Musketeers Head to Oakland for Golden Grizzlies Invitational

CINCINNATI - The Xavier volleyball team will travel to Rochester, Michigan this weekend to compete in the Golden Grizzlies Invitational hosted by Oakland.

The Musketeers look to bounce back after suffering their first loss of the season to crosstown rival Cincinnati on Tuesday night.

Xavier's 6-0 start to the season is the best in program history since the team went 7-0 to start the 2007 season, the last time XU made the NCAA Tournament.

tournament information

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12

Oakland Golden Grizzlies (0-6, 0-0 Horizon) vs. Southern Illinois Salukis (3-3, 0-0 MVC) - 10:00 a.m.
Xavier Musketeers (6-1, 0-0 BIG EAST) vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles (5-2, 0-0 MAC) - 12:00 p.m.
- Live Stats
Eastern Michigan Eagles (5-2, 0-0 MAC) vs. Southern Illinois Salukis (3-3, 0-0 MVC) - 5:00 p.m.
Oakland Golden Grizzlies (0-6, 0-0 Horizon) vs. Xavier Musketeers (6-1, 0-0 BIG EAST) - 7:00 p.m.
- Live Stats

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13

Southern Illinois Salukis (3-3, 0-0 MVC) vs. Xavier Musketeers (6-1, 0-0 BIG EAST) - 12:00 p.m.
- Live Stats
Oakland Golden Grizzlies (0-6, 0-0 Horizon) vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles (5-2, 0-0 MAC) - 3:00 p.m.

about the musketeers

McKinley Boehm was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week for her dominant defensive performance at the XU Tournament where she totaled 19 blocks including five solos. The redshirt freshman ranks third in the BIG EAST with 1.30 blocks per set. She matched her career-high nine blocks in the win over Miami (OH) and totaled seven blocks the night before against IU Indy. The middle blocker capped off the weekend with a career-high nine kills on a .600 clip against Eastern Kentucky to earn a spot on the Xavier Tournament All-Tournament Team. She added eight kills on a team-high .385 clip in the loss to Cincinnati on Tuesday.
Macy Hatkevich was also named the BIG EAST Setter of the Week after leading the league with 9.92 assists per set. The junior Toledo transfer notched a career-high 56 assists in the Musketeers' five-set win over Miami (OH) on Friday night. She also recorded 10 digs in the match to tab her first Xavier double-double.
Emma Grace was named the Xavier Tournament MVP and earned a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll after leading the league with 4.54 kills per set last week. The redshirt senior notched a double-double in all three matches over the weekend including two 20+ kill performances. She tallied a new career-high 23 kills against Miami (OH) and nearly matched her 30-dig record with 27. She had 20 kills and 13 digs while hitting .333 against IU Indy and closed the weekend with 16 kills and 13 digs against Eastern Kentucky. The Kentucky native currently holds a six-match double-double streak.
Xavier has held all opponents to a combined .173 hitting percentage, including five under .200 and two under .100.
The Musketeers rank second in the league with 15.07 digs per set behind Kelsey Niesen's 4.26 and Emma Grace's 3.46.

scouting the eagles

Eastern Michigan is currently 5-2 after sweeping the EMU Tournament last weekend.
Ashlynn Belcher was named MAC Setter of the Week and Hatteras Welker was named Defensive Player of the Week after the pair took home EMU All-Tournament honors and Belcher earned MVP.
The Eagles were picked to finish eighth in the MAC this season with Welker being named to the Preseason All-MAC Team.
Xavier and EMU are 4-4 all-time in the series with the Musketeers winning the last four. XU most recently defeated the Eagles at home, 3-1, on Sept. 3, 2022.

scouting the golden grizzlies

Oakland is 0-6 thus far into the season, dropping three matches last weekend at the Ellesyn Invitational hosted by Montana.
The Golden Grizzlies were picked to finish T-8th in the 2025 Horizon League Preseason Poll.
OU lost 73 percent of its offensive output from last season along with all statistical leaders in kills, digs, assists, blocks and aces.
The Golden Grizzlies' roster includes eight newcomers, two transfers and six freshmen.
Xavier and Oakland have only faced each other once with Xavier taking the lone victory, 3-0, on Sept. 5, 2014.

scouting the salukis

Southern Illinois heads to Michigan with a 3-3 record after a 1-2 weekend at the Saluki Bash last weekend.
SIU reloaded their roster with nine newcomers after finishing 11th in the MVC last season with a 3-15 record.
The Salukis return their 2024 leaders in kills, digs and blocks.
Xavier and Southern Illinois will face off for the first time in program history on Saturday.

big east weekly honors

Sept. 2 - Margo Kemp - BIG EAST Co-Defensive Player of the Week
Sept. 8 - McKinley Boehm - BIG EAST Freshman of the Week
Sept. 8 - Macy Hatkevich - BIG EAST Setter of the Week
Sept. 8 - Emma Grace - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll

Preseason big east honors

BIG EAST Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll
(first-place votes)

Creighton (10) 100
Marquette (1) 85
UConn 80
St. John's 79
Villanova 63
DePaul 53
Xavier 47
Seton Hall 31
Butler 29
Georgetown 27
Providence 11

Preseason BIG EAST Volleyball Player of the Year: Ava Martin, Sr., OH, Creighton

Preseason All-BIG EAST Team^
McKenna Brand, So., L/DS, UConn
Doga Kutlu, Gr., S, UConn
Emma Werkmeister, Sr., OH, UConn
Jaya Johnson, So., RS/MB, Creighton
Ava Martin, Sr., OH, Creighton*
Kiara Reinhardt, Sr., MB, Creighton*
Hattie Bray, Sr., MB, Marquette*
Natalie Ring, Jr., OH, Marquette
Erin Jones, Sr., S/RS, St. John's*
Lucrezia Lodi, Sr., OH, St. John's
Rashanny Solano-Smith, Jr., L/DS, St. John's
Abby Harrell, Jr., OH, Villanova
Campbell McKinnon, So., MB, Villanova
Margo Kemp, RS-So., MB, Xavier
^Denotes tie in voting
*Denotes unanimous selection

Schedule

Upcoming Events