Gameday: Volleyball Hosts American Conference Foes SMU And Tulsa
September 28, 2017 | Volleyball
| Matches 15-16: SMU and Tulsa | |
| The Matches | Sept. 29: vs. SMU \\\ 7 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video Oct. 1: vs. Tulsa \\\ 1 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video |
| Venue | Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum |
| Tickets | ECU Online Ticket Center |
| Social Media | @ECUVB (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Match Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted |
Weekly Release No. 6 (PDF)
GREENVILLE, N.C. – The ECU volleyball team plays its first two American Athletic Conference home matches this weekend, welcoming SMU and Tulsa to Greenville Friday and Sunday respectively.
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The Pirates split a pair of contests in Florida to open league play last weekend, falling in five sets to UCF Friday before rebounding for a 3-1 victory over USF Sunday. The Purple and Gold has won three of its last four and seven of its last 10 matches entering the weekend.
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Senior outside hitter Lael Ceriani paces the team with a 3.43 kills per set average while freshman right side Bri Wood and senior middle hitter Natalie Montini check in with 2.65 and 2.37 kills per set marks. Montini is hitting .344 and averaging 0.98 blocks per set. Sophomore libero Brandee Markwith sports a league third-best 5.24 digs per set average – good for 28th nationally.
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ECU is 6-3 at home this season while the Mustangs and Golden Hurricane are 2-0 and 2-2 on the road.
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Promotions
- Paint It Black – Fans are encouraged to wear black for Friday's match against SMU
- Postmatch autographs after both matches this weekend
- Free popsockets for the first 200 fans on Friday
- Bring your USF football ticket to Sunday's match for $2 admission
- Groups in Attendance (Friday) – ECU Marching Band, Pitt County Schools District Staff, PeeDee's Kid's Club, Student Pirate Club and Julie Torbett Campers
- Groups in Attendance (Sunday) – Girl Scouts
Looking At SMU
SMU put together two home wins over Tulane and Houston last weekend to begin its American Athletic Conference regular season championship title defense. The Mustangs were picked to finish in fourth place this year by the conference's head coaches. Lauren Mills and Katie Hegarty are SMU's top two hitters, matching each other with 3.74 kills per set averages, while Lexi Nordmann ranks fourth in the league with an average of 1.19 blocks per set. In the back row, Montana Watts is averaging 4.62 digs per set. As a unit, the Mustangs average 13.68 kills, 12.92 assists, 1.12 aces, 17.48 digs and 2.26 blocks per set with a .218 hitting percentage.
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The Series: SMU
ECU holds a 4-12 record against SMU and has dropped the last 11 meetings to the Mustangs, winning just one set during that stretch. The Pirates last defeated SMU 3-2 back on Oct. 26, 2008 in Greenville.Â
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Scouting Tulsa
Tulsa split its first two American Athletic Conference matches at home last weekend, defeating Houston 3-1 before falling to Tulane in four sets. The Golden Hurricane were picked to finish ninth by the league's head coaches and are currently one of the six 1-1 teams in the conference standings. Emily Thorson leads the offensive charge for Tulsa with an average of 3.82 kills per set while Taylor Horsfall is putting up a team-best 5.12 digs per set. Collectively, the Golden Hurricane are averaging 12.22 kills, 11.45 assists, 1.09 aces, 15.82 digs and 1.85 blocks per set with a .197 hitting percentage.
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The Series: Tulsa
Tulsa enjoys a 16-1 advantage in the all-time series with ECU and has won 16 straight over the Pirates. The Purple and Gold won the first-ever encounter between the programs 3-1 back on Oct. 30, 2005 in Greenville.Â
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Leftovers From Sunday's Victory At USF
ECU improved to 3-8 all-time against USF and picked up its second-ever win over the Bulls in Tampa … The Pirates out-blocked an opponent for the 10th time in 14 matches … ECU has hit over .200 in its first two AAC matches of the season … Head coach Julie Torbett needs just eight victories to surpass Alita Dillon as the winningest head coach in program history.
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ECU At-A-Glance
Record - 9-5 (.643) // AAC Record - 1-1 (.500)Â // Last 5 Matches - 2-3 (.400) // Last 10 Matches - 7-3 (.700) // Last 15 Matches - 9-6 (.600) // ECU will play the 139th match of the Julie Torbett era when it hosts SMU Friday // East Carolina's all-time record stands at 486-774 in its 41st season of competition.
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Up Next
ECU hits the road again next weekend for another pair of AAC matches, heading north to take on Temple (Oct. 6) and UConn (Oct. 8).
SMU put together two home wins over Tulane and Houston last weekend to begin its American Athletic Conference regular season championship title defense. The Mustangs were picked to finish in fourth place this year by the conference's head coaches. Lauren Mills and Katie Hegarty are SMU's top two hitters, matching each other with 3.74 kills per set averages, while Lexi Nordmann ranks fourth in the league with an average of 1.19 blocks per set. In the back row, Montana Watts is averaging 4.62 digs per set. As a unit, the Mustangs average 13.68 kills, 12.92 assists, 1.12 aces, 17.48 digs and 2.26 blocks per set with a .218 hitting percentage.
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The Series: SMU
ECU holds a 4-12 record against SMU and has dropped the last 11 meetings to the Mustangs, winning just one set during that stretch. The Pirates last defeated SMU 3-2 back on Oct. 26, 2008 in Greenville.Â
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Scouting Tulsa
Tulsa split its first two American Athletic Conference matches at home last weekend, defeating Houston 3-1 before falling to Tulane in four sets. The Golden Hurricane were picked to finish ninth by the league's head coaches and are currently one of the six 1-1 teams in the conference standings. Emily Thorson leads the offensive charge for Tulsa with an average of 3.82 kills per set while Taylor Horsfall is putting up a team-best 5.12 digs per set. Collectively, the Golden Hurricane are averaging 12.22 kills, 11.45 assists, 1.09 aces, 15.82 digs and 1.85 blocks per set with a .197 hitting percentage.
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The Series: Tulsa
Tulsa enjoys a 16-1 advantage in the all-time series with ECU and has won 16 straight over the Pirates. The Purple and Gold won the first-ever encounter between the programs 3-1 back on Oct. 30, 2005 in Greenville.Â
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Leftovers From Sunday's Victory At USF
ECU improved to 3-8 all-time against USF and picked up its second-ever win over the Bulls in Tampa … The Pirates out-blocked an opponent for the 10th time in 14 matches … ECU has hit over .200 in its first two AAC matches of the season … Head coach Julie Torbett needs just eight victories to surpass Alita Dillon as the winningest head coach in program history.
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ECU At-A-Glance
Record - 9-5 (.643) // AAC Record - 1-1 (.500)Â // Last 5 Matches - 2-3 (.400) // Last 10 Matches - 7-3 (.700) // Last 15 Matches - 9-6 (.600) // ECU will play the 139th match of the Julie Torbett era when it hosts SMU Friday // East Carolina's all-time record stands at 486-774 in its 41st season of competition.
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Up Next
ECU hits the road again next weekend for another pair of AAC matches, heading north to take on Temple (Oct. 6) and UConn (Oct. 8).
Players Mentioned
Outside Hitter
/ Volleyball
Defensive Specialist/Libero
/ Volleyball
Middle Hitter
/ Volleyball
Right Side
/ VolleyballSunday, October 20
Thursday, August 31
Sunday, November 07
Friday, November 05
