• Eastern Illinois volleyball dropped their final two home matches of the 2016 season this past weekend.

• The Panthers dropped a tough five-set match against UT Martin on Friday night and fell to Southeast Missouri in three-sets on Saturday night.

• Eastern Illinois will play their final two matches of the 2016 season on the road this weekend. The Panthers will travel to Murray State on Friday before concluding the season at Austin Peay on Saturday.

• Eastern Illinois will come up short on making it to the OVC Tournament next weekend.

• The match between Eastern Illinois and Murray State will take place on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. The Panthers will complete their season at Austin Peay on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.

• Live stats will be available at goracers.com and letsgopeay.com.  The match at Austin Peay on Saturday will be streamed live on the OVC Digital Network.
 
2016 at Murray State & Austin Peay
... all times central
 
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11
EIU at Murray State... 3 p.m.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12
EIU at Austin Peay ... 1 p.m.
.............................................................................

PANTHERS RANKED IN OVC TOP 10
• Entering this week's matches, the Eastern Illinois volleyball team has four members -- Allie Hueston, Abby Knight, Taylor Smith, and Maggie Runge -- currently ranked in the top 10 in the Ohio Valley Conference in multiple categories.

• Hueston continues to be one of the top net defenders in the OVC. In OVC-only matches, Hueston ranks seventh in blocks-per-set at 1.09.

• Knight has been one of the most consistent hitters this season for the Panthers. Her .254hitting percentage overall places her in 10th.

• Smith is currently tied with Elyssa Purcell of Southeastern Louisiana for the top triple-double mark in the nation. Both players have earned eight triple-doubles this season. Smith also holds the sixth-best assists-per-set average overall at 0.29 and eighth-best mark in conference-only matches at 0.32.
• Runge averages the second-best blocks-per-set mark overall at 1.25.

• As a team, Eastern Illinois ranks among the top 10 in the OVC in several categories. The Panthers hold the third-best blocks-per-set average at 2.36. The opposition for EIU is hitting at a mark of .207 which ranks as the eighth-lowest in the conference. At 14.92 digs-per-set, Eastern Illinois holds the eighth-best mark in the league. 

• In conference only matches, EIU holds the fourth-best mark in blocks-per-set (2.34). EIU has the ninth-best hitting percentage (.171) and holds their opposition to the ninth-lowest hitting percentage (.219). The Panthers average 15.43 digs-per-set which places them in sixth. With an average of 0.91 aces-per-set, the Panthers place themselves in 10th in the conference.

QUOTING COACH WOLINSKI
Coach Wolinski on the Panther's upcoming matches at Murray State and Austin Peay -- "We finish up our season on the road against two of the top teams in the OVC.  We are looking forward to the challenge while looking end the season on a winning note."

SCOUTING THE RACERS & GOVERNORS
• EIU will play their final two matches of the 2016 season on the road this weekend. The Panthers will travel to Murray State and Austin Peay.

• The Panthers will open the weekend against Murray State who enters Friday afternoon's contest with a record of 18-8 and 13-1 (OVC). EIU leads the all-time series between the two teams at 24-21. Murray State defeated the Panthers in straight-sets earlier this season in Lantz Arena.

• Scottie Ingram is the player to watch for the Racers on the offensive end as she leads the Murray State attack. Ingram has totaled 413 kills this season and averages 4.30 kills-per-set. 

• Ellie Lorenz will look to hold the Panthers offense in check as she is the team leader in digs for Murray State. Lorenz has totaled 507 digs this season and averages 5.28 digs-per-set.

• The Panthers will close their 2016 season on Saturday afternoon at Austin Peay. Austin Peay enters the weekend sporting an overall record of 22-9 and 11-3 in the OVC. The Panthers lead the all-time series 23-18. The Panthers fell to Austin Peay in three sets earlier this season at home.

• Ashley Slay is the go-to player for Austin Peay on the offensive end as she leads the team in kills this season. Slay has totaled 349 kills and averages 3.29 kills-per-set.

• Ginny Gerig will look to slow down the Panthers' offense as she leads the Austin Peay defense in digs. Gerig has totaled 414 digs this season and averages 3.70 digs-per-set.