EVANSVILLE, Ind.- University of Southern Indiana Volleyball kicks off Ohio Valley Conference play on the road at Morehead State University in a two-game series starting Friday at 5 p.m. CT and Saturday at 1 p.m. CT.

Both games will be streamed on ESPN+ for those who have a subscription.

After sweeping their home and home series with University of Evansville, the Screaming Eagles finished their non-conference play 4-8. With wins over UE, Miami (Ohio), and Northern Kentucky.

For her performance in the Evansville wins, freshman Aysa Thomas earned her second OVC Setter of the Week award this week with 87 assists, 25 digs, four kills, and three blocks in the two wins last week. Thomas recorded a career-high 53 assists, on the road at UE, and led the Eagles to a season-high team hitting percentage of .349, the highest USI has recorded since 2023. In each UE game, the freshman marked a double-double, moving to five in her career. She picked up 15 digs in the first annual Battle for the Lloyd match in Liberty Arena, Saturday, to tie her career high.

Junior Ashby Willis finishes non-conference play with 164 kills and 109 digs, landing her in second place in the OVC for kills and third for kills per set. Willis marked a new career high with 24 kills in the win on the road at UE last week. She had another 17 kills in the win at home.  

As a team, the Screaming Eagles tallied 17 blocks in the Evansville series for 2.13 per set. With 12 of those in the Battle for the Lloyd match, USI marked a season-high for team blocks. Led by Bianca Anderson, who had 10 in the two matches. USI leads the OVC in blocks per set, 2.13, going into conference play.

Sophomore Audrey Small has led the back row as libero for the majority of the non-conference schedule. She picked up 39 digs in the Evansville series, with 20 in the home match last Saturday. She sits in the top five for digs and digs per set in the OVC and has helped ensure USI leads the conference in digs per set as a team.

About Morehead State:
The Morehead State Eagles finished 6-5 in their non-conference play, including a win over shared opponent Evansville. In their most recent series with Xavier, Morehead fell 0-2 in the home and home series. MSU's senior M.E. tallied 41 kills in their recent series, hitting a .277 percentage, ultimately winning her the OVC Offensive Player of the Week for the third week in a row. Libero Courtney Fitzgerald picked up 25 digs in the series; she ranks in the top-10 of the OVC for digs and digs per set this season. Head Coach Kyrsten Becker-McBride is in her third year at the helm, after being on the MSU staff since 2011. She has led the Eagles to two 18-win seasons in a row. Morehead leads the series with USI, 6-1. The Screaming Eagles' sole win was in 2023 in a three-set sweep in the first round of the OVC Championship.

To get updates as USI Volleyball takes on its first OVC opponent at Morehead State, fans can follow USI Athletics on Facebook, Instagram, and X for game coverage and online at usiscreamingeagles.com.