Eastern Illinois (5-0) vs. Indiana State (2-4)

Date & Time: September 12th at 6:00 p.m. 

Live Coverage: ESPN+ | Live Stats

All Time Series: 20-12

 

Eastern Illinois (5-0) vs. Montana (3-3)

Date & Time: September 13th at 10:00 a.m. 

Live Coverage: Live Stats

All Time Series: 1-0

 

Eastern Illinois (5-0) vs. Butler (4-2)

Date & Time: September 13th at 1:30 p.m. 

Live Coverage: Live Stats

All Time Series: 6-14

The Panthers will look to continue their undefeated streak when they head to Terre Haute, Indiana, for a three-match weekend. EIU swept through the Saluki Bash this past weekend, having no trouble against Kansas City and New Mexico. Eastern Illinois then defended their streak in a five-set match thriller against the host, Southern Illinois. Lilli Amettis returned to the action and wasted no time making her mark on the 2025 season. In eleven sets, she totaled 38 kills, 41 digs, and 7 blocks. Amettis was awarded the Saluki Bash Tournament MVP for her stellar performance.

 

About the Panthers: EIU went on a routine business trip to Southern Illinois this past weekend, recording their second tournament sweep to start the 2025 season campaign. This is the second season in three years the volleyball team has started 5-0. In addition, EIU is just 1 of 37 teams to have a perfect record and holds multiple high-ranking statistics both nationally and in the OVC. Eastern Illinois is ranked 23rd in the nation in digs per set with 16.16 and 28th in opponent hitting percentage at .136. In regard to the OVC, EIU is first in blocks per set at 2.18 and at the top of the leaderboard for winning percentage and opponent hitting percentage. Coach Millar had multiple standout performers, including the tournament MVP and recent OVC notable player of the week, Lilli Amettis, who stole the show both offensively and defensively. The 2025 OVC player to watch for EIU was on full display, recording 38 kills, 41 digs, and 7 blocks. Catalina Rochaix was another notable contributor, totaling 76 assists and 18 digs, and Anaya Rawlinson contributed 9 blocks over the weekend. 

About Indiana State: The host of the weekend tournament, Indiana State, is a familiar opponent to the Panthers with an all-time series of 20-12 in favor of EIU. The Panthers have won the last two meetings; however, it has been a while since the last time these two programs met. Eastern Illinois won the previous meeting 3-2 on September 16th, 2017. The Sycamores are coached by third-year head coach Ashlee Pritchard. Indiana State enters the weekend at 2-4 with multiple leaders making significant contributions. The points leader, Kira Holland, has totaled 96 points, 84 kills, 41 digs, and 9 blocks. To go along with Holland is Emily Weber, who leads the team in assists with 126 and 27 digs. Defensively, Ella Scott is the one to watch, as she leads the team with 21 blocks. 

About Montana: Unlike Indiana State, there is just one lone previous matchup between Montana and Eastern Illinois. The Panthers won the first matchup 3-1 on September 1st, 2001. Twenty-four years later, the two teams will square off once again on Saturday morning. The Grizzlies enter the weekend at 3-3 with two wins over Oakland and one against North Dakota State. Montana is led by head coach Allison Lawrence, entering her ninth season at the helm and 16th overall season with the program. Lawrence was promoted to head coach in January 2017 after serving the previous seven seasons as an assistant. Her team is led by a junior, Gracie Cagle, who has totaled 213 assists. The Grizzlies have five different players with 35+ kills, including Delaney Russell (66), Olivia LaBeau (54), Sydney Pierce (48), Mylee Blake (46), and Carley Spachman (36). Defensively, Alexis Batezel is a standout performer with 98 digs, and three separate players have 20+ blocks: Spachman (27), LaBeau (21), and Pierce (20). 

About Butler: The Bulldogs enter the weekend at 4-2 coming off a tough Iowa Invitational where they went 1-2. They swept Loyola-Chicago but dropped matches to Iowa and Illinois State. The all-time series is 6-14, favoring the Panthers. The last meeting took place in 2018, which resulted in a 3-0 sweep by the Bulldogs. In addition to the 2018 sweep, Butler has won the previous four meetings. Butler is led by head coach Kyle Shondell, entering his third season with the program after restarting the Indiana Tech men's volleyball program. Shondell has multiple key players on the roster to look out for, starting with Alaleh Tolliver, who has 101 total points and 87 kills on the season. Second, Kaylee Finnegan, the team leader in assists with 237. Zoe McDonald has recorded 26 blocks, and Lauren Evans has contributed 98 digs to wrap up the standout players for the Bulldogs. 

 

The match against Indiana State can be followed along on ESPN+, and every contest on Live Stats.