With the Big Sky Conference season reaching the midway point, the Eastern Washington University volleyball team is preparing to hit the road to face a pair of teams that are in the top and the bottom of the league standings. First, it's on to play Idaho in nearby Moscow, Idaho, on Thursday, Oct. 14 at 6 p.m. Pacific time. The Eagles then fly to Greeley, Colo., to take on Northern Colorado on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 1 p.m. PT.
 
Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+. You can watch Thursday's match here or follow along with live stats. Saturday's match can be found here, with live stats also available.
 
A LOOK AT THE EAGLES: Eastern Washington is 6-8 overall with a 2-4 mark in conference play. It is coming off of a 3-2 victory over Montana last Saturday (Oct. 9), marking the fourth-straight time the Eagles beat the Grizzlies in four sets. In the win, four Eagles reached double-digit kills in Sage Brustad (18), Ashlyn Blotzer (15), Maya McClellan (12) and McKenna Russell (10). Lindsey Russell also had a double-double of 45 assists and 13 digs.
 
Both conference victories for EWU have come in five sets, as they gutted out a 3-2 victory at Southern Utah to begin the conference slate.
 
As a team, the Eagles hit .199 and average 10.72 assists, 12.19 kills, 1.52 blocks, 1.57 aces and 13.72 digs per set. McClellan averages 2.55 kills per set to lead the way for the Eagles.
 
Blotzer hits at a .359 clip to lead the Big Sky with 115 kills on the year, good for 2.17 per set. Freshman Sadie Bacon ranks 10^th in that category with a .266 hitting percentage. Lindsey Russell ranks sixth in assists with 6.43 while Makenna Collins is the team's leader in service aces per set with .38 to rank seventh in the conference. Sage Brustad averages over two kills (2.15) and two digs (2.35) per set.
 
A LOOK AT THE VANDALS: The University of Idaho is still searching for its first Big Sky Conference win, as it sits at the bottom of the conference at 0-7 and 3-13 overall. Most recently, the Vandals played at Northern Colorado on Tuesday night and lost 1-3.
 
The Vandals hit .133 and allow their opponents to strike at a .258 clip. They add 9.69 assists, 10.67 kills, 1.89 blocks, 1.33 service aces and 11.89 digs per set. Allison Munday is the team's leader in kills with 3.13 per set to rank ninth in the conference. She also is fourth in the league in service aces with .44 per set. Peyten Ely handles the setting duties with 7.48 assists per set which is fifth overall in the conference, and Aliana Lacey is fourth overall in digs per set with 3.74.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Eastern Washington trails the all-time series 21-40 against its regional rival, and are 9-21 against the Vandals away from Reese Court. The Eagles have won two out of the last 10 matchups, but head to Moscow on a one-game winning streak over UI after besting them 3-1 on March 13 last year. That win was the first over Idaho since Oct. 15, 2016, snapping an eight-match losing streak.
 
The last time EWU beat the Vandals on the road was also on Oct. 15, 2016 in five sets, as the Eagles will look to snap a three-match losing streak in Moscow on Thursday.
 
A LOOK AT THE BEARS: Northern Colorado is 14-4 overall with a 6-1 mark in Big Sky Conference play. The Bears rank second overall in the conference standings to 6-0 Weber State, who has handed UNC its lone loss of the conference slate. Four of UNC's six wins in conference play have come in three sets.
 
Northern Colorado leads the Big Sky in hitting percentage with .220 and they have two players that rank in the top-ten for that category as well. The Bears are also second in the league in service aces (1.65/set), kills (13.03) and assists (12.03). They hold their opponents below a .200 clip at .190.
 
Kailey Jo Ince leads the way with 3.40 kills per set by the Bears, followed by Daisy Schultz who dishes 8.77 assists per set which is second in the Big Sky. Two Bears rank in the top-ten for service aces per set in Laura Katarzynski (.46) and Kyndall Feather (.37).
 
SERIES HISTORY: Eastern Washington trails the Bears 9-23 in the all-time series and will look to snap a six-match losing streak that dates back to Nov. 3, 2017. On the road, EWU is 4-10 overall and haven't won in Greeley since Sept. 27, 2014, as the Bears have won five-straight on their own home floor.
 
UP NEXT: The road swing continues with a pair of matches next week. Eastern Washington faces Idaho State in Pocatello, Idaho, on Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. PT, before traveling to Ogden, Utah, for a matchup at Weber State on Oct. 23 at 1 p.m. PT.