Hanging above Ryan Millar’s whiteboard is a quote from Kobe Bryant that says “job’s not finished.”
The head coach of EIU volleyball has that there to remind the team that despite the Panthers’ 10-game winning streak, they are not where they want to be yet.
“That’s kind of our mentality right now,” Millar said. “Our record is pretty good, but we haven’t done anything yet.
With the season nearing its conclusion, Thursday and Friday’s matches between EIU volleyball and Morehead State are pivotal.
If Eastern wins both matches against the Eagles, then the Panthers put themselves within one win of the regular season conference title and the right to host the Ohio Valley Conference tournament at the new Gardella Family Court.
It’s a pivotal series because the Panthers (18-6, 12-2) are undefeated at home this season and sit a game behind Morehead State (19-6, 13-1) for first place with four games to go.
“I think we all know, and our coaches have been stressing, how crucial these last few weeks and especially these next two games are for us,” senior outside hitter Tori Mohesky said.
Eastern’s 10-game winning streak is the second-longest in the rally scoring era, and longest since the target score per set was dropped from 30 to 25.
The Panthers have rattled off wins against every OVC team they’ve played so far except for Southern Indiana, who used just three sets to beat Eastern in both matches they played.
“Those [matches] were, in some ways, a little bit beneficial for us because they were also a pretty loud wake-up call,” Millar said. “There were a number of things that we needed to get better at if we wanted to try to be in a position to win the conference tournament. We weren’t going to do that playing at that level.”
The Panthers’ 7-0 home record this season is their best since they finished the season 8-0 at home in 2013. Having not yet lost a game at the new arena, the Panthers are hoping to take that momentum into the Morehead State series.
“We’re excited about having the opportunity to play Morehead [State] at home,” Millar said. “I think that’s a pretty good advantage for us.”
Morehead State has won all but one of its conference games so far this season. Of the 13 wins in OVC play, 10 have come in three straight sets. The Eagles lead the OVC in hitting percentage at .248.
Their only loss was in straight sets to Little Rock, a team that Eastern beat twice.
“I feel very confident in our abilities to win the whole thing if we do host [the OVC tournament],” said Mohesky.
If Eastern beats the Eagles in both games, then the Panthers will take full control of first place in the OVC and would need just one more win to clinch the 1-seed. If Eastern was to win one match and lose the other, then Morehead State would remain a game ahead of the Panthers.
If by the end of the regular season both teams are tied, the first tiebreaker is head-to-head match results. In the event that both split this upcoming series, the next tiebreaker is total sets won between the two teams.
So, if Eastern wins in four sets in the first match, and loses in three sets in the second match, then Morehead State would have the tiebreaker.
The series also represents the final two games of the regular season at home. After this week’s series, Eastern will travel to play Tennessee Tech, while Morehead State will host UT Martin.
Thursday’s game is set for a 6 p.m. start, while Friday’s game is set to start at 4 p.m.
Both games will be at the Gardella Family Court at McAfee Gym.
Gabe Newman can be reached at 581-2812 or at [email protected].
