Volleyball Continues SoCon Play On The Road
GREENSBORO, N.C. – After a 2-0 start to Southern Conference play, the UNCG volleyball team hits the road this weekend for its first league road trip of the year. The Spartans will head to Western Carolina for a Saturday matchup before traveling to Boone to face Appalachian State Sunday. Both matches are slated to begin at 5 p.m.
The Blue and Gold can make program history against the Catamounts as a victory would mark the first-ever 3-0 beginning to Southern Conference play. The Spartans defeated Elon and The Citadel last season but fell to Western Carolina in three at home in their next contest.
In its most recent outing, UNCG rallied from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to knock off The Citadel Saturday at Fleming Gymnasium. After a shaky start, the Spartans took the final two sets by 25-17 and 15-11 scores. Sophomore middle hitter Kelsey Sidney posted a career-best 18 kills on 22 attempts and made just one error to hit a sizzling .773 – also a career high mark and the second-highest single-game effort in the SoCon this season.
The Spartans nearly received a triple-double performance from sophomore setter Emily McMurtrey as she produced career bests in kills (seven) and digs (13) while completing a double-double with 56 assists.
UNCG racked up a season-best 74 kills and fired at a .260 clip as compared to 54 kills and a .220 percentage by the visitors. The Spartans also outdug the Bulldogs 81-65.
LOOKING AT WESTERN CAROLINA...
The Catamounts sport an overall record of 5-12 and have begun the league campaign 1-1 after falling at Samford and downing Chattanooga on the road. Sophomore Caitlin Piechota paces the Catamount offense to the tune of 3.27 kills per set while Morgan Cochran anchors the back row, averaging 4.95 digs per set - good for third in the league. WCU owns a .162 hitting mark through 17 contests but is fourth in the SoCon in digs per set at 16.40. The teams split a pair of matches last season with each squad winning on the road.
THE BOOK ON APPALACHIAN STATE...
Appalachian State enters the weekend at 4-12 overall and 0-2 in SoCon play after dropping road contests at Samford and Chattanooga. Dalton Tolliver and Lindsey Sauls are tied for the team lead in total kills while Courtney Rhein paces the defense with 4.73 digs per set. The Mountaineers are hitting just .143 as a team and opponents average 14.13 kills, 17.04 digs and 1.33 service aces per set.
YOU MUST LIKE PLAYING A LOT OF VOLLEYBALL...
In 13 matches this season, UNCG has played eight that have gone the full five sets. The Spartans are 4-4 in those contests and have won three of the last four. UNCG is on track to set the program single-season record for five-setters as the Spartans played 11 of them in the 2009 and 1992 campaigns.
NEED A BETTER START...
To say that UNCG has struggled at the beginning of matches this season is an understatement. In 13 contests, the Spartans have won the first set just three times and the second frame on only five occasions. Conversely, UNCG is 9-3 in fourth-set play and 4-4 in the fifth interval.
STARTING OFF RIGHT IN THE SOCON...
The five-set victory over Elon continued a recent trend of success for the Spartans in league openers. It was the third-straight win for UNCG in a Southern Conference lidlifter and the sixth in the last eight seasons.
IT'S A LIBEROS' WORLD...
UNCG sports arguably the top libero tandem in the Southern Conference in junior Kellie Orewiler, the reigning SoCon Libero of the Year, and freshman Katherine Santiago have combined for 426 total digs while averaging 3.36 and 3.98 per set respectively.
TRIPLE THE FUN (ALMOST)...
Senior setter Ari Lysacek put on an impressive performance against Liberty, falling just one kill shy of a triple-double. She tallied 44 assists, 12 digs and nine kills to account for UNCG's first double-double of the season. The lone senior on this year's roster also hit for an efficient percentage - picking up the nine kills on 13 attempts with just one error (.615). Sophomore Emily McMurtrey also came tantalizingly close to a triple-double against The Citadel, racking up 56 assists and career-high marks in digs (13) and kills (seven).
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