Volleyball Preps for Final Non-Conference Tournament of 2026

Volleyball at Golden Grizzly Invitational
Dates/Times	Friday-Saturday \| Sept. 11-12
Venues	OU Credit Union O'Rena \| Rochester, Mich.
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF) \| EMU Media Guide
Live Stats	vs. Montana \| vs. UAB \| at Oakland
Twitter	@EMUVolleyball \| @EMUAthletics
Instagram	@emu_volleyball \| @emuathletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team looks to carry its winning ways into the final non-conference tournament of the season as the Eagles will compete in the Golden Grizzly Invitational hosted by Oakland University, at the OU Credit Union O'Rena in Rochester, Mich., Friday-Saturday, Sept. 11-12. Eastern will play two games Friday, beginning with a match against Montana at 12 p.m., before facing UAB at 5 p.m. The Eagles wrap up the tournament against the host Golden Grizzlies Saturday at 3 p.m.

Fans can follow the action using the live stats links that can be found on the EMU volleyball schedule page at emueagles.com/volleyball/schedule. Fans can also follow the team's social media accounts on X, Instagram, and Facebook @EMUVolleyball for live in-match updates. A post-match recap will also be posted to EMUEagles.com following Friday and Saturday's action.

FIRST SERVES
» Eastern is off to a 5-2 start for the second consecutive season. A sweep of the Golden Grizzlies Invitational would mark the first 8-2 start since 2012
» 55.5% (238.5/430) of Eastern's 430.0 total points have been scored by the freshman class.
» Freshmen Lina Govoni and Haley Trosky earned all-tournament honors at the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic, Sept. 5, after Azra Eriç, Bianca Salvador, and Surabhi Srinivasan were named USI Invitational All-Tournament Team, Aug. 29.
» Azra Eriç currently leads the MAC in blocks (1.50) and aces per set (0.62). Eastern leads the conference in aces per set (2.19) and ranks second in blocks per set (2.77).
» Eastern went 2-2 last week with a pair of sweeps against Robert Morris, Sept. 4, and Elon, Sept. 5. Its losses came at 6-0 Duquesne, Sept. 4, and 5-1 Illinois State in five sets, Sept. 6.
» Eastern has 14 newcomers, the second-most nationally. It returns six players from the 2025 roster.
» Eastern has eight freshmen, its most since at least the 1999 season.
» Eastern lost 75% of its points scored in the 2025 season, including 73% of its total kills, 92% of its solo blocks, and 79% of its block assists. Setting-wise, the team lost 89% of its total assists.
» Head Coach Kevin Foeman is in his fourth season at the helm of the program and his 11th year as a head coach. Overall, he holds a 189-153 career record and 36-64 mark at EMU.

SERIES HISTORIES
Montana: Eastern Michigan and Montana will meet for the third time. EMU is 2-0 against the Grizzlies. All three matches will take place at a neutral site while both previous battles have gone five sets. They last met in 2021 at the College of Charleston Invitational, Aug. 28.

UAB: Eastern holds a 2-0 mark against UAB with both wins being sweeps over the Blazers. Friday will mark the first meeting between Eastern and UAB since Sept. 16, 2000, when the Eagles swept the Blazers at the Portland Tournament.

Oakland: Eastern holds a 27-9 record against the Golden Grizzlies entering the 39th meeting. A win would mark three consecutive victories against OU for the first time since an 11-win streak from 2000-08. Eastern most recently swept Oakland 3-0 at the Butler Invitational, Sept. 19, 2025, a game that saw Eastern hit .381 as a team, the ninth-best mark in program history.

HOT START
Eastern is off to a 5-2 start for the second consecutive season. A sweep of the Golden Grizzlies Invitational would mark the first 8-2 start since 2012, while a pair of wins would stand as the best start since 2018.

FRESHMEN FOCUSED
Eastern's freshmen class has accounted for 55.5% (238.5/430) of the Eagles' 430.0 total points. Haley Trosky leads the freshmen with 82.5 points, the most on the team. She is followed by Nattie Slusher (67.0), Maddie Herman (41.5), Olivia Beaudrie (29.0), and Lina Govoni (17.5). Govoni also leads the team in assists (159), averaging 6.36 per set in the 6-2 system.

AZRA ERIÇ STRONG START
Azra Eriç has started her Eastern career strong. The fourth-year transfer currently leads the MAC in blocks and aces per set, averaging 1.50 and 0.62 per set, respectively. Nationally, Eriç ranks 26th in blocks and 41st in aces per set.

1/1: AZRA ERIÇ
Azra Eriç became the only player in the nation to record a match with 10+ kills, five or more aces, and four or more blocks, while hitting .474 or better when she posted the stat line in a five-set battle against Illinois State, Sept. 6. The performance continued Eriç's all-around play as she has recorded four or more kills in five of seven games this season, three or more aces in four of seven, and four or more blocks in five of seven.

1/1: LINA GOVONI
Lina Govoni became the only player in the nation to record a match with 39+ assists, 14+ digs, five or more kills, and five or more blocks when she posted the stat line in a five-set battle against Illinois State, Sept. 6. Govoni ranks sixth in the MAC, averaging 6.36 assists per set, which stands second among the conference's freshmen setters to Ohio's Kelly Rowan (9.53 per set).

SCHAEFER AND ERIÇ ACES DUO
Azra Eriç and Mia Schaefer rank first and second, respectively, in aces per set in the MAC with 0.62 and 0.50, respectively. Both check into the top-100 nationally with Eriç ranking 41st and Schaefer sitting at 86th.

TROSKY AND SLUSHER KILLS PER SET
Freshmen Haley Trosky and Nattie Slusher rank first and second respectively in kills per set among MAC freshmen. Trosky averages 2.81 off an efficient .250 hitting percentage from the outside, while Slusher posts 2.70 per set off a .208 clip. Trosky's .250 hitting percentage also tops MAC freshmen.

SUCCESS IN NON-CON TOURNAMENT PLAY
Eastern has seen success in non-conference tournaments under Kevin Foeman. Since the 2024 season, the Eagles post a 19-11 record in non-conference tournaments.

HITTING EFFICIENTLY
Eastern has outhit its opponent in six-of-seven games this season as it holds a .198 hitting percentage as a team, a mark that stands as the best in the Foeman era and best since EMU hit .210 in the 2019 season. Eastern has outhit its opponent in six of seven games for the first time since the COVID-shortened 2020 season when it did so from Feb. 12-March 5.

BIG-TIME BLOCKERS
Eastern ranks 27th nationally and second in the MAC with 2.77 blocks per set. EMU is the only MAC team with three players ranking inside the conference top 10 in the category. Azra Eriç paces the MAC and ranks 26th in the country with 1.50 blocks per set, while Maddie Herman ranks seventh with 1.04 per set and Taeley Mahler slots ninth with 1.00 per set.

LETHAL FROM THE LINE
The Eagles lead the MAC and rank 22nd in the country, averaging 2.19 aces per set. Eastern's 12 aces against Murray State, Aug. 29 are the second-most in one game in the MAC. Azra Eriç is tied for the conference lead with 0.62 aces per set and Mia Schaefer ranks second with 0.50 per set.

SRINIVASAN YEAR FOUR
The longest tenured Eagle, Surabhi Srinivasan (2023-present) leads the Eagles' back-row defense for the second consecutive season. She is currently averaging a career-best 4.42 digs per set, ranking second in the conference and 49th in America. The Dublin, Ohio, native has recorded 10 or more digs in all seven games this season, including 25+ twice with a career-high tying 27 in the win at Southern Indiana, Aug. 28. Her 27 digs against the Screaming Eagles are the second-most in one game in the MAC.

UP NEXT
Eastern makes the short trip west for a match against the University of Michigan Thursday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m., before hosting Cornell University Friday, Sept. 18, 5 p.m.

FOLLOW US
Stay connected with the Eagles all season long by following @EMUVolleyball and @EMUAthletics on X for all of the latest EMU volleyball updates. Be sure to also follow the Green and White on Instagram @EMU_Volleyball and @emuathletics.

Volleyball Preps for Final Non-Conference Tournament of 2026

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Olivia Beaudrie

Lina Govoni

Maddie Herman

Taeley Mahler

Bianca Salvador

Mia Schaefer

Nattie Slusher

Surabhi Srinivasan

Haley Trosky

Eastern Michigan Athletics