Marshall University Athletics
Volleyball Set For C-USA Road Trip
10/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 1, 2008
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Marshall University volleyball squad takes to the road for a pair of Conference USA matches beginning Friday, Oct. 3 against UCF. Match-time is slated for 7:00 p.m. in Orlando, Fla.
The Thundering Herd will then travel to Hattiesburg, Miss. for a 1:00 p.m. ET showdown with Southern Miss., Sunday.
Marshall enters weekend competition with an 8-5 overall record and is 1-2 in C-USA action, and has won four of its last six matches.
The Herd is 8-1 all-time against UCF dating back to 1992, and swept both matches with the Knights in 2007. Marshall owns a 5-1 all-time advantage over Southern Miss. dating back to 2005. The Herd also swept both contests with the Golden Eagles in 2007.
Marshall is coming off a 1-1 weekend in league play. The Herd took a 3-1 decision over Memphis, Friday. Marcum led the defensive charge as she recorded a match-high and career-best 23 digs. Elizabeth Herman (Dunwoody, Ga.) blasted 15 kills, while Emily Sullivan (Cincinnati, Ohio) added 13 and Jalicia Ross (Bank Village, Trinidad) pitched in 11 kills in the winning effort.
In the Herd's 3-2 loss to UAB, Sunday, Ross knocked down a career-high and match-best 20 kills and totaled six assisted blocks. Herman followed with 19 kills, while Marshall received 17 and 10 kills from Marcum and Sullivan respectively. Elizabeth Fleming (South Bend, Ind.) dished out a season-high 66 assists in the losing effort.
Ross has an overall hitting percentage of .437 (127K, 23E, 238TA) which is tops in the conference and sixth in the nation. Marcum's 141 kills is tops on the team, while Fleming leads the squad with 531 assists. Jessica Dhoore (LaPorte, Ind.) is the Herd's leader in digs with 150, while Ross leads the green and white with 39 total blocks (6 solo, 33 assisted).
UCF enters weekend action having won six of its last seven matches including a stunning sweep of Tulsa, Sunday, and is 10-6 overall, and 2-1 in C-USA. The Knights received a match-high 15 kills from Janine Williams while Stephanie Serna and Erin Campbell added 13 and 10 kills respectively. Kathleen Curry dug a match-best 14 balls, while Campbell chipped in with 10 digs. Lauren Rosenthal guided the UCF offense, distributing 38 assists against the Golden Hurricane.
In the Knights' 3-2 loss to SMU, UCF received 15 kills apiece from Williams and Serna, while Campbell added 13. Curry dug a match-high 27 balls while Melissa Reinders added 18. Williams and Campbell managed 10 digs apiece in the loss to the Mustangs.
Campbell's 202 total kills leads the Knights and that is followed closely by Williams' 200. Curry leads the squad in digs with 167 while Rosenthal has accumulated 487 assists. Andrea Youngblood has also added 130 assists so far in 2008.
Southern Miss. starts weekend play with a 10-6 overall record, and 0-3 in the league. The Golden Eagles dropped a pair of 3-1 decisions to Tulsa and SMU respectively last weekend. Ashley Petrinec downed a match-high 13 kills and Angela Hlavaty added 12 kills in the losing effort against the Golden Hurricane. In Southern Miss' loss to SMU, Petrinec tied a match-high with 14 kills, while Stevi Cherry totaled 13 kills. Lauren Sears added 10 kills to round out Golden Eagles with 10-plus kills. Maia Ivanova dug a team-best 17 balls, while Kelsea Seymour amassed 25 assists. Bridget Whalen contributed 18 assists of her own against the Mustangs.
Cherry's 138 total kills is a Southern Miss high, while Petrinec follows with 129. Ivanova leads the team with 195 digs, while Seymour and Whalen have combined for 428 of the squad's 572 assists (265 and 163 respectively) so far this season. Sears has registered 61 total blocks (5 solo, 56 assisted) and Sarah Jane Bowden has added 60 total blocks (13 solo, 47 assisted).
GameTracker will be provided for each match on HerdZone.com.
Marshall returns to the Cam Henderson Center Oct. 10 for a 7:00 p.m. contest against Rice. The Herd will then continue home conference action with a 12:00 p.m. match against Houston, Sunday.
