.5 assists per set from her setter position. 

Fifth-year senior Rhiannon Schuenemann continued her strong start to the season with 4.67 digs/set from the back row. She collected at least 18 digs in each of the Jaguars' three matches of the tournament. 

For the year, the IUPUI offense is hitting .165 as Allie Pogue checks in at .272 and Alan is hitting .264. Pogue is second on the team with 67 kills, trailing only Brown's 71. Millai Madison is tops on the team with 22.0 blocks, averaging 0.92 blocks/set. Schuenemann is tops on the team in digs at 4.58/set. 

QUOTABLE
"The servers did a fantastic job behind the end line. When we started making some hitting errors or some crazy plays that we couldn't execute, we could just be a little bit more mentally tough in some of those situations, but I'm really proud of our servers and how they attacked," Froehlich said after her team posted 13 aces in the win over Western Illinois on Sept. 4. 

SCOUTING INDIANA STATE
ISU is 3-2 to start the year with early season wins over Eastern Michigan, Alcorn and Belmont. The Sycamores are hitting .238 as a team and limiting foes to .174. Kaitlyn Hamilton has a team-high 53 kills and is hitting .213 on the year. Defensively, Madeline Williams has a team-high 18 blocks and Melina Tedrow averages 4.74 digs/set. 

SCOUTING AUSTIN PEAY
Austin Peay is 4-2 to start the year and enters the weekend on a three-game winning streak with all three victories coming in straight sets. The Govs are hitting .215 on the year and holding opponents to a .159 mark. Brooke Moore leads the APSU attack with 78 kills, averaging 3.71 kills/set and is also tops on the team with 66 digs. Two APSU middles - Maggie Keenan (1.29/set) and Jaida Clark (1.10/set) average better than a block per set. 

SCOUTING WESTERN MICHIGAN
WMU enters play at 4-2 on the year which includes a five-set win over Indiana and defending Horizon League champion Wright State. Maggie King leads the WMU offense with 79 kills and 4.07 kills/set while Logan Case averages 10.53 assists/set. Mairead Boyle is tops on the team with 82 digs and Madison Merz is the team's top blocker with 13 on the year. 

UP NEXT
IUPUI will face Michigan State and Central Michigan in the Green & White Classic on Sept. 18 in East Lansing, Mich., to close out non-conference play.