Blue Raiders set for Louisiana road swing

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - The Middle Tennessee volleyball team will look to keep their recent string of success going when the Blue Raiders kick off the biennial Louisiana road swing at ULM on Thursday before heading out to Lafayette to take on Louisiana on Saturday. Led by the play of Ashley Adams, who has led the team in kills in each of the past five matches, the Blue Raiders are currently riding a nine-match winning streak, grabbing a share of first place in the Sun Belt Conference along the way. "Ashley puts up the big numbers, but our offense as a whole is playing really well right now," Peck said. "Both Ashley and Alyssa Wistrick have had some tremendous matches for us this year, but Maria Szivos has been huge as well. She had some really nice games for us last weekend, and she's bringing a lot of stability to the team." Aside from Adams' standout offensive numbers, the Blue Raiders have gotten points from a number of sources, thanks in part to the stellar play of setter Morgan Peterson, who earned CVU.com Top Performer accolades earlier this week, dishing out a career-high 45 assists in just three sets vs. Big East foe Marquette. "Morgan is a really good athlete, and we've really relied on her here recently," Peck said. "I think right now we've kind of settled on using Morgan if only for some stability, but all three of our setters really bring something to the table for us, and I know that I can bring the other two in at any time. Right now, Morgan's been doing a great job, and we've been undefeated since she's been setting, so I don't want to change it up too much." ULM is entering Thursday with a 9-9 record and a 3-5 conference mark, ranking third in the Sun Belt's West Division. The Warhawks, entered 2011 having not won a SBC match since 2006, but despite this, Peck believes they are a different team this year and very dangerous. "ULM is probably having their best season ever," Peck said. "They are a very well-coached team, and I know that they will be prepared for our match. They're in position to make their first conference tournament if they keep winning, and we certainly can't look past them." Middle Tennessee carries an all-time 5-0 record against ULM, including a 3-0 victory in Murfreesboro last season. Adams was especially potent in the meeting, tallying 16 kills at a .444 rate to go along with four blocks, and Szivos hit .500 with 10 kills and 10 digs to register her first career double-double. UL holds an overall 10-14 record this season, and Saturday will mark the ninth meeting between the Ragin' Cajuns and the Blue Raiders. MT holds a 6-2 series lead including a 3-0 decision last season. Adams led all Blue Raiders with 11 kills in the match, picking up her first career Sun Belt Player of the Week on the following Monday. The Blue Raiders will begin play on Thursday at ULM Activity Center in Monroe, La., at 6 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Morgan Peterson

Maria Szivos

Alyssa Wistrick

Middle Tennessee State University Athletics