EVANSVILLE, Ind.—The University of Southern Indiana volleyball team returns to the court Friday to take part in the University of Missouri-St. Louis Invitational in St. Louis, Missouri.

USI (2-2) opens its four-match slate with No. 2 Washburn University Friday at 10 a.m. and takes on NCAA Division II newcomer Maryville University Friday at 12:30 p.m. The Screaming Eagles take on the Colorado School of Mines Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and Missouri Western State University Saturday at 2 p.m.

The Eagles opened the 2008 campaign a week ago, posting a 2-2 mark at the "Middle of Everywhere" Classic in Rolla, Missouri.

USI, which is 0-2 against nationally-ranked opponents this season, was led by sophomore outside hitter Brittani Oliver (Indianapolis, Indiana) and junior setter Melanie Pund (Ferdinand, Indiana). Oliver recorded a team-high 2.64 kills per game and .283 attacking percentage to go along with 3.00 digs per game, while Pund averaged 8.50 assists, 3.07 digs, and 0.79 blocks per game.

Senior middle blocker Meg Buschman (Reynolds, Indiana) and sophomore libero Janae Curnutt (Arcadia, Indiana) also had solid outings. Buschman racked up a team-best 1.29 blocks per game, while Curnutt posted a team-high 4.57 digs per game.

This weekend will be USI's final tune-up before starting GLVC play September 12 against Missouri University of Science and Technology at the Physical Activities Center.