The most crucial stretch of the season to date for the University of Southern Indiana volleyball team begins Friday at 6 p.m. when it takes on Kentucky Wesleyan College in Owensboro, Kentucky, to start a three match road trip.

USI (8-4 overall, 2-0 GLVC) enter Friday's match with the Panthers in a five-way tie atop the GLVC standings with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, the University of Indianapolis, Saint Joseph's College, and Northern Kentucky University.

The Screaming Eagles play NKU Saturday at 1 p.m. in Highland Heights, Kentucky, and SIUE September 29 at 7 p.m. in Edwardsville, Illinois.

To start the trip, the Eagles are looking to extend an 18-match winning streak over a KWC squad that is winless in nine tries this season. USI is 30-1 against the Panthers since 1989.

NKU (8-4 overall, 1-0 GLVC) plays SIUE Friday evening before hosting the Eagles on Saturday. SIUE (11-4 overall, 2-0 GLVC) will play KWC Saturday before hosting the Eagles next Wednesday.

After falling to the Norse in three games during the regular season last year, the Eagles came back from two-games down to upend NKU in the GLVC Tournament. USI split the 2003 season-series with the Cougars, losing in four games at Edwardsville before sweeping them at the Physical Activities Center later in the season.

Junior middle blocker Laura Ellerbusch (Newburgh, Indiana) leads the Eagles with 3.42 kills per game, while senior middle blocker Leeanne Gross (Decatur, Indiana) leads the team with a .337 attacking percentage. Freshman setter Stephanie Wilson (Terre Haute, Indiana) leads the GLVC with 12.81 assists per game, while freshman libero Eva Kieffer (Mt. Carmel, Illinois) has a team-high 3.53 digs per game.

The Eagles return to the PAC October 1 when they host Bellarmine University. They host the defending NCAA II national champions, the University of North Alabama, October 2.