West Central Reporter

The Western Illinois University Leathernecks women's volleyball team is set to play against Kansas City on September 16 at the Swinney Recreation Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

Last weekend, the Leathernecks participated in the Evansville Tournament hosted by the Evansville Aces. The team faced defeats against Morehead, Evansville, and UAB. In their opening match on Friday, they lost three of four sets to Morehead, with Keyana Cruse leading the team with fifteen kills. On Saturday, WIU played two matches, losing to Evansville in five sets and then to UAB in four.

Keyana Cruse was named to the All-Tournament Team after leading her squad with 44 kills and 36 digs over the weekend. She also reached a significant career milestone by surpassing 1,000 kills as a Leatherneck during the tournament. Cruse now needs just 54 more digs to reach 1,000 digs for her WIU career.

This season's roster includes eight new players. Kiyah Franklin joins from Youngstown State University after recording 301 kills and over 75 blocks across four years. Alysia Perez transferred from the University of Illinois-Chicago following her freshman year. Head Coach Dale Starr has also added six freshmen from various states: Ashlee Markert and Martyna Sowiak from Illinois; Jaleah Bauss from Texas; Aubrey Pender from Arkansas; Caroline Clayton from Kansas; and Ella Haines from Wisconsin.

Among returning players, senior Keyana Cruse leads nine returners. Last season she led WIU in points (590), kills (519), sets played (114), matches started (30), as well as digs (463) and blocks (72) among returners. In ten sets last weekend, she recorded 37 kills. Elizabeth Ziegler returns on the right side after playing all 30 matches last season and posting a career-high 260 kills.

Western Illinois was predicted to finish sixth in this year's Ohio Valley Conference preseason poll—their highest preseason ranking since joining the conference. Last year's regular season champion SEMO leads this year's poll with Lindenwood and Tennessee Tech also receiving first-place votes.

Outside hitters Keyana Cruse and Kennedy Adair both received All-OVC Preseason Honors for WIU. Cruse was named to the All-OVC Preseason team while junior Kennedy Adair was listed as a player to watch.

Kansas City enters Tuesday's match after being picked eighth in the Summit League preseason coaches' poll. The Roos finished last season with a record of 6-22 overall and 4-12 in conference play but return key contributors such as outside hitter Kpea Deffebaugh and setter Kylie Neal—both named Summit League Preseason Players to Watch—under head coach Cristina Colon.

For more information about Leatherneck Volleyball or updates throughout the season, visit GoLeathernecks.com or follow their official accounts on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook.