McLean County Times

Illinois State University's volleyball team is set to conclude its 2024 regular season with a match against Bradley University on Wednesday. The game will begin at 6 p.m. at CEFCU Arena.

The Redbirds, led by senior setter Mekaila Aupiu, have shown strong performance this season. Aupiu has maintained her position as the top player in Division I for assists, accumulating 1,252 so far. She stands out as the only player in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) and one of just 13 nationwide with over 1,100 assists this year. She is also the first Illinois State player to exceed 1,000 assists in a single season since Stef Jankiewicz achieved this feat in 2019.

In MVC contests, Illinois State leads with 762 assists and ranks second nationally in team kills with a total of 1,610 and fourth in team assists with 1,495 as of November 18.

Junior Aida Shadewald recently reached a career milestone by surpassing the 1,000-kill mark during a match against Drake on October 19. This achievement makes her the 23rd player from Illinois State to achieve over 1,000 career kills.

Mekaila Aupiu also joined an elite group by becoming the 19th Redbird to record more than 1,000 career assists during a five-set match at Evansville on November 1. With her current tally of assists standing at 1,252 for this year alone, she ranks as the fourteenth highest in ISU Volleyball history.

A victory against Bradley would secure Illinois State a top-four seed in the upcoming MVC Championships scheduled from November 23-26 at UNI's campus. This will be their forty-first appearance at the MVC Tournament where they have claimed thirteen titles and finished as runners-up five times.

For updates on Illinois State volleyball events and news, fans can visit GoRedbirds.com or follow their social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

GoRedbirds.com provides access to tickets for games along with information about Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts and other related merchandise.