The Green Bay volleyball team (6-8, 1-1 HL) will conclude a long stretch of away matches this weekend, continuing Horizon League play on the road against in-state rivals Milwaukee on Saturday and UIC on Sunday.

"We are approaching our sixth straight weekend on the road and we are embracing the challenge to be mentally tough for road matches," said head coach Abbey Sutherland. "Milwaukee had a great win against Wright State last weekend, and they're going to be fired up to play at home. There will be a fun energy in the gym and we are eager to compete against our in-state rivals. UIC will prove to be another exciting and difficult match, but no matter what, we are aiming to live in the present and play point for point."
 
Schedule
Saturday, September 29
at Milwaukee @ 4:00 p.m. CT
Sunday, September 30
at UIC @ 2:00 p.m. CT
 
Media
The Green Bay vs. UIC match can be watched on ESPN . Live stats and tweets will also be available for fans to follow along with during each match.

Milwaukee | Stats | Twitter
UIC | Watch | Stats | Twitter

The live stats and video links can also be found on the Green Bay Phoenix volleyball schedule page. In addition, to view live tweets, follow @gbphoenixvb.


Opponent Outlook
Milwaukee currently has a 1-1 Horizon League record, like Green Bay, and stands at 7^th in the conference after beating Wright State 3-1 and falling to Northern Kentucky 0-3. Their overall record pales in comparison, only winning two out of 13 matches so far this season.

The Panthers sit around the middle of the pack in overall season team stats, but their biggest weaknesses are their defense: they rank second-to-last in digs per set and dead last in blocks per set as a team. In Horizon League play Milwaukee's four-set win against the Raiders gave them the boost they needed to place above Phoenix in offensive stats such as hitting percentage, assists, and kills.

Milwaukee's attack is led by junior outside hitter Louise Keikhofer, who put up a career-high 27 kills in the match against Wright State, the most by any player in Horizon League matches thus far. She is helped by defensive specialist freshman Jess Grabowski, who is ranked 5^th in the league for digs per set and was nominated as the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week for the week of September 17.

The UIC match could prove to be more of a challenge, as they sit right above Green Bay in the league standings. They have a 1-1 tally in conference play, but have an 8-7 overall record to seat them fourth. Last weekend, they bested IUPUI in four sets, but fell to the Wright State the following day.

In overall season team stats, the Flames are narrowly behind the Phoenix in most categories, with the exception of blocks per set. UIC ranks second in the entire league with 2.38 blocks per set, compared to Green Bay's 1.70. In Horizon League-only play, however Phoenix have put up a better defensive performance.

UIC's star player may be junior middle blocker Tatyana Ndekwe, who is the number two blocker in the league with 1.15 per set, and has a top-five ranking with her .266 clip. They also impressively have three players who place in the top ten for number of service aces, meaning that the Phoenix are going to have to be prepared for that first swing.
 
Last Weekend Recap
The Phoenix fell to Northern Kentucky in four sets to open Horizon League play, but bounced back the next day to sweep IUPUI in straight sets and put Green Bay at 1-1 in the league.

"We felt really good about our performance at IUPUI," said Sutherland. "We learned a lot from our NKU loss, and successfully made adjustments for our competition in Indianapolis the next day. Maddie Yoss ran an offense that catered to our hitters' strengths, and the team was intent on improving our flow and trust on the court. Our first Horizon League weekend experience will keep us hungry to continue to improve."

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