Gameday: Volleyball Begins American Conference Slate In Florida

Matches 13-14: at UCF and USF
The Matches	Sept. 22: at UCF \\\ 7 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video Sept. 24: at USF \\\ Noon \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video
Venue	T he Venue at UCF \\\ The Corral
Social Media	@ECUVB (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Match Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted

Weekly Release No. 5 (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Coming off a dominant doubleheader sweep at home, the ECU volleyball team begins its fourth season of American Athletic Conference play this weekend when the Pirates travel down to Florida to face UCF and USF.

The Purple and Gold defeated N.C. Central and North Carolina A&T in three sets each Tuesday, not allowing either team to reach 20 points in any set. Head coach Julie Torbett earned her 400th career victory in the process.

Senior outside hitter Lael Ceriani spearheads the Pirate offense, averaging 3.71 kills per set - the fourth-best mark in the AAC - while sophomore libero Brandee Markwith is putting up 5.36 digs per set, ranking her third in the conference.

ECU is 2-1 away from Greenville this season with wins over Stetson and Bucknell and a loss to Big East member Providence.

Looking At UCF
One of the top programs in the league year in and year out, UCF is off to another solid start this season with a 7-5 record. The Knights most recently recorded a pair of 3-0 home victories over the University of Virginia and stretched Duke to five sets earlier in the campaign. UCF has four players averaging at least 2.04 kills per set, led by preseason all-conference honoree and redshirt senior Kia Bright who ranks fifth among AAC players at 3.58. Junior Jordan Pingel is eighth in the league in digs per set with a 4.04 mark. As a team, the Knights average 13.07 kills, 12.35 assists, 1.17 aces, 15.28 digs and 2.17 blocks per set. UCF is also a low-error team offensively, sitting third in the AAC with a .228 hitting percentage.

The Series: UCF
ECU holds a 9-14 record against UCF after the Knights swept the season series in 2016. The Pirates last defeated UCF late in the 2015 campaign, knocking off the Knights in five sets in Orlando.

About USF
USF enters the weekend with a 4-5 record, owning victories over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Grambling State, Jacksonville and North Florida. Reagan Davey paces the offense with an average of 2.46 kills per set while Maria McLamb is putting up 3.45 digs per set in the back row. As a unit, USF averages 12.19 kills, 11.77 assists, 1.68 aces, 15.32 digs and 1.89 blocks per set and is hitting right at .200. The Bulls were picked to finish sixth in the league's preseason poll.

The Series: USF
USF leads the all-time series 8-2 and defeated ECU in both matchups during the 2016 season. The Pirates last victory over the Bulls occurred in Greenville back on Oct. 10, 2014 - a four-set decision.

Leftovers From Tuesday's Doubleheader Sweep
ECU improved to 6-3 at home in 2017 … The Pirates have swept seven opponents this season … N.C. Central's 16 kills are the fewest allowed by ECU in 12 matches this campaign and the third fewest surrendered by the Purple and Gold since the start of the 2013 season … The Pirates are now second in the league in both hitting percentage (.230) and opposing hitting percentage (.150).

ECU At-A-Glance
Record - 8-4 (.667) // AAC Record - 0-0 (.000) // Last 5 Matches - 3-2 (.600) // Last 10 Matches - 6-4 (.600) // Last 15 Matches - 8-7 (.533) // ECU will play the 137th match of the Julie Torbett era when it takes on UCF Friday // The Pirates' all-time record stands at 485-773 in the program's 41st season of competition.

Up Next
After returning from Florida, ECU will prepare for its first AAC home matches in advance of hosting SMU and Tulsa Sept. 29 and Oct. 1 respectively.

Gameday: Volleyball Begins American Conference Slate In Florida

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Players Mentioned

Lael Ceriani

Brandee Markwith

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