FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

SOMERS, Wis. (Oct. 8, 2015)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside volleyball team caps off its longest homestand of the season this weekend, welcoming a pair of Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division rivals to DeSimone Gymnasium.
 
The Rangers face Bellarmine University on Friday at 7 p.m. before closing the five-match homestand on Saturday afternoon with a 3 p.m. clash against the University of Southern Indiana. Both matches will feature live stats and video.
 
About the Rangers: UW-Parkside (10-6, 4-3 GLVC) had its three-match regular season win streak come to a halt on Tuesday night, allowing an early advantage to slip away in a 3-2 (19-25, 22-25, 25-21, 25-21, 16-14) setback to 14th-ranked Lewis University.
 
Against the Flyers, the Rangers never trailed in the first set, securing the 25-19 victory before rallying to take set two 25-22. Lewis snagged the third set 25-21 and trailed 18-14 in the fourth before earning the 25-21 to force a decisive fifth set. In the fifth, UW-Parkside led 8-5 but the Flyers proved to be too much down the stretch, scoring five of the final seven points to escape with the 16-14 win to secure the set.
 
Rebecca Roembke led the Rangers with 19 kills while Jackie Langer added 16. Elizabeth Mavis was a force at the net, collecting a match-high eight blocks while Meghan Conley tallied 22 digs.
 
Prior to the Lewis setback, the Rangers had rolled off three straight regular season match wins and four wins overall. UW-Parkside's run began with a 3-0 (25-23, 26-24, 25-21) road win over Maryville University on Sept. 26 before cruising to a 3-1 (25-20, 25-19, 20-25, 25-22) midweek exhibition victory over the University of Saint Francis. The Green and White downed the University of Indianapolis 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 28-26, 25-18) on Oct. 2 to open the most recent homestand before sweeping Saint Joseph's College 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-21) the following day.
 
Roembke leads the Rangers and the GLVC in kills, averaging 3.8 per set while sitting second in the conference in points, averaging 4.2 per set. Jackie Langer ranks fourth in the GLVC in kills with 3.4 per set while Lauren Hickson is fourth in the conference in assists (9.9 apg). Meghan Conley leads the team in digs with 4.1 per set while Jessi Mainczyk adds 3.2 per set while leading the team with 20 service aces.
 
About the Knights: Bellarmine (7-10, 2-5 GLVC) busted out of a seven match funk on Tuesday night, taking down GLVC East nemesis Southern Indiana 3-1. The host Knights had five players finish with double-digit kills including Megan Kimberly who led the way with a match-high of 13.
 
Of BU's previous seven losses, five came during GLVC play with the skid beginning on Sept. 19 with a 3-0 setback to then No. 13 Rockhurst University.
 
Bellarmine features a balanced attack with four players averaging at least two kills per set. Leading the way is Margaret Horihan who contributes 2.4 kills/set with Megan Kimbley adding 2.2 per set. Allie Muha is the team's top setter averaging 9.3 assists per set while on the defensively, Jordyn Kuchenbrod anchors the squad, raking in 5.5 digs per set.
 
About the Screaming Eagles: Southern Indiana (11-5, 4-3 GLVC) heads into the weekend having dropped three of its last four games. The Eagles' lone victory during the stretch was a 3-0 road sweep of University of Illinois Springfield on Oct. 3, sandwiched around losses to Cedarville University (3-1), McKendree University (3-0) and Bellarmine (3-1). USI has struggled in true road matches, owning an 8-1 record in home or neutral site contests while going just 3-4 as the visiting team.
 
Shelbi Morris is USI's top attacker, averaging 3.2 kills per set with Erica Oberbroeckling adding 3.1 per set. Quin Shoultz is the top setter, dishing out 10.1 assists per set while Shannon Farrell tallies 5.0 digs/set.
 
GLVC Prognostications: The GLVC released its annual coaches' poll on August 26 with UW-Parkside picked to finish fifth in the East Division. The Rangers racked up 64 points in the poll, finishing 14 points shy of fourth place University of Southern Indiana and 14 points clear of sixth place Bellarmine University. Defending East Champion University of Indianapolis secured the top spot, collecting 110 points and seven first place votes. Lewis University nabbed the No. 2 spot with 109 points and five first place nods followed by McKendree University in third with 97 points and four first place votes. Southern Indiana was fourth (78 points), followed by Parkside (64), Bellarmine (50), Saint Joseph's College (32) and University of Illinois Springfield (28).
 
In the West Division, Rockhurst University landed the preseason No. 1 position, raking in 115 points and 10 first place votes. Defending division and tournament champion Truman State University was slotted at No. 2 with 110 points and the remaining six first place endorsements. Missouri University S&T was third with 89 points while the University of Missouri-Saint Louis secured fourth with 77 points. Drury University was fifth with 60 points, followed by Quincy University in sixth (55 points), Maryville University in seventh (38 points), and William Jewell College in eighth (25 points).
 
Parkside's Paciero: Head Coach Christine Paciero begins her fifth season at the helm at UW-Parkside, owning a career mark of 142-96 and a 79-58 record with the Rangers. Paciero compiled a 63-38 record in three seasons at Dominican University (2008-2010) before taking over the reins at Parkside. She notched her 100th career win in the 2013 season opener, downing Anderson University on Sept. 6.
 
All-Academic: The UW-Parkside volleyball squad earned both the Team Academic All-GLVC Award and the AVCA Team Academic Award for the second straight year this offseason, boasting an impressive 3.44 team grade point average. Additionally returning student-athletes Meghan Conley, Jeni Heller, Lauren Hickson, Rebecca Kuske, Jackie Langer, Rebecca Roembke, and Lexi Turek were all honored as Academic All-GLVC honorees.
 
Three and counting: UW-Parkside posted a winning record for the third consecutive season in 2014, marking the first time since 1990 the program has strung together back-to-back-to-back winning campaigns. The Rangers streak began in 2012, posting a 21-10 record in Head Coach Christine Paciero's second year at the helm. Parkside followed it up with an 18-13 record in 2013 and a 15-13 mark last season. Under the direction of Terry Paulson the Rangers accumulated six consecutive winning seasons from 1985 to 1990, including a program-best 34-win season in 1986.