Match One:
Eastern Illinois 5-14 (4-4 OVC) at Morehead State 9-11 (5-5 OVC)
Date & Time: October 29th at 4:00 PM
Location: Morehead, Kentucky
Live Coverage: Live Stats | ESPN+
All-Time Series: 23-28
Match Two:
Eastern Illinois 5-14 (4-4 OVC) at Morehead State 9-11 (5-5 OVC)
Date & Time: October 30th at 11:00 AM
Location: Morehead, Kentucky
Live Coverage: Live Stats | ESPN+
All-Time Series: 23-28
Ready To Serve: Eastern Illinois heads to Morehead, Kentucky, for an early Halloween weekend series. The Panthers will face Morehead State in an OVC Championship rematch. EIU enters the weekend with a 5-14 (4-4 OVC) record, while the Eagles hold a 9-11 (5-5 OVC) record after sweeping Tennessee State.
Guibert & Rutter Career High
Alana Guibert and Jorah Rutter both had career-high performances in the season sweep over Tennessee State on October 16th. Guibert recorded a personal record of seven blocks in the contest, four shy of tying the program record. In the Friday opening series win, Rutter totaled a career-high .625 hitting percentage, recording zero errors. Rutter totaled 20 kills across the two matches, leading the Panthers offensively.
Last Time Out
Before heading into the bye week, the Panthers faced no trouble in the season sweep over Tennessee State. EIU went a perfect 6-0 against the Tigers. Eastern Illinois' offense was rolling, smashing a team 13.83 K/S with a .241 hitting percentage. Rutter led the way, finishing the weekend with 20 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. She only recorded two errors. Abana Teran was second behind Rutter with 18 kills and a .268 hitting percentage. Kaeden Foxx rounded out the trio with 14 kills. Alanys Nieves and Hannah Hawkins directed the Panthers offense once again with Nieves leading the charge with 32 assists. Hawkins finished with 29 assists as they combined for 61 assists.
Defensively, the team totaled 80 digs and 14.5 blocks. Along with Guibert's seven blocks, Ariadna Pereles paced the team with 35 digs. EIU held the Tigers to a .068 hitting percentage and only 52 kills in the two matches.
Back to Winning Ways
Eastern Illinois extended their winning streak to three matches after a series sweep against Tennessee State. EIU began the winning streak with a win over UT Martin, snapping a four-match losing streak. This marks the longest winning streak of the season after recording a 12-match winning streak in 2025.
Scouting Report
The Panthers and Eagles will face each other in the 2025 OVC Championship rematch for an early Halloween matchup. Both teams earned the CO-OVC regular season championship, but EIU hosted the tournament due to the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Eagles enter the weekend with a 9-11 (5-5 OVC) record. Morehead State swept TSU last weekend in six sets. The Eagles are led by a senior & freshman duo. Hollan Everett, the senior leader, paces the team with 251 kills (3.75 K/S). The rookie Ella Warrick has wasted no time making an impact, placing second on the team in kills with 205. Sydney Sennet has returned and ranks sixth in the OVC with 384 assists. The Eagles are coached by Kyrsten Becker-McBride, who is in her fourth season at the helm.
Morehead State leads the all-time series with a 23-28 record, but the Panthers went a perfect 3-0 against the Eagles last year. EIU only dropped one set in the three matches against the Eagles last year. Eastern Illinois swept Morehead State in the OVC championship match to claim the tournament title.
OVC Standings
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Lindenwood (9-1 OVC)
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SEMO (9-1 OVC)
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Morehead State (5-5 OVC)
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Southern Indiana (4-4 OVC)
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Eastern Illinois (4-4 OVC)
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UT Martin (4-6 OVC)
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SIUE (3-5 OVC)
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Western Illinois (2-6 OVC)
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Tennessee State (0-8 OVC)
OVC Top Five
Ariadna Pereles – 1st Digs (279, 4.29 AVG/S)
Peyton Castillo – 3rd Assists (252, 6.46 AVG/S)
Katie Kopshever – 3rd Points (259.5, 4.19 AVG/S) | 4th Kills (227, 3.66 AVG/S)
Looking Ahead: The Panthers will return home to face Western Illinois on November 5th and 6th
