TOLEDO, Ohio – The University of Toledo women's volleyball team (16-9, 7-6 MAC) hosts Eastern Michigan (9-15, 4-9 MAC) this weekend for a pair of matches at Savage Arena.

The Rockets and Eagles will meet on Friday at 6:00 p.m. on ESPN+ before playing again on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. on ESPN3.

Following the match on Saturday, Toledo will honor three seniors as a part of its Senior Day celebration: Liz Beasley, Megan Beasley, and Maddie Fogg.

MAC Tournament Picture
The 2021 Mid-American Conference Tournament will feature the top six teams in the league standings, regardless of division.

Entering the weekend, the Rockets find themselves inside that top six:

                1. Ball State (12-1 MAC)
                2. Bowling Green (12-1 MAC)
                3. Ohio (8-5 MAC)
                4. Western Michigan (8-5 MAC)
                5. Toledo (7-6 MAC)
                T-6. Kent State (5-8 MAC)
                T-6. Central Michigan (5-8 MAC)
                T-6. Northern Illinois (5-8 MAC)
 
Of Toledo's five remaining matches, three will be against teams either in the top six or who hold a share of the final spot: Nov. 12-13 at CMU and Nov. 17 vs. Ball State.

Last Time Out
Toledo dropped two home matches last weekend to Miami and Bowling Green.

Against the RedHawks, Sina Uluave recorded her eighth double-double of the season, collecting 17 kills and 13 digs while adding three blocks. Olivia Vance led Toledo with five blocks and had 10 kills as well, her fourth match with double-digit kills this season. Rhyen Neal had a team-high 20 digs, and Taylor Alt added a season-best 15 digs.

In Saturday's match against Bowling Green, in front of a large and raucous crowd, the Rockets won the first set and hit .344 to begin the match, but BGSU edged UT in the next three sets to win. Toledo held late leads in the second and fourth sets, but the Falcons were able to win close battles each time. Taylor Alt tallied a double-double, her ninth of the season, collecting a match-high 21 kills along with 13 digs. Sina Uluave added 18 kills and eight digs, while Olivia Vance registered double-digit terminations (12) for the second straight night. Elaine Redman also had a double-double on Saturday, contributing 44 assists and 11 digs. Rhyen Neal led the Rockets with a career-high 30 digs and Abby Erickson also set a career high with six blocks.

Quick Hits

• Senior Rhyen Neal was named MAC West Defensive Player of the Week on Monday for her performance against Miami and Bowling Green. Neal averaged 6.25 digs/set across two matches and tallied a career-high 30 digs against the Falcons.
• Taylor Alt leads the MAC in kills/set, averaging 4.02. She is the only player in the MAC averaging at least four kills per set, and she ranks fifth among all underclassmen in Division I in that category.
• Toledo has been an outstanding defensive team all season long, and especially in conference play. The Rockets are holding MAC opponents to a .157 attack percentage and are blocking at a rate of 2.72/set, both of which rank second in the conference (Bowling Green ranks first in both categories).
• Sina Uluave has tallied five double-doubles in her last seven matches. She is averaging 3.29 digs/set and 3.46 kills/set over the last five contests.
• Three Rockets are on pace to put themselves in rarified air in program history:
  • Taylor Alt is averaging 4.02 kills/set which would rank fifth all-time in Toledo history and she would be the fifth Rocket ever to average at least four kills per set.
  • Rhyenne Filisi and Olivia Vance are both averaging 1.04 blocks/set this year. That figure would be sixth-best ever in program history.

 
About Eastern Michigan
Eastern Michigan enters this weekend with an overall record of 9-15 and a 4-9 ledger in conference play. The Eagles split their cross-divisional matches last weekend, falling to Buffalo on Friday night before defeating Akron the following day. As a team, EMU ranks fourth in the MAC in blocks (2.12/set) and boasts one of the most disruptive players in the league in Raeven Chase. Chase leads the MAC in blocks (1.27/set) and ranks second in the league in attack percentage (.360). She has been even better in conference play, averaging 1.44 blocks/set.