Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) volleyball team begins Atlantic Sun Conference play this week with a pair of road matches. The APSU Govs open league action with a Friday 6:00pm match at North Alabama. After a travel day, Austin Peay State University then has a Sunday 2:00pm match at Central Arkansas.
Mikayla Powell and Maggie Keenan powered the Govs through their opening stretch. Powell ended the season’s first four weeks, leading the ASUN in kills per set (3.86) and total kills (197). Keenan’s 51 blocks were second most in the league, while her 1.09 blocks per set are ranked sixth entering league action.
Kelsey Mead also thrived in the first four weeks, ranking fifth in the league in assists per set (8.49) while leading the team and ranking seventh in the ASUN in total digs (157).
This weekend’s road trip takes Austin Peay to North Alabama, where they are still seeking their first-ever victory after two previous trips. Central Arkansas’ home court has not proved any kinder, with the Govs dropping a three-set match last season in their first trip to Conway, Arkansas.
Through the Rotation
Austin Peay State University outside hitter Mikayla Powell has recorded double-digit kills in 10 consecutive matches and has four 20-kill outings in that stretch. She enters conference play with 45 more kills than any other ASUN hitter (UNA’s Anna Katherine Griggs). Powell’s 197 total kills rank 10th among Division I hitters.
Middle blocker Maggie Keenan’s 51 blocks are second most in the ASUN behind North Alabama’s Anna Katherine Griggs. She needs 37 blocks to become only the sixth Govs student-athlete to record 300 career blocks.
As September dawned, APSU setter Kelsey Mead took over as the Govs’ primary setter as the team switched from a 6-2 to a 5-1 offense. She has 379 assists since the change, averaging 9.72 assists per set. Mead enters league play ranked fifth among ASUN setters at 8.49 assists per set.
Middle blocker Karli Graham ranks fifth among ASUN attackers with a .359 attack percentage after the season’s opening month. She closed nonconference play with three straight seven-kill performances and recorded 38 kills (1.72 per set) over the final six matches.
Mead and libero Kalliann Cook also form one of the ASUN’s top back-row defensive pairings. Mead ranks seventh in the ASUN with 157 total digs, and Cook ranks ninth with 150 digs. They are one of two sets of teammates ranked among the ASUN’s top 10 in total digs (UNA’s Luana Bulara and Avery Markham).
APSU outside hitter Elizabeth Wheat finished the nonconference slate with 113 kills, the only other Govs hitter aside from Powell to record 100-plus kills in the opening stretch. She has already matched her 2022 offensive output (113 kills in 73 sets played).
Defensively, Austin Peay State University enters ASUN play averaging 15.02 digs per set and ranks fourth in the category. APSU is just ahead of this week’s opponents – fifth-ranked Central Arkansas (14.72 digs per set) and sixth-ranked North Alabama (14.58 digs per set).
Meanwhile, the APSU Govs front-row defense has posted 106.5 blocks – a 2.09 block per set pace that ranks fifth in the ASUN.
Inside The Series
North Alabama
Series: North Alabama leads, 4-2.
Last Season: Austin Peay State University won a four-set match in Clarksville, the only meeting between the teams last season.
Notably: The Govs-Lions series dates back to 1982. North Alabama won the first four meetings, with its most recent victory coming during the 1996 season. Austin Peay has won the last two meetings, both in Clarksville.
Central Arkansas
Series: Central Arkansas leads, 2-0.
Last Season: UCA swept the two-match series, winning a four-set match in Clarksville before claiming a three-set victory in Conway.
Notably: Prior to last season, the Govs and Sugar Bears had not met on the volleyball court.
