ECU Visits UAB For Pair Of AAC Matches

Matches 13-14: East Carolina (9-3, 0-1 AAC) at UAB (2-11, 0-1 AAC)
Coverage	Sept. 23 \| at UAB \| 3:00 p.m. \| Live Stats \| Watch Sept. 24 \| at UAB \| 1:00 p.m. \| Live Stats \| Watch
Venue	Bartow Arena (Birmingham, Ala.)
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram \| #ECUVB #NoQuarter

Weekly Release No. 6 (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – East Carolina looks to scratch the win column for the first time in American Athletic Conference play this weekend when it heads south for two matches at UAB.

The Pirates and Blazers begin the set Saturday, Sept. 23, at 3 p.m. inside Bartow Arena before meeting once more Sunday at 1 p.m. Both matches will stream live via ESPN+.

ECU (9-3, 0-1 AAC) began its league slate Wednesday with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-23) home loss to Wichita State. The decision was far from a blowout, however, as the Pirates built late leads in sets one and three before succumbing to the Shockers. East Carolina held Wichita State well under its season average in hitting percentage, limiting the visitors to .119 efficiency and forcing 23 attacking errors, but the Pirates faltered on the offensive end themselves – hitting just .113 on 34 kills and 22 errors in 106 attempts.

Sophomore outside hitter Angeles Alderete paced the squad and tied for match-high honors with 12 kills. Playing against her former team, junior libero Lara Uyar led all players with 20 digs while sophomore middle blocker Carlia Northcross collected a game-best nine blocks. Natalie Foster and Morgan Stout willed the Shockers to victory on the offensive end with 12 and 11 kills respectively.

East Carolina continues to excel defensively, leading the American Conference and ranking fifth nationally in opposing hitting percentage (.128). The Pirates also rank in the top half of the league statistically in several categories, including third in hitting percentage (.245), fourth in points per set (16.73) and fifth in both blocks per set (2.34) and service aces per set (1.73).

Individually, Northcross continues to be elite at the net - slotting second in the conference in blocks per set (1.30). Uyar also checks in at eighth in digs per set (3.83) while Alderete is ninth in kills per set (2.98), points per set (3.51) and aces per set (0.39).

Scouting UAB
American Athletic Conference newcomer UAB is 2-11 overall and 0-1 in league play, falling to Rice in straight sets Wednesday night in Houston. The Blazers are hitting just .180 collectively while allowing opponents to fire at a .248 offensive clip. Anna Burkhardt ranks third in the league in digs per set (4.75) while Mia Reese is seventh in kills per set (3.18). UAB finished fifth in Conference USA last season with a 7-7 league record before bowing out of the league tournament in a five-set loss to North Texas.

The UAB Series
UAB holds a 17-5 lead in the series with East Carolina, but the teams have not met since 2013 when both institutions were members of Conference USA. The Blazers have won the last 13 matchups with the last Pirate victory occurring Oct. 6, 2006 in Greenville.

East Carolina Picked To Finish Second In AAC East Division
The Pirates have been tabbed to place second in the East Division of the American Athletic Conference this season according to a release of the preseason coaches poll Aug. 21. ECU garnered 70 points and five first-place votes, slotting just behind Memphis. The Tigers collected seven first-place votes and 72 points. Florida Atlantic and Temple tied for third place in the division, followed by South Florida, UAB and Charlotte. SMU is the favorite in the West Division and earned seven votes to win the overall regular season title and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Rice, the 2022 Conference USA Tournament champion, received six votes to take the regular season crown.

Behind Enemy Lines
East Carolina's 3-2 win at Virginia Tech marked the Pirates' first road victory over a so-called "Power Five" club since Sept. 10, 2019, when ECU rallied from a 2-0 deficit to knock off NC State in five sets at Reynolds Coliseum. It was also the second win over an ACC opponent for head coach Adler Augustin who guided the Pirates to a sweep of North Carolina in the spring of 2021.

ECU At-A-Glance
Record - 9-3 (.750) // AAC Record - 0-1 (.000) // Last 5 Matches - 4-1 (.800) // Last 10 Matches - 8-2 (.800) // Last 15 Matches - 0-0 (.000) // ECU will play the 86th match of the Adler Augustin era when it begins its two-match set at UAB Saturday afternoon. // The Pirates' all-time record stands at 565-858 as the program is in its 46th season of competition.

Up Next
East Carolina returns to Minges Coliseum Sept. 29-30 for a two-match American Athletic Conference set with Florida Atlantic.

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Players Mentioned

Angeles Alderete

Carlia Northcross

Lara Uyar

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