Gameday: Volleyball Makes Way To Florida For Hatter Classic

Matches 4-6: Hatter Classic
Schedule	Sept 1: vs. Providence \\\ 1 p.m. \\\ Live Stats Sept. 1: at Stetson \\\ 7 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Watch (ESPN3) Sept. 2: vs. Bucknell \\\ 4 p.m. \\\ Live Stats
Venue	The J. Ollie Edmunds Center
Tournament Central	Hatter Classic Tournament Central
Social Media	@ECUVB (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Match Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted

Weekly Release No. 2 (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – After winning two of three matches to open the season, the ECU volleyball team takes to the road for the first time when the Pirates travel to DeLand, Fla. for the Hatter Classic. The Purple and Gold will face off against Providence, Bucknell and host Stetson during the three-day event.

The Pirates downed William and Mary as well as Georgia State to begin the ECU Invitational last weekend before dropping a tough four-set affair to Big Ten foe Rutgers in the championship match. Senior outside hitter Lael Ceriani and sophomore middle Toya Osuegbu were named to the All-Tournament Team for their efforts.

As of Aug. 30, Ceriani leads the American Athletic Conference in both kills per set (4.40) and points per set (4.85). She put down a career-high 17 kills and hit .351 against Rutgers. Sophomore libero Brandee Markwith paced the defensive efforts with a 4.70 digs per set average during the Pirates' opening weekend and currently ranks sixth among AAC players in the statistic.

A Peek At Providence
Providence enters the Stetson Invitational with a 3-0 record after defeating UAB, Boston College and Fairfield last weekend to win the Boston College Tournament in Chestnut Hill, Mass. The Friars were 13-21 overall a season ago with a 1-17 mark in Big East Conference play. Addison Root paces the Providence offensive efforts with a 3.33 kills per set average while McKenzie Lydon is putting up 4.67 digs per set to anchor the Friars' back row. Collectively, Providence averages 12.92 kills, 12.33 assists, 0.83 aces, 16.50 digs and 2.00 blocks per set to go along with a .245 hitting percentage. Margot Royer-Johnson is in her 17th season as head coach of the program. She played her collegiate volleyball at the University of Scranton.

Scouting Stetson
Stetson was unable to win a match at its home tournament, the Stetson Invitational, last weekend, falling to Florida Atlantic, Central Connecticut State and Stephen F. Austin. The Hatters look to improve upon a 2016 campaign that saw the club compile a 4-25 overall record and 1-13 mark in the Atlantic Sun Conference. Eva Deisa was the top performer on offense for Stetson in its first three matches as she tallied 37 kills for an average of 3.08 per set. Naina Ivanova led the defensive charge with 41 digs (3.42 per set). As a team, the Hatters average 9.83 kills, 9.75 assists, 0.67 aces, 14.92 digs and 1.58 blocks per set. Yang Deng, a former NAIA National Player of the Year and 17-year coaching veteran at the University of Missouri, is in her first season leading the program.

The Book On Bucknell
Bucknell heads to Florida with some momentum after beating La Salle, Iona and Saint Peter's last weekend to win its own Bucknell Invitational. The Bison put together a 5-23 overall record and 3-13 ledger in the Patriot League last season. Sophie Bullard provided a good chunk of the offensive firepower over Bucknell's opening weekend, averaging 3.54 kills per set. Brooke Starke was solid defensively as she finished with an average of 3.38 digs per set. In terms of a unit, the Bison are putting up 12.23 kills, 11.38 assists, 1.54 aces, 13.85 digs and 3.15 blocks per set. Anna Allison is in her fifth season as head coach at Bucknell and her 13th with the program overall. Prior to taking over in 2013, she spent the previous eight years as the top assistant and recruiting coordinator for the Bison.

The Series: Providence
Friday afternoon's match marks the first meeting between ECU and Providence. The last time the Pirates matched up against a Big East Conference foe was Sept. 20, 2014 when ECU defeated DePaul 3-1 at the Penn State Alumni Classic in State College, Pa.

The Series: Stetson
ECU leads the series with Stetson by a 4-3 count. The teams have not met since Sept. 4, 1999 when the Pirates defeated the Hatters in a pair of matches at the Winthrop Invitational in Rock Hill, S.C.

The Series: Bucknell
The Pirates and Bison have met one time prior to this weekend and it was just a season ago. ECU traveled up to Pennsylvania for the Bucknell Invitational and defeated the Bison in four sets in the championship match of the tournament inside Davis Gym.

ECU Invitational Leftovers

ECU improved to 4-1 in season openers and 38-15 in non-conference matches under head coach Julie Torbett.
The Pirates recorded more kills and blocks than its opponents in all three matches.
ECU currently ranks second in the AAC in hitting percentage (.256), kills per set (14.40) and assists per set (13.60).
Freshmen Shelby Martin (setter) and Bri Wood (right side) made their collegiate debuts over the weekend. Martin posted an American Conference second-best 10.60 assists per set over the three matches.
Senior outside hitter Ashton Mares notched her first double-double of the season with 12 kills and 16 digs against Rutgers.
Torbett is just five wins away from securing 400 for her career and 15 from becoming the winningest head coach in program history.

Up Next
Following the Hatter Classic, ECU returns to Greenville Sept. 8-9 for its second home tournament of the campaign – the ECU Classic. The Pirates welcome Hampton, Gardner-Webb, The Citadel and Winthrop to Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum for the two-day event.

Gameday: Volleyball Makes Way To Florida For Hatter Classic

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lael Ceriani

Ashton Mares

Brandee Markwith

Shelby Martin

Toya Osuegbu

Bri Wood

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Gameday: Volleyball Makes Way To Florida For Hatter Classic

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lael Ceriani

Ashton Mares

Brandee Markwith

Shelby Martin

Toya Osuegbu

Bri Wood

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