BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - After a weekend away, the sixth-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University women's volleyball team returns to the Shirk Center for a midweek match against No. 16 University of Wisconsin Whitewater Wednesday, Sept. 16. First serve between the Titans (7-1) and Warhawks (4-1) is set for 7 p.m.
In the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association Poll, announced Sept. 15, the Green and White fell to No. 6 after a 2-1 weekend. Wisconsin Oshkosh remained at the top spot with 74 first-place votes, while third-ranked Trinity (Texas) and No. 7 Juniata each brought in a first-place vote. Colby moved into second place with its 3-0 week as Wisconsin Eau Claire and Massachusetts Institute of Technology nestled in fourth and fifth, respectively. The Titans secured their spot in the weekly poll for the 18th consecutive week.
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IWU's first road trip of the season saw the Titans defeat DePauw University and Austin College before falling to now-ranked No. 20 Centre College in four sets. It was another big week for junior Alysa Lawton (Elmhurst, Ill.-IC Catholic Prep), reeling in her second straight College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Defensive Player of the Week award. The libero tallied 76 digs in 12 sets for an impressive 6.63 digs per set. On the offensive end, she added 14 assists and three service aces.
For the season, junior Alex Bardouniotis (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) leads the Green and White's offensive attack, which ranks top-20 nationally in total kills. Through the first two weeks of the season she sits with a team-leading 3.74 kills per set and 116 kills. Junior Juliana Valdez (Palos Heights, Ill.-Marist) had her best performance as a Titan against DePauw. The junior college transfer put together a career day with 11 kills against the Tigers for a .474 hitting percentage. She was equally effective on the defensive side, tallying one solo block and assisting on 14 of them.
On the season, IWU has smashed 398 kills for a .200 percentage and 12.8 kills per set. The assist tally sits at 366, led by senior Sophia Feeney's (Bloomington, Ill.-Normal Community) 163, good enough for top-40 nationally.
The Warhawks fly into Bloomington on a three-match winning streak. Outside of its loss to Penn State Harrisburg, UWW has dropped just one set over the first two weeks of action. The Warhawks have dominated the Titans over the course of the series, holding a 22-2 advantage. UWW won the first 18 matches before IWU clipped the Warhawks in 2017 and 2018. The teams have only met at the Shirk Center five times, including the 2018 Titan victory. At home, Illinois Wesleyan is 1-4 with the other win coming on a neutral court in Oshkosh, Wis. Having not played IWU in the Shirk Center since 2022, the Warhawks paid a visit to Bloomington in 2025 for postseason play. UW-Whitewater lost to Calvin University in the second round of the NCAA tournament as part of the Bloomington Regional.
Lawton will see a familiar face across the court Wednesday, as her sister, Natalie, is a sophomore defensive specialist for the Warhawks. The Lawton sisters rank among the top defensive specialists in the nation as Natalie sits seventh in digs per set with 5.88 and Alysa in eighth with 5.87.
