Vikings finish 16-14 overall; 4-4 and tied for fourth in the CCIW; Grace Bialobok and Taryn VanEarwage named All-CCIW
 
Coach Kelly Bethke's Augustana's 2018 volleyball squad finished the 2018 season 16-14 overall and 4-4 and tied for fourth in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin. The Vikings qualified for the CCIW Tournament, where they fell in five games at Millikin in the first round. Junior Grace Bialobok (Homewood-Flossmoor HS, Homewood, Ill.) and senior Taryn VanEarwage (Rock Island HS, Rock Island, Ill.) were named to the all-conference team. Bialobok was a first team selection, while VanEarwage earned second team honors.
 
Augustana opened the season by going 2-2 at St. Mary's Ground Round Sugar Loaf Classic in Winona, Minnesota. The Vikings defeated Edgewood and Northland and fell to the host Cardinals and Dominican. Bialobok was named to the all-tournament team.
 
Bethke's outfit won three of its next four, including two of three at the Grinnell/Central Tournament. The two wins came over the each of the co-hosts. A CCIW-opening setback against Millikin was followed by wins in two of three matches at the Augustana Invitational, which moved the Vikings to 7-5 on the year.
 
Augustana split its next six contests, including league tilts with Carthage (loss) and Elmhurst (win), before traveling to St. Louis, Missouri for the Washington University Tournament. The Vikings lost in four sets to second-ranked Colorado College before falling to Wisconsin-Oshkosh and defeating Wisconsin-Platteville. Freshman Sierra Erke (Quincy HS, Quincy, Ill.) was an all-tournament selection.
 
Four consecutive CCIW dates followed and three resulted in wins. The only loss came to 13th-ranked and eventual league champ Illinois Wesleyan. Augustana delivered one of its best performances of the year in a five-set loss to eighth-ranked University of Chicago at Carver Center on October 20. The Maroons won 111 points to the Vikings' 107 and captured the final set 15-12.
 
The regular season came to an end with straight-set wins over Simpson and Illinois Tech at the Pumpkin Bash on October 26. Augustana's season came to an end on November 1, when the Vikings fell in five sets at Millikin in the opening round of the CCIW Tournament.
 
Bialobok led Augustana in kills (322), kills per set (2.90), attack percentage (.279) and blocks (92) this year. Her attack percentage was the 10th-best single-season mark in school history. VanEarwage finished third on the team with 232 kills and 2.23 kills per set and second with 361 digs and 23 service aces. She finished her career seventh in program history with 1,354 digs and 18th all-time with 827 kills. Her 943.5 points rank 18th as well and she's 25th in school history with 379 games played.
 
Senior Emily Uglem (Moorhead HS, Moorhead, Minn.) shared the team lead in sets played (111) with Bialobok and was second for the Vikings with 266 kills and an average of 2.40 per set. Erke was fourth with 172 kills and 2.07 per set. Her .227 attack percentage was second on the team.
 
Senior McKenzie Zambrano (Rock Island HS, Rock Island, Ill.) and freshman Olivia Doak (Crystal Lake Central HS, Crystal Lake, Ill.) split setting duties this year and finished with 476 and 474 assists, respectively. Doak had a team-best 30 aces, while Zambrano was third on the team with 21.
 
Junior Madi Glatz (Morton HS, Morton, Ill.) led Augustana with 393 digs. Junior Brooke Harmon (Lindbergh HS, St. Louis, Mo.) ranked second to Bialobok with 63 blocks, while junior Taylor Steger (Red Wing HS, Goodhue, Minn.) and Erke were each in on 43.

2018 CCIW VOLLEYBALL STANDINGS

School	CCIW	Pct.	Overall	Pct.
Illinois Wesleyan	8-0	1.000	27-6	.818
Carthage	7-1	.875	21-11	.656
Carroll	6-2	.750	19-10	.655
AUGUSTANA	4-4	.500	16-14	.633
Millikin	4-4	.500	16-19	.457
North Park	3-5	.375	17-14	.548
Wheaton	2-6	.250	15-16	.484
Elmhurst	2-6	.250	12-19	.387
North Central	0-8	.000	3-20	.130

 
2018 CCIW TOURNAMENT in Bloomington, Illinois
First Round—Thursday, November 1
#6 North Park 3, #3 Carroll 0 (27-25, 25-20, 25-19) at Waukesha, Wis.
#4 Millikin 3, #5 Augustana 2 (19-25, 25-18, 25-19, 23-25, 15-13) at Decatur, Illinois
Semifinals—Friday, November 2
#2 Carthage 3, North Park 0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-14)
#1 Illinois Wesleyan 3, Millikin 1 (25-15, 25-15, 21-25, 25-19)
Championship—Saturday, November 3
Illinois Wesleyan 3, Carthage 1 (25-17, 23-25, 25-18, 25-23)
 
2018 AUGUSTANA VOLLEYBALL SUPERLATIVES
CCIW ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS: Grace Bialobok (1st team); Taryn VanEarwage (2nd team)
ALL-TOURNAMENT SELECTIONS: Grace Bialobok, St. Mary's Ground Round Sugar Loaf Classic; Sierra Erke, Washington University Tournament
CCIW ACADEMIC ALL-CONFERENCE: Olivia Doak, Madi Glatz, Kayla Heflen, Brooke Harmon, Brooke Keegan, Savana Sparks
CCIW Player of the Week: Grace Bialobok, Offense, 9/11/18
NCAA TEAM TOP 25 – TEAM
Attacks per set: 38.54, 25th
CCIW STATISTICAL TOP 5 – INDIVIDUAL
Digs per set: 4.62, Madi Glatz, 5th
 
INDIVIDUAL TOP TEN LISTS
CAREER
Digs: 1354, Taryn VanEarwage, 7th
Digs per set: 3.57, Taryn VanEarwage, 10th
Assists: 1499, McKenzie Zambrano, 10th
 
SINGLE SEASON
Attack Pct.: .279, Grace Bialobok, 10th
 
TEAM AWARDS
Varsity MVP: Grace Bialobok, Taryn VanEarwage
Leadership Award: Emily Uglem
Varsity Most Improved: Taylor Steger, Victoria Biggerstaff
Varsity Augie Award:  Madi Glatz