Gameday: ECU Opens Homestand Hosting AAC Foes USF And UCF

Matches 26-27: USF and UCF
The Matches	Nov. 3: vs. USF \\\ 7 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video Nov. 5: vs. UCF \\\ 1 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video
Venue	Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum
Tickets	E CU Online Ticket Center
Social Media	@ECUVB (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Match Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted

Weekly Release No. 11 (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – After playing eight of its first 12 American Athletic Conference matches on the road, ECU kicks off a four-contest homestand this weekend hosting USF and UCF Friday and Sunday respectively.

Promotions
Friday: Paint it Gold - Fans are encouraged to wear gold to the match ... ECU Employee Appreciation Day - ECU employees receive up to four (4) free tickets with their ECU OneCards ... Postmatch Autographs.
Sunday: Postmatch Kids Clinic - Kids aged 6-17 are invited to participate in a free postmatch skills clinic with the team ... Giveaway - ECU sport bottle for the first 100 fans.

The Pirates swept N.C. Central Tuesday in Durham in their non-conference finale and have eight matches remaining in the regular season.

ECU enters the weekend in sole possession of fifth place in the league standings, trailing Cincinnati by just one match for fourth. The Pirates hold a 3-1 record against conference opponents at home, defeating Houston 3-1 the last time they played in Greenville.

USF and UCF split a pair of matches against the same foes last weekend as the Bulls and Knights defeated Memphis and fell to Wichita State. UCF pushed the nationally-ranked Shockers to five sets.

ECU sports four players who average at least 2.10 kills per set led by senior outside hitter Lael Ceriani at 3.18. Senior middle hitter Natalie Montini ranks third in the conference in hitting percentage at .338 while sophomore libero Brandee Markwith is fourth in the AAC and 28th nationally in digs per set (5.30). The Pirates average 13.24 kills, 12.27 assists, 0.98 aces, 16.14 digs and 2.15 blocks per set. ECU is hitting .236, finding itself third in the league in that respect.

The Book On USF
USF arrives in Greenville with a 9-13 overall record and 4-8 mark in American Athletic Cofnerence matches. Doris Carter has emerged as the top statistical threat on offense, averaging 2.61 kills per set, while Clara Payne is putting up 2.28 kills per set and a .303 hitting percentage. Defensively, Maria McLamb paces the squad in both total digs (302) and digs per set (4.03). As a unit, the Bulls are averaging 12.24 kills, 11.79 assists, 1.31 aces, 16.82 digs and 2.13 blocks per set as well as owning a .187 hitting percentage. USF ranks third in the league in aces per set and fourth in digs per set.

The Series: USF
USF leads the all-time series 8-3, but ECU picked up a 3-1 victory over the Bulls earlier this season in Tampa. The Pirates are 1-4 against USF in Greenville as the Bulls have won two of the last three meetings inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

Scouting UCF
UCF holds a .500 record at 12-12 while owning a 5-7 conference mark entering its Friday night match at Cincinnati. The Knights nearly pulled off the stunner over No. 21 Wichita State last Friday, falling to the Shockers 15-10 in the fifth and decisive set. Kia Bright, a preseason all-conference honoree, leads the UCF offensive efforts with 355 total kills and an average of 3.78 kills per set while Jordan Pingel holds down the back row - sporting a 4.25 digs per set average. Bright ranks in the top five in the conference in both kills per set and points per set (4.26). Collectively, the Knights average 12.99 kills, 12.32 assists, 0.86 aces, 15.63 digs and 2.15 blocks per set while hitting .227.

The Series: UCF
ECU is 9-15 record against UCF after the Knights defeated the Pirates 3-2 earlier this season in Orlando in the league opener for both teams. ECU last emerged victorious over UCF late in the 2015 campaign, knocking off the Knights in five sets on the road.

News and Notes
The Pirates' 16 wins surpass last season's total and are the most in a single campaign since the 2007 squad went 16-17 under former head coach Chris Rushing … Head coach Julie Torbett matched Alita Dillon for the most wins by an ECU head coach with 71 in the victory at N.C. Central … The Pirates used their entire available roster in Tuesday's match … ECU notched its sixth true road victory of 2017 Tuesday, improving to 6-4 in that respect … The Pirates are 44-18 in non-conference matches since the start of the 2013 campaign ... Markwith currently ranks fifth on the single-season list for total digs with 482. She averaged 6.83 digs per set in road matches at Tulsa and SMU last weekend ... ECU ranks in the top half of the league statistically in hitting percentage (third), kills per set (fourth), opposing hitting percentage (fifth) and assists per set (fifth).

ECU At-A-Glance
Record - 16-9 (.640) // AAC Record - 7-5 (.583) // Last 5 Matches - 2-3 (.400) // Last 10 Matches - 7-3 (.700) // Last 15 Matches - 10-5 (.667) // ECU will play the 150th match of the Julie Torbett era when it hosts USF Friday night // The program's all-time record stands at 493-778 in its 41st season of competition.

Up Next
ECU plays at home for the second-straight weekend, hosting current No. 21 Wichita State and Memphis Nov. 10 and 12 respectively.

Gameday: ECU Opens Homestand Hosting AAC Foes USF And UCF

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Players Mentioned

Lael Ceriani

Brandee Markwith

Natalie Montini

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