Friday, November 8
State College, Pa.
7:30 PM
Indiana University
at
#8 Penn State
Volleyball Travels to No. 8 Penn State, Rutgers
11/6/2019 5:26:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind.– The Indiana volleyball team will travel to the east coast this week for a pair of matchups against Penn State and Rutgers.
Friday November 8
Indiana at No. 8 Penn State
7:30 PM ET | State College, Pa.
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/2NqeXvf
Video ($): https://bit.ly/2pE4683
Radio: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/indiana/
Saturday November 9
Indiana at Rutgers
7:00 PM ET | Piscataway, N.J.
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/32nEr0z
Video ($): https://bit.ly/36J0ZMv
Radio: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/indiana/
Lofton Reaches 400
Against Iowa senior Deyshia Lofton recorded her 400th career block to become the eighth player in program history to reach that mark. Lofton has 405 blocks for her career and is two blocks from moving into seventh on the Hoosiers all-time list for career blocks.
Indiana Block Party
The Hoosiers rank seventh in the Big Ten in blocking at 2.37 blocks per set. Indiana has recorded double-digit blocks in 10 matches this season, including 17 blocks in their win over Kentucky. Indiana tallied a season-high 18.5 blocks in their match against Purdue.
The Middle Attack
Seniors Deyshia Lofton and Jacqui Armer have put up big numbers for the Hoosiers this season. The duo has combined for 338 kills on the season and rank one and two on the team in hitting percentage.
Utility Player
Junior Kamryn Malloy has been doing a little bit of everything for the Hoosiers this season. Malloy leads the team in aces, ranks fifth on the team in kills and second on the team in digs.
The Hoosier Freshmen
Freshman Emily FItzner recorded back-to-back double-doubles against Nebraska and Iowa. Fitzner recorded 13 digs and 16 assists against Nebraska and bettered those numbers the next day with 14 digs and 21 assists in the match against Iowa.
Freshman Haley Armstrong leads the Hoosiers in digs with 271. Armstrong has had five matches this season with 20 or more digs and ranks eighth in the Big Ten in digs per set at 3.73.
The Win over Kentucky
The win over Kentucky was a significant win for the program. It was the Hoosiers first victory over Kentucky since 1996. It was also the first win for Indiana over a non-conference ranked opponent since 1998. The last Hoosier win on the road over a ranked opponent was 2013 at Michigan State.
The 2019 Hoosiers
The Indiana volleyball team opens the 2019 season under second year head coach Steve Aird. In 2018, Aird took a team that had finished 1-19 in the Big Ten in 2017 to 7-13 in the conference, with a season sweep of Ohio State and win against No. 14 Michigan. The 2019 squad returns nine players, has nine new players and seven seniors.
Wilkinson Hall
Wilkinson Hall was dedicated on January 16, 2019. Wilkinson Hall is a multi-use training and performance center that is the new home venue for the Indiana Volleyball and Wrestling programs. The 3,000-seat venue is used as a competition facility for both Indiana Volleyball and Indiana Wrestling, as well as the practice facility for volleyball. Wilkinson Hall is named after IU alumnus Jay Wilkinson and his family, who have an incredible history of support for IU Athletics and its student-athletes. The Hoosiers are averaging 1,769 fans per match this season, which is up from the record average attendance form last season of 1,273.
Returning Hoosiers
The Hoosiers return 2018 All-Big Ten Deyshia Lofton, who will be a senior this year. Lofton recorded 281 kills and hit .336 on the season. Lofton is 11 blocks from cracking the top 10 in program history for career blocks. Breana Edwards returns after a freshman season in which she led the team in kills with 360. Edwards traveled to Japan this summer with the Big Ten foreign tour team. Bayli Lebo will be a junior this season. In 2018 Lebo set the Indiana single season digs record with 525 for the season. Hayden Huybers hit .334 in Big Ten matches last season, the fourth best in school history. Kendall Beerman returns after she saw her 2018 cut short due to injury.
The New Hoosiers
There are nine new Hoosiers that were not on the 2018 roster, including five transfers and four freshmen. Emily Fitzner, First Team Under Armour All-American will be a freshman setter. Fitzner is the sister of former IU basketball player Evan Fitzner. Megan Sloan returns home to Indiana after three seasons in Louisville. Sloan is the daughter of Brian Sloan, a member of the 1987 IU men's basketball national championship team. Haley Armstrong, member of the Canadian Junior National Team, will be a freshman defensive specialist for the Hoosiers. Jacqui Armer transferred to Indiana after three seasons at LSU.
IU Head Coach Steve Aird
"Contrary to popular belief, I'm fired up. I was explaining this to people before: you don't take over jobs that rebuild if you're quick to wave the white flag. I think certain people love the grind of it. Everyone wants to win, but the process is pretty important. I listen to all these NFL guys and Major League Baseball guys talk about it; it's just the truth. What I told the team today is we're going to scrap and claw, look at some new looks, try to develop and keep going because the program is going to be going for the next 20, 30, 40, 50 years. It's the habits we're building now that will lead to the eventual success. Too many people, not just in volleyball or in sport but in life, you get so close you just pound on the rock and at some point, it does crack. What I'm trying to teach them is there's a resiliency to doing it at this level that takes time. In total honesty, my last gig at Maryland I think it was in my fourth year I started to feel like my feet were underneath me.
I go to what Tom [Allen] does with football, I talk to several of the IU coaches, lots of peers. Because when you lose a whole bund of matches everyone thinks it's a funeral; like I'm going home and I'm crying in a dark corner. I love the battle of it. I think we have good kids; I think we're a vastly improved volleyball team. I know the results don't show it, but of the 12 matches we've had in the Big Ten we played eight or nine of the top 20 teams, we've lost another couple matches by two points here and there. I don't think it's a bad brand of volleyball, I think what's happening is that we're getting much better. The systems are improving, the kids are developing, and at some point, might be late this year, might be next year, might be in three years, it's going to all come together. That's what I keep focusing on. That's the exciting part about it. You don't take over the job, and I've said this before, if it's only about my win/loss record. You don't go to programs that, you know, over the last 20 years, Indiana has been 12th pretty much. We've got a 24% winning record in the conference. Our win against Kentucky earlier in the year was the first ranked win in like 20 years. We're not going to win the conference in year one. We're 20 months in. So, the exciting part of it for me is that I think certain people are developed to grind and fight and claw and block out all the noise and all the pessimism. I think we're uniquely qualified to do it and excited to do it, proud to do it."
Friday November 8
Indiana at No. 8 Penn State
7:30 PM ET | State College, Pa.
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/2NqeXvf
Video ($): https://bit.ly/2pE4683
Radio: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/indiana/
Saturday November 9
Indiana at Rutgers
7:00 PM ET | Piscataway, N.J.
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/32nEr0z
Video ($): https://bit.ly/36J0ZMv
Radio: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/indiana/
Lofton Reaches 400
Against Iowa senior Deyshia Lofton recorded her 400th career block to become the eighth player in program history to reach that mark. Lofton has 405 blocks for her career and is two blocks from moving into seventh on the Hoosiers all-time list for career blocks.
Indiana Block Party
The Hoosiers rank seventh in the Big Ten in blocking at 2.37 blocks per set. Indiana has recorded double-digit blocks in 10 matches this season, including 17 blocks in their win over Kentucky. Indiana tallied a season-high 18.5 blocks in their match against Purdue.
The Middle Attack
Seniors Deyshia Lofton and Jacqui Armer have put up big numbers for the Hoosiers this season. The duo has combined for 338 kills on the season and rank one and two on the team in hitting percentage.
Utility Player
Junior Kamryn Malloy has been doing a little bit of everything for the Hoosiers this season. Malloy leads the team in aces, ranks fifth on the team in kills and second on the team in digs.
The Hoosier Freshmen
Freshman Emily FItzner recorded back-to-back double-doubles against Nebraska and Iowa. Fitzner recorded 13 digs and 16 assists against Nebraska and bettered those numbers the next day with 14 digs and 21 assists in the match against Iowa.
Freshman Haley Armstrong leads the Hoosiers in digs with 271. Armstrong has had five matches this season with 20 or more digs and ranks eighth in the Big Ten in digs per set at 3.73.
The Win over Kentucky
The win over Kentucky was a significant win for the program. It was the Hoosiers first victory over Kentucky since 1996. It was also the first win for Indiana over a non-conference ranked opponent since 1998. The last Hoosier win on the road over a ranked opponent was 2013 at Michigan State.
The 2019 Hoosiers
The Indiana volleyball team opens the 2019 season under second year head coach Steve Aird. In 2018, Aird took a team that had finished 1-19 in the Big Ten in 2017 to 7-13 in the conference, with a season sweep of Ohio State and win against No. 14 Michigan. The 2019 squad returns nine players, has nine new players and seven seniors.
Wilkinson Hall
Wilkinson Hall was dedicated on January 16, 2019. Wilkinson Hall is a multi-use training and performance center that is the new home venue for the Indiana Volleyball and Wrestling programs. The 3,000-seat venue is used as a competition facility for both Indiana Volleyball and Indiana Wrestling, as well as the practice facility for volleyball. Wilkinson Hall is named after IU alumnus Jay Wilkinson and his family, who have an incredible history of support for IU Athletics and its student-athletes. The Hoosiers are averaging 1,769 fans per match this season, which is up from the record average attendance form last season of 1,273.
Returning Hoosiers
The Hoosiers return 2018 All-Big Ten Deyshia Lofton, who will be a senior this year. Lofton recorded 281 kills and hit .336 on the season. Lofton is 11 blocks from cracking the top 10 in program history for career blocks. Breana Edwards returns after a freshman season in which she led the team in kills with 360. Edwards traveled to Japan this summer with the Big Ten foreign tour team. Bayli Lebo will be a junior this season. In 2018 Lebo set the Indiana single season digs record with 525 for the season. Hayden Huybers hit .334 in Big Ten matches last season, the fourth best in school history. Kendall Beerman returns after she saw her 2018 cut short due to injury.
The New Hoosiers
There are nine new Hoosiers that were not on the 2018 roster, including five transfers and four freshmen. Emily Fitzner, First Team Under Armour All-American will be a freshman setter. Fitzner is the sister of former IU basketball player Evan Fitzner. Megan Sloan returns home to Indiana after three seasons in Louisville. Sloan is the daughter of Brian Sloan, a member of the 1987 IU men's basketball national championship team. Haley Armstrong, member of the Canadian Junior National Team, will be a freshman defensive specialist for the Hoosiers. Jacqui Armer transferred to Indiana after three seasons at LSU.
IU Head Coach Steve Aird
"Contrary to popular belief, I'm fired up. I was explaining this to people before: you don't take over jobs that rebuild if you're quick to wave the white flag. I think certain people love the grind of it. Everyone wants to win, but the process is pretty important. I listen to all these NFL guys and Major League Baseball guys talk about it; it's just the truth. What I told the team today is we're going to scrap and claw, look at some new looks, try to develop and keep going because the program is going to be going for the next 20, 30, 40, 50 years. It's the habits we're building now that will lead to the eventual success. Too many people, not just in volleyball or in sport but in life, you get so close you just pound on the rock and at some point, it does crack. What I'm trying to teach them is there's a resiliency to doing it at this level that takes time. In total honesty, my last gig at Maryland I think it was in my fourth year I started to feel like my feet were underneath me.
I go to what Tom [Allen] does with football, I talk to several of the IU coaches, lots of peers. Because when you lose a whole bund of matches everyone thinks it's a funeral; like I'm going home and I'm crying in a dark corner. I love the battle of it. I think we have good kids; I think we're a vastly improved volleyball team. I know the results don't show it, but of the 12 matches we've had in the Big Ten we played eight or nine of the top 20 teams, we've lost another couple matches by two points here and there. I don't think it's a bad brand of volleyball, I think what's happening is that we're getting much better. The systems are improving, the kids are developing, and at some point, might be late this year, might be next year, might be in three years, it's going to all come together. That's what I keep focusing on. That's the exciting part about it. You don't take over the job, and I've said this before, if it's only about my win/loss record. You don't go to programs that, you know, over the last 20 years, Indiana has been 12th pretty much. We've got a 24% winning record in the conference. Our win against Kentucky earlier in the year was the first ranked win in like 20 years. We're not going to win the conference in year one. We're 20 months in. So, the exciting part of it for me is that I think certain people are developed to grind and fight and claw and block out all the noise and all the pessimism. I think we're uniquely qualified to do it and excited to do it, proud to do it."
Players Mentioned
Middle Blocker
/ Women's Volleyball
Defensive Specialist
/ Women's Volleyball
Outside Hitter
/ Women's Volleyball
Outside Hitter
/ Women's Volleyball
Setter
/ Women's Volleyball
Middle Blocker
/ Women's Volleyball
Defensive Specialist
/ Women's Volleyball
Middle Blocker
/ Women's Volleyball
Outside Hitter
/ Women's Volleyball
Outside Hitter
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