Alabama State University's volleyball team has completed the pre-conference portion of their schedule and will begin their quest for the Southwestern Athletic Conference title on the road with two games this weekend.
The Lady Hornets first taste of conference action will come Friday, Sept. 27 at Alcorn State in a 6 p.m. game. ASU will then face Mississippi Valley State in a Saturday afternoon matinee at 1 p.m. in Itta Bena, Miss.
ASU played a challenging schedule including a game with then 18
th-ranked Arizona State University last weekend, and came out of the pre-conference schedule with a 5-12 record.
"I know we played a challenging schedule, but that is just me," Head Coach
Penny Lucas-White said. "At times we played extremely well, and at times we didn't, but I know this type of schedule just makes us better now that we are going into conference play."
Alcorn State (0-8) is still looking for their first win of the season and has not had the opportunity to play as many games as ASU has entering the game.
The only other team in the conference with more than the five wins ASU has, is Mississippi Valley State who enters the game with a 6-11 record.
Amber Bennett heads into conference with the league's best hitting percentage at .277.
Myla Marshall is third at .248. Bennett also leads the league in kills with 161, but is second in kills per set averaging 2.82.
As a team ASU leads the SWAC in blocks and assists. ASU averages 1.88 blocks per set and Bennett is the SWAC's individual leader averaging 0.92 per set. In assists, the Lady Hornets do not have anyone among the conference leaders, but the one-two punch of
Brooke Beasley and
Ellyn Jones has vaulted ASU into the conference lead averaging 9.68 per set.
"We are very excited about starting conference play," Lucas-White said. "It is something we have been talking about and working towards since practice started in August."
