PREVIEW: Volleyball - Arlington Baptist (10/13) | Randolph College (10/15) | Washington & Lee (10/15)
MULTIMEDIA COVERAGE
(Arlington Baptist College 10.13)
Video (HD)
(Randolph College @ Washington & Lee)
No coverage
(Washington & Lee University)
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THE LEAD
The University of Dallas volleyball team concludes a season-long, four-game home stand on Thursday against cross-town opponent Arlington Baptist College at 7 p.m. After that the Crusaders are on the road for a Triangular hosted at Washington and Lee University on Saturday. The first match features a neutral site tilt versus Randolph College at 12: 30 p.m. and then UD battles the host team at 3 p.m. Both times are central.
Dallas is coming off a 2-1 weekend in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) divisional including consecutive victories over Centenary College and Austin College. The latest win over the 'Roos on Sunday was decided in five sets with the Crusaders winning the final three points to edge 15-13. Dallas accumulated 143 digs to break the single-game record by six.
UD NOTES
- Jessie Koster (Sherwood, Ore.) remains atop of the NCAA Division III and SCAC in total digs (607) and digs-per-set (7.59). Both totals rank second in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA). Koster has boosted her all-time career record in digs to 2,633.
- Elizabeth Smith (Broken Arrow, Okla.) has logged 656 assists and set a personal high 61 in the last outing. The sophomore earned USCAA Setter of the Week, and posted the most by a Crusader in a match since the record holder Ashli Randl (70) in 2004. Smith also just broke a career-high on the campaign in digs with 195 now.
- Mairin Guilfoyle (Roanoke, Va.) ranks 51st in the NCAA DIII for total kills with 265 (3.31 K/Set). Ranking second in the SCAC, Guilfoyle has logged 121 in the past eight matches. Seven of those have been double-digit performances including a personal best 25 in the last game.
- Guilfoyle jumped two spots on the all-time school leaderboard for kills with 1,127 and is 5th all-time.
- Mary Scholz (Fallon, Nev.) has added 200 kills and is averaging 2.53 per set.
- Merit Paramo (Wasilla, Alaska) and Kyndal Miller (Crocket, Texas) lead the team in blocks with 41 and 26, respectively. Miller notched a career-high 13 kills in the last contest.
A LOOK AT THE OPPONENTS
(Arlington Baptist College)
The Patriots are 10-9 on the season and 4-5 in away games. Arlington Baptist is riding a three-game winning streak, all set sweeps. The most recent win was at Dallas Christian College last Friday.
Arlington Baptist is a member of the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) and Association of Christian College Athletics (ACCA).
Dallas won the season opener between these squads at Arlington in five sets. The scores were 25-21, 25-14, 19-25, 17-25, and 16-14. Scholz and Guilfoyle had double-digit performances in kills with 13 and 10, respectively. Koster notched 41 digs and Smith assisted 38 balls. The Patriots were led by Jayzhia Softly and Jacquelyn Wells by combining for 48 of the team's 60 kills.
Dallas improved 13-0 in the overall series. In the match-up at the Maher Center in 2015, UD won in three sets (25-20, 25-15, 25-15).
(Randolph College)
The Wildcats (3-15) will take on two opponents on Wednesday and Friday before facing the Crusaders as part of a tri-match hosted in Lexington, Virginia. RC won last Friday against Hollins in a set sweep. That victory snapped a 10-game losing streak.
Autumn Troxell is the team leader offensively with 203 kills and is averaging 3.17 per set. Alex Mariona has contributed 146 kills. Rebecca Lesnak and Shelby Bergum round out the triple-digit totals with 113 and 109, respectively. Brooks Gillerlain is atop the assists column with 527.
(Washington & Lee University)
The Generals (16-3) are 8-2 at the friendly confines this fall, and have won the past two contests. They swept a doubleheader last Saturday over Guilford and Frostburg State. On Wednesday, Washington & Lee plays a quick road match at Randolph-Macon before hosting another trio of games Friday through Saturday. The match-up with UD concludes the home stretch that included eight-of-nine.
Meg Guignon is the team leader offensively with 207 kills (3.34 K/Set). Elly Cosgrove, Allison Webb, and Mackenzie Shand complete the group above triple-digits and are all less than 10 kills away from each other. Cosgrove leads the unit with 158, Webb has 155, and Shand checks in at 150. Elena West boasts 528 assists and Katie Volk anchors the defense with 235 digs. Shand is also big on the blocks with 67 block assists and 25 solo blocks.
Saturday will be the first time Dallas plays either of these programs.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Dallas will be home next for the final time in 2016 on October 18. A quartet of seniors: Guilfoyle, Koster, Allison Seager (Dallas, Texas), and Anna Fazio (Beaumont, Texas) will be recognized prior to the first serve at 7 p.m.
The Crusaders gear up for a final conference weekend with the second cross-divisional hosted at Schreiner University Oct. 22-23.