When in-state rivalry matchups take place, one can usually expect the environment to be more raucous than the majority of most general matchups are concerned.

The volleyball program at Shawnee State University will entertain such an atmosphere on Monday evening when the Bears host in-state rival Rio Grande -- who sits just 62 minutes northeast of the SSU campus -- while Pikeville, who sits less than 130 miles to the south of SSU, heads up to Waller Gymnasium for a Wednesday evening matchup. Both contests will start at 6 p.m.

For Susan Shelton, the upcoming affairs certainly have a special meaning on the calendar with SSU, along with Rio Grande, being the lone Southeastern Ohio representatives from an institutional standpoint in the NAIA.

"Our matches against Rio are always intense," Shelton said. "Even though we are not in the same conference, Rio remains one of our biggest rivalries. Beating them on the road early in the season was definitely a high point for us, but that does not guarantee a victory at home. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Billina (Donaldson), and I know she has prepared her team for this match."

As for the Pikeville matchup, the Bears have a vitally important conference matchup considering that SSU can officially put Pikeville in its rearview mirror if Shawnee State defeats UPike on Wednesday. SSU holds a 7-22 overall record and a 3-9 mark in conference play, while Pikeville currently holds a 6-15 overall showing and a 0-12 conference record. This means that Shawnee State can clinch the No. 8 seed in the Mid-South Conference Tournament as Pikeville, with a SSU win with four games to play in the Mid-South Conference's regular season, would be four games back with four games to play and Shelton's club holding the head-to-head tiebreaker.

"With Pikeville, they just came off a straight set victory against Piedmont International and took us to five sets by winning the first two games against us when we played in September. For us to come out on top, we need to take control early in both games and not let up in intensity."

The games, however, are arguably more important for general momentum.

Shawnee State, who is tied with Campbellsville for seventh place in the conference standings, swept the Tigers in their regular season matchups, but has to at least match Campbellsville's remaining win output in conference play to claim a No. 7 spot. The Bears, who host sixth-place Cumberlands (Ky.) the following Tuesday, sit just one game behind the Patriots and, with two wins this week, can establish momentum heading into a pivotal Mid-South Conference showing that could push SSU up to as high as sixth place in the overall conference standings if Shawnee State remains consistent in its output.

That starts on Monday evening with Rio Grande, where Shelton hopes to see the same exact enthusiasm in the crowd as what was brought to the table against Mount Vernon Nazarene just 10 days prior. It'll certainly be aided with having very special friends in the crowd from the fifth and sixth grade volleyball programs at Wheelersburg, with Shelton and quite a few of the Shawnee State players coaching those players in an instructional league headed up by Shawnee State assistant coach Devan Scarberry.

"We had a great crowd last week for our Mount Vernon match and hope to see the same tonight," Shelton said. "We need to use the energy in the stands to fuel us on the court. Having Wheelersburg's youth teams come see us play is very special. A lot of our players coach club and help with Devan's instructional league, and we had some of the Pirates at our camp this summer. Having them come see us in action helps to continue building relationships with the local kids. Plus, it's always a treat for us to see the excitement on the kids' faces when we make a great play."

Both contests against Rio Grande and Pikeville start at 6 p.m. at Waller Gymnasium on Monday and Wednesday, respectively.

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