Lady Pirate Volleyball Travels to NC State
September 13, 2004 | Volleyball
ECU finished the Winthrop Captures Hilton Garden Invitational, 1-2, and enter the nonconference volleyball match with a 5-4 overall record. Junior libero Johanna Bertini finished the tournament with 42 digs in three matches and was named to the all-tournament team. She averaged 14 digs per match. Freshman outside hitter Kelley Wernert had a good tournament finishing with 20 kills. On the season, Erica Wilson leads the team with 101 kills and averages 3.16 kills per game. Junior middle blocker Paige Howell averages 3.19 kills per game. Sophomore setter Heidi Krug runs the offense with 365 set assists. She averages 11.41 assists per game. Krug also has 17 service aces on the season. Defensively, Bertini has 133 digs in nine matches, averaging 4.16 digs per game.
NC State captured first place at the seventh annual Lehigh Mountain Hawk Classic p.m. The Wolfpack (7-1) is off to its best start since 1995 and has won five straight matches. Over the weekend, NC State defeated Marist, Columbia and Lehigh, while three of its players were named to the all-tournament team. Junior middle blocker Adeola Kosoko and freshman setter Lauren Markowski were both selected as all-tournament honorees, while junior middle blocker Stefani Eddins was named the tournament's most valuable player.
On the season, Kosoko is third in kills with 90 off a .339 attack percentage to go with 24 digs and 39 total blocks. Markowski has already tallied 309 assists for an average of 11.04 assists a game, and Eddins has a team-best 44 total blocks defensively. Senior outside hitter Melanie Rowe and freshman outside hitter Emily Bertrand lead the team in kills with 101 and 96 respectively.
As a team, NC State comes into Tuesday's match featuring a .267 attack percentage in comparison to the .126 percentage by its opponents. Defensively, the Wolfpack have out-blocked opponents 93-27.
Last time against NC State, sophomore outside hitter Erica Wilson put down a match-high 16 kills while hitting .560 to lead three Lady Pirates in double figures as East Carolina downed N.C. State in three games, 30-28, 30-24 and 30-17 last season at Williams Arena in Minges Coliseum. As a team, the Lady Pirates (9-13) knocked down 60 total kills while the Wolfpack (6-14) only had 35 kills in the match. Sarah Vick recorded a double-double with 15 kills and 11 digs for ECU. She also added five service aces to give her 20 points in the match. Freshman middle blocker Jaime Bevan chipped in 12 kills for the Lady Pirates. Amy Cochran led N.C. State with 10 kills. Junior Maya Mapp tallied seven kills and seven total blocks for the Wolfpack. ECU out-hit N.C. State, .297-.219 and out-dug the Wolfpack, 52-38, but N.C. State blocked the Lady Pirates, 11.5 times led by Mapp's seven blocks and Crystal Shannon's four block assists.
NC State leads the all-time series with ECU, 28-3, after East Carolina won last season's meeting.
Next up for East Carolina after the Wolfpack is a trip to the College of Charleston for the Lady Cougars' Invitational. ECU faces Duke, Georgia State and the College of Charleston.
