Montgomery, Ala. | With only four matches remaining in the pre-conference portion of the schedule, the Alabama State volleyball team will take aim at three of those this Friday and Saturday when they compete in the VolleyKnights Invitational, hosted by UCF.
The Lady Hornets open the tournament with a 12 pm EST match against the tournament host on Friday and subsequently follow that up with a match versus Yale at 6 pm. Alabama State closes out the tournament with a 3 pm tilt Saturday against Florida Gulf Coast.
Alabama State (3-9) has been paced all season by its upperclassmen. Senior
Kori Kutsch leads the SWAC with 368 assists and senior
Candace Martin ranks second among league competitors with 0.89 blocks per set. Juniors' Bayle Bennett (101 kills) and
Krysta Medearis (102 kills) are top offensive threats for the Lady Hornets and senior
Kayla Torres' 128 digs (second in the SWAC) backstops the defense.
UCF enters its home tournament with a 6-3 record and has won three consecutive matches. During their last time out, the Knights made quick work of Wofford, dispatching the visitors 3-0. UCF is led by McKenna Melville who has posted 131 kills (4.23 k/s), six service aces and 113 digs. Kristina Fisher follows closely behind with 105 kills. Jordan Pingel has posted 125 digs, Erin Olson has 203 assists, and Anne-Marie Watson has 33 blocks to round out the top performers. UCF holds a 2-0 series edge. The Knights took down Alabama State in 2013, 3-0 (19-25, 15-25, 13-25).
Florida Gulf Coast boasts a record of 5-4 and has split its last four matches. On September 8, the Eagles came up short in a hotly contested match with West Virginia, 2-3. The Florida Gulf Coast offense centers around Cortney Vanliew, who has put away 136 kills, good for 4.12 kills per set. Maggie Rick (247 assists) and Chelsey Lockey (109 assists) facilitate the offense, while Dana Axner (156 digs) and Daniele Serrano (44 blocks;1.33 blocks per set) paces the defense.
Yale - winners of its first four matches - comes to Orlando with a record of 5-1. The Bulldogs defeated Rhode Island in their most recent match, 3-0. The lone loss came against New Hampshire (3-1). Yale boasts an offense that has three players with 40 or more kills, led by Ellis DeJardin (57 kills). Frances Arnautou has compiled 208 assists to lead the offense, while Kathryn Attar (55 digs), Gray Malias (54 digs) and Destiny Daniel (21 blocks) leads the defense.
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