Tournament Bracket I Live Stats I Live FREE Webcast (1st Round)

RICHMOND, Ky. – The sixth seeded Eastern Kentucky volleyball team will face No. 3 seed Eastern Illinois in the first round of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on Thursday.

The tournament is hosted by No. 1 seed Morehead State. Thursday's match is slated for 11 a.m.

The two teams have only faced each other one time this season (Oct. 12). The Colonels (17-15, 9-7 OVC) defeated the EIU 3-0 in the match in Richmond.

The Colonels have won nine of their last 12 since the October victory over the Panthers, including an upset of overall tournament No. 1 seed Morehead State which snapped a 36-match conference winning streak for the Eagles.

Meanwhile, EIU (18-11, 12-4 OVC) has won nine of their last ten OVC matches since the loss in Richmond.

EIU leads the OVC in both assists and kills, while EKU ranks ninth in both categories. The Panthers average 13.04 assists per set and 13.92 kills per set compared to the Colonels' 11.20 assists per set and 12.14 kills per set averages.

Eastern Kentucky senior Ashley Edmond ranks second in the OVC in kills per set (3.44) and points per set (3.84). Junior Dena Ott averages 4.79 digs per set, placing her third in the OVC. Ott was named OVC defensive player of the week (Nov. 18) for her contributions in the win over Morehead State.

The Panthers are led by seniors Stephanie Arnold and Amy Martin. The duo ranks second and tenth, respectively, in blocks per set in the OVC. Sophomore Marah Bradbury leads the OVC with 11.07 assists per set.

The winner advances to face the winner of Thursday's matchup of No. 2 Belmont and No. 7 SIU Edwardsville in the semifinals. The semifinal match is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Friday.