Gameday: East Carolina Set For Pair Of Home Matches Friday And Sunday

Matches 13-14: UCF/USF
Schedule	Sept. 30: UCF \\\ 5:30 p.m. \\\ Greenville, N.C. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video Oct. 2: USF \\\ 1:00 p.m. \\\ Greenville, N.C. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video
Venue	Minges Coliseum
Social Media	@ECUVB (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Match Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted \\\ #14Strong \\\ #PirateNation

Weekly Release No. 6 (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – After beginning the 2016 campaign with 12 matches away from Greenville, the East Carolina volleyball team makes its home debut Friday evening with an American Athletic Conference match against UCF at 5:30 p.m. before entertaining the league's other Florida school, USF, Sunday at 1 p.m.

Coverage: Live stats are accessible for both matches along with a free (no registration required) live video stream via Pirate All-Access.

Friday Promotions

ECU Faculty & Staff Appreciation Day – purchase up to 4 free tickets with valid ECU 1 Card
Letterwinners – former Pirate players will be recognized during the break between sets two and three

Sunday Promotions

Fan Appreciation Day - $2 admission with your ECU vs. UCF football ticket stub | Post-match autographs | FREE purple and gold pom poms
Girls Scouts will participate in a pregame clinic with ECU Dance team and perform during the break between sets two and three

East Carolina opened its AAC slate with a pair of 3-1 losses at defending SMU and Tulsa last week. The Pirates were competitive against two of the top teams in the league, dropping the third and fourth sets against the Mustangs by a combined four points before winning the opening stanza versus the Golden Hurricane.

Junior middle hitter Natalie Montini was sensational at the net in the two matches, compiling a league-best 1.68 blocks per set average and earning AAC Weekly Honor Roll recognition. She racked up eight blocks at SMU and five at Tulsa. Freshman libero Brandee Markwith also excelled, leading all players in both contests in digs with 26 against the Mustangs and 17 versus the Golden Hurricane.

Senior middle hitter Ashley McRae paces the conference in blocks per set with an average of 1.23 that puts her 66th nationally. Additionally, senior setter Sabrina Gonzalez checks in fourth in the league and 58th in the country in assists per set (10.26). She also ranks second in the conference in aces per set (0.40).

As a team, East Carolina tops the AAC in both opposing hitting percentage (.101) and blocks per set (2.44). Those marks put the Purple and Gold a respective second and 52nd nationally.

Scouting UCF: The Knights (12-3, 2-0 AAC) enter the weekend as one of two undefeated teams in the conference along with SMU. UCF has won seven straight, including a 3-0 home victory over Memphis in its last outing. The Knights have played just one true road match, falling in five sets at Southern Illinois back on Sept. 2 at the Saluki Invitational. Senior outside hitter Jale' Hervey, a preseason all-conference selection, leads the offensive efforts for UCF and ranks third in the league with an average of 4.27 kills per set while sophomore libero Jordan Pingel is third among AAC players in digs per set with an average of 4.60. The Knights lead the series with ECU 12-9. The Pirates won the most recent meeting – a five-set decision Nov. 8 at The Venue in Orlando.

About USF: The Bulls (10-4, 1-1 AAC) picked up a 3-1 home victory over Memphis in their most recent match and have won four of their last five. USF will play at Cincinnati Friday before heading south to Greenville Sunday. Senior outside hitter and preseason All-AAC honoree Dakota Hampton paces the Bulls offensively with an average of 3.72 kills per set – good for seventh in the league. Junior setter Alex Mendoza tops the conference in assists per set, averaging 11.10. USF is among the top teams in the AAC defensively, putting up 17.82 digs per set. The Bulls lead the series over the Pirates 6-2 and recorded a pair of 3-0 victories in the teams' two meetings last season.

News and Notes

After finishing ninth in the league in blocks per set last season, the Pirates are the AAC leaders 12 matches into the 2016 campaign. ECU is one of two teams in the conference (Temple) with at least two players averaging over one block per set.
Markwith faced a tall task in the conference opener at SMU, going up against two-time reigning AAC Libero of the Year Morgan Heise. Markwith was certainly up to the task, out-digging Heise 26-23. She currently ranks third in the league in digs per set in conference matches.
East Carolina needs just six more victories this season to ensure its first winning record since the 2006 squad finished with a 19-12 mark. If the Pirates reach six wins in conference play, that total will represent the most for ECU since joining the American Athletic Conference prior to the 2014 season.
With an 10-0 start to the season, East Carolina is now 36-14 in non-conference matches under head coach Julie Torbett.
In ECU's victory at Campbell, it recorded 109 digs - a mark which stands as the second highest in a match in school history.
McRae is the program's current career leader in hitting percentage as she has compiled a .312 mark in three-plus seasons. Her .360 hitting percentage as a sophomore stands as the second highest in a single season in school history. She also needs just two blocks to tie for 10th on the program career list.
Senior I'Tiana Taylor had a match to remember against Savannah State, putting down 13 kills on 16 attempts with just one error to end up with a .750 hitting percentage. That mark is tied for the second best in a single match in program history.
Torbett, in her fourth season with East Carolina, is just 12 wins away from her 400 for her career. She left Winthrop after the 2012 campaign as the winningest coach in Big South Conference history. In terms of the AAC, Torbett owns the second-most career victories among the league's current head coaches. Her 388 wins trail only Houston head coach Kaddie Platt.
The Pirates captured their sixth non-conference tournament title of Torbett's tenure at the Georgia State Invitational and have won at least one such event every year since 2013.

Up Next: A busy homestand continues next week as East Carolina hosts AAC preseason favorite Cincinnati Wednesday and Memphis Friday. Both matches are scheduled for 7 p.m.

Gameday: East Carolina Set For Pair Of Home Matches Friday And Sunday

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Players Mentioned

Sabrina Gonzalez

Brandee Markwith

Ashley McRae

Natalie Montini

I'Tiana Taylor

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Gameday: East Carolina Set For Pair Of Home Matches Friday And Sunday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sabrina Gonzalez

Brandee Markwith

Ashley McRae

Natalie Montini

I'Tiana Taylor

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