Pirates Kick Off AAC Slate In Florida

Matches 10-11: at UCF and South Florida
Coverage	Sept. 24 \| at UCF \| 7:00 p.m. \| Live Stats \| Watch Sept. 26 \| at South Florida \| 1:00 p.m. \| Live Stats \| Watch
Venues	The Venue at UCF (Orlando, Fla.) The Corral (Tampa, Fla.)
Statistics	East Carolina \\\ UCF \\\ South Florida
Social Media	Twitter \\\ Instagram \\\ #ECUVB #ChasingPerfection

Complete Match Notes (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – East Carolina is back to 0-0 this weekend, playing its first two American Athletic Conference matches of the fall 2021 campaign at UCF and South Florida. The Pirates take on the Knights Friday at 7 p.m., then head to Tampa for a 1 p.m. first serve Sunday.

Both contests will be streamed live via ESPN+.

East Carolina (4-5 overall) played its first home contests of the fall last weekend, sweeping Gardner-Webb and Appalachian State while also losing a three-set decision to UTRGV. Freshman middle blocker Amelia Davis was tabbed to the AAC Weekly Honor Roll last Monday after averaging 1.78 blocks per set during the three matches.

During the shortened spring season, the Pirates produced a 1-7 league mark that included a pair of losses to both the Knights and Bulls. On a positive note, ECU was the only team in the AAC East Division to win a set off eventual regular season champion UCF.

East Carolina enters the first weekend of league action ranked fifth in the circuit in opposing hitting percentage (.191) and seventh in aces per set (1.26). Davis is also seventh in the conference in blocks per set (1.04).

UCF owns a three-match winning streak and is 7-5 overall after emerging victorious over Miami, Florida Gulf Coast and Florida Atlantic at the Sunshine Challenge Cup in Boca Raton. Preseason AAC Player of the Year McKenna Melville leads the squad in kills per set (4.89) and aces per set (0.39). As a unit the Knights are averaging 13.15 kills and 2.79 blocks per set with a robust .249 hitting percentage.

South Florida (6-5) looks to extend its win streak to three matches when it faces Cincinnati Friday. Marta Cvitkovic paces the club in kills per set (3.21). The Bulls are putting up 11.45 kills per set along with 2.47 blocks per set and are hitting .170 collectively.

The UCF Series
UCF leads the series with East Carolina by a 21-10 margin and has won nine of the last 10 meetings. The most recent ECU victory occurred in 2017 in Greenville when the Pirates downed the Knights 3-1 at Minges Coliseum.

The South Florida Series
East Carolina trails South Florida in the series between the programs by a 12-6 margin. The teams have split the last eight encounters, but the Pirates picked up a four-set win in their last visit to Tampa in 2019.

Up Next
East Carolina begins a four-match homestand Oct. 1 against SMU. The Pirates then host Memphis two days later.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Amelia Davis

Footer