PEORIA, Ill. -- Tuesday will mark the first home match of the year for the Bradley volleyball team as they prepare to take on the Saint Louis Billikens at 7 p.m. at Renaissance Coliseum.
After two weekends on the road, the Braves have built up an impressive amount of momentum with a record of 5-1, tying for the best record through six matches in the program's history.
Head coach Jenny Maurer attributes this early success to a commitment to discipline by the team as a whole. By pushing a tighter defense and relying heavily on the team's speed, the Braves have continued efforts that Maurer says began last year.
"From day one [the team] really wanted to turn the program around," Maurer said. "They wanted to be proud of Bradley Volleyball. Our girls have trained so hard off the court to become better athletes."
In addition to tying as the best start to a season, Bradley's recent five-match win streak was the squad's longest since winning eight consecutive matches in 2005.
Last year saw the Braves finish with a home record of 7-6, going 4-1 in the last five contests of the season, falling only to the then 12th-ranked Northern Iowa.
This week's match up against the Billikens will mark the second time the two teams have met in Bradley's home-opener, with the Braves also opening the 2007 home slate against SLU.
"We expect a very athletic team," Maurer said. "[SLU] has gone through a bit of what we have gone through in building a program, but we love the gains we have already made and we expect it to be a really well-fought match."
As they turn their sights toward home territory, the Braves are preparing to show everyone just what they have been up to during the early weekends of the season.
"We want to make our fans proud," Maurer stated. "We've gone out and done it elsewhere, now we want to show them how hard we've been working and how high we've raised the bar."
Live stats and a subscription video stream will be available at BradleyBraves.com
The Braves will travel to Brookings, S.D., this weekend for a pair of matches at the Jackrabbit Invitational following Tuesday's home match.
