ECU Hosts Rematches Against AAC Florida Foes

Matches 29-30: No. 24 UCF and South Florida
Coverage	Nov. 18 \| No. 24 UCF \| 6:00 p.m. \| Live Stats \| Watch Nov. 20 \| South Florida \| Noon \| Live Stats \| Watch
Venue	Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum (Greenville, N.C.)
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram \| #ECUVB #NoQuarter

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Just four matches remain in the regular season as East Carolina returns home to face off with No. 24 UCF and South Florida inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum. The Pirates and Knights will do battle Friday, Nov. 18, at 6 p.m. before ECU and USF meet Sunday at Noon.

Both matches will stream live via ESPN+ with Evan Budrovich and Brittany Hoyt on the call.

East Carolina (10-18, 5-11 AAC) knocked off Memphis in five sets last time out, picking up their first road win over the Tigers since 2017. Coupled with a 3-1 victory over Tulsa back on Nov. 6, ECU has won two of its last three matches. A duo of young players willed the Pirates to the triumph at Memphis as freshman outside hitter Angeles Alderete exploded for 23 kills while sophomore libero Kenzie Beckham notched a career-high 34 digs. East Carolina also surpassed 100 total digs for just the fourth time in program history and set a school record for digs in an AAC contest.

The Pirates sit just two matches back of Memphis for fifth place in the league standings. ECU has finished no higher than ninth in all but one of its nine seasons in the American with the exception a fourth-place showing in 2017.

UCF (23-1, 15-1 AAC) has won 11 straight following a loss to conference leader Houston back on Oct. 7 at the Fertitta Center. During the stretch, the Knights have dropped just three sets. McKenna Melville paces the club and the AAC in kills per set (5.39) and points per set (5.98) while Abby Hansen and Claudia Dillon are first and second in the league with respective .425 and .410 hitting percentages. Additionally, Hansen is tops in the AAC in blocks per set (1.33). Amber Olson also paces the circuit in assists per set (11.54). UCF leads the conference in every statistical category except for digs per set (Tulsa). The Knights own the advantage in the all-time series by a 24-10 margin, including an 8-6 mark at Minges Coliseum.

South Florida (9-17, 3-11 AAC) has lost three in a row to SMU, UCF and Cincinnati. The Bulls rank ninth in the league in hitting percentage (.193) and are sixth in opposing hitting percentage (.223). USF defeated ECU in five sets in Tampa on Oct. 14 to increase its lead in the all-time series to 13-8. The Pirates are 4-7 against the Bulls in Greenville.

Up Next: East Carolina puts the regular season in the books next week with a home match against Temple Wednesday and a road affair at Cincinnati Friday.

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Players Mentioned

Angeles Alderete

Kenzie Beckham

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