Southern Illinois traveled to Springfield, Missouri on November 16 to take on the Bears. The Salukis would emerge victorious in their last game of the season. The tough win occurred right before the conference tournament, which starts on Monday, November 21. 

The Dawgs would command the first set of the game. SIU got out to a hot start, which led to an impressive 25-20 win in the first set. 

It was more of the same in the second set. SIU won their second match 25-19. At this point in the game, it felt as if the Salukis would be able to wrap it up and win in three.

However, Missouri State had other plans. They would answer with an impressive 25-23 victorious third set. Both teams fought tooth and nail, but the Bears simply wouldn’t give in. 

There was a sense that the loss depleted the Salukis, as they got routed by the Bears 25-13 in the fourth set. Luckily for Saluki fans, the rough set was just enough to motivate the Salukis. 

Southern Illinois dominated the final set 15-5. As mentioned, this victory gives SIU the fourth seed in the conference, which will offer SIU a bye. 

Senior Nataly Garcia led the Dawgs tonight in kills with 25. Sophomore Anna Jaworski finished with four aces and 51 assists. Freshman Claudia Bobb totaled 17 digs on the night. 

The Salukis’ next game will be against the winner of Evansville versus Bradley in the first round of the MVC tournament. The quarterfinals will take place on Monday, November 21. 

Assistant Sports Editor Cole Daily can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at cdaily_de

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