The Valpo volleyball program entered the 2024 season knowing it was going to have to meld a group of veterans with a talented class of newcomers, and Friday night’s season opener — including the final two points — was a perfect microcosm of what to expect, as the Beacons got big performances up and down the lineup to outduel SIUE 3-2 (23-25, 26-24, 25-22, 23-25, 16-14) at IU Indy’s Hampton Inn Invitational. A pair of freshmen posted new program standards for collegiate debuts, as Ava Helming (Johnston, Iowa/Johnston) reeled off a match-high 20 kills and Jessica Pickett (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) shut the door on nine blocks.

How It Happened

• Starting off the decisive fifth set, it was the Beacons on the front foot, jumping out to a 5-1 lead. SIUE rallied to within 8-7 before Valpo scored four in a row to lead 12-7.
• It was still advantage Valpo, earning match point at 14-11, but the Cougars came with three points in a row to send the decisive set to extra points.
• With the score knotted at 14-14, junior Addy Kois (Osceola, Ind./Penn) set up freshman Kadence Brumitt (Niles, Mich./Brandywine) for a kill to give the Beacons a fourth match point chance. This time, the Brown and Gold finished it off, as junior Sam Warren (Kentland, Ind./South Newton) combined with rookie Lilly Merk (Terre Haute, Ind./Terre Haute South Vigo) on the match-clinching block.
• It looked like Valpo was going to be able to potentially finish the match in four sets, as a three-point spurt late in set four set the Beacons up with a 20-17 edge. Later, it was still 23-21 Valpo before SIUE scored four in a row to force the final frame.
• Valpo withstood an 8-0 SIUE run in the opening set and actually came back to briefly take the lead at 15-14. The Beacons were tied with the Cougars as late as 19-19, but SIUE scored five of the next seven points to earn set point and converted on their third opportunity to take the early 1-0 advantage.
• The Beacons pulled out ahead late in a back-and-forth battle in the second set, with three kills from Merk giving them a 23-20 lead. The Cougars came right back with three points in a row and the frame was eventually tied at 24 apiece. An SIUE attack error gave Valpo a second set point, and this time it came through, as a kill from Brumitt gave the Beacons their first set of the season.
• As was the case all night, the third set was tight as well, heading towards the wire tied at 21-21. Merk tallied a kill to give Valpo the lead for good, followed by a successful setter dump from sophomore Mara Thomas (Bogart, Ga./Athens Academy). The Beacons answered an SIUE kill with another termination from Merk, and Warren came through with a kill on the first set point chance to give Valpo a 2-1 lead and set up the final two sets.

Inside the Match

• Friday’s win marks the fourth straight season that Valpo has won its season opener.
• With no set decided by more than three points, you would expect lots of back and forth, and that’s what happened Friday. The five sets featured 45 tie scores and 15 lead changes, but notably, there were no lead changes in the decisive fifth set.
• With so many performances to highlight, the kills column is the easiest to start with, as the Beacons held a 71-53 advantage in that department over SIUE.
• Valpo was paced by Helming and her 20 kills, three of which came in the final set, on .282 hitting.
• It is a program record for kills by a freshman in her debut, and also is the high-water mark for any Valpo player in a season opener.
• Helming is the first Valpo player with a 20-kill match since Maddy Boyer racked up 20 kills in a Nov. 11, 2022 win over Bradley.
• With three newcomers among the team’s top four in kills, it was the stalwart senior Elise Swistek (LaPorte, Ind./New Prairie) who provided the veteran presence on the attack. Swistek matched her career high with 17 kills and added 12 digs, four blocks and three service aces.
• Merk finished the night with 11 kills and five blocks, while fellow rookie Brumitt got to double figures as well with 10 kills.
• It is the first time in program history three freshmen have debuted with double-digit kills in the same match.
• On the flip side, it was a big performance from Pickett. After redshirting in 2023, Pickett made her presence felt on the block, racking up a match-best nine rejections.
• Not only is the nine blocks a new program standard for a rookie in her first collegiate match, it is the highest total by any Valpo player in a season opener in program history.
• Warren’s block on the match’s deciding point was her fifth of the evening, matching her career best in the category.
• As a team, the Beacons racked up 14 total blocks on Friday, their highest team total since a 17-block performance at Murray State Nov. 5, 2022.
• Even running a 6-2, it’s rare to see three players in double digits in the assists column, but the Beacons achieved that on Friday thanks to junior libero Emma Hickey (Granger, Ind./Penn). Hickey supplemented her match-best 34 digs with a career-high 11 assists.
• It was the eighth time in Hickey’s career she has racked up at least 30 digs and the third time she has posted a double-double.
• Hickey bumped her career total to 1,397 digs, already 13^th-most in program history.
• Kois finished with a double-double as well, handing out 33 assists and tallying 10 digs. Valpo is 8-1 in Kois’ three seasons when she registers a double-double.
• Thomas dished out a career-best 22 assists as well in the win.
• In all, five Valpo players made their collegiate debuts on Friday, as Jordyn Gove (Amarillo, Texas/Randall) saw action in a pair of sets as well.

Next Up

Valpo (1-0) continues play from the Hampton Inn Invitational on Saturday when it faces Eastern Michigan at 1 p.m. No video stream will be available, but there will be live stats via ValpoAthletics.com.