BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University volleyball competes in its second regular-season tournament this weekend as the Mountaineers head to Raleigh, N.C. for the NC State Tournament on Friday and Saturday, September 6 and 7.
Appalachian now stands at 4-0 overall after defeating Presbyterian College on Tuesday in a 3-2 thriller. The Mountaineers will look to continue the momentum as they meet tournament host NC State on Friday at 7 p.m. before matching up against Towson and Binghamton in Saturday matches at 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.
A LOOK AT THE MOUNTAINEERS
• Appalachian stands at 4-0 after defeating Presbyterian College on Tuesday (3-2), and sweeping the Appalachian Invitational following 3-0 performances over Loyola (Md.), Sam Houston State, and Norfolk at the Holmes Center.
• Jess Keller led the Mountaineer victory over the Blue Hose, shooting .432 on the attack and accounting for a team-high 24.5 of Appalachian's 81 points.
• Keller also put up two blocks against Presbyterian and matched with Emily Corrigan to record a team-high 20 kills each.
• Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Week, Meghan Mahoney, dished out 18 digs in the non-conference match, while Corrigan chipped in 16 of the team's 67 total digs.
• App State outnumbers the competition, averaging 12.4 kills per set to the opponent's 10.5, along with shooting more than double on the attack percentage (.284 to the opponent average .113).
• In four matches played, Corrigan leads the Mountaineer offense with 49 kills, while Mahoney put up 73 digs.
SCOUTING THE WOLFPACK
• NC State is now 3-0 after competing in the Golden Griffin Invitational last weekend in Buffalo, N.Y., where the Wolfpack swept Canisus, Hartford and Cleveland State.
• The Wolfpack completed its opening weekend in much the same fashion as it began its 2013 campaign – with a 3-0 sweep.
• Senior Meredith Richardson hit nearly .450 for the weekend
• Alston Kearns notched 37 digs between State's two Friday matches, and followed up with nine versus Hartford on Saturday.
• Senior middle blocker Brie Merriweather led the Wolfpack offense with eight kills and a .636 hitting percentage against Hartford.
• The Orlando, Fla., native also tallied 10 blocks (two solo and eight assisted).
• Junior Dariyan Hopper contributed eight kills and a .375 attack average, while Rachel Buckley and Richardson each recorded four kills, with Buckley tallying a .667 hitting percentage and Richardson a .500 average.
• In three matches played, Richard leads the Wolfpack offense with 27 kills, while Kearns has recorded 48 digs.
• NC State is 13-4 all-time against Appalachian State. The two squad last met on August 26, 2011 when the Mountaineers handed State a 3-1 decision.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
• Towson University is 2-3 after its most recent victory against Coppin State and a sweep of St. Francis (Pa.) in the Hokie Classic.
• The Tigers picked up a 3-1 win over Coppin State in their home opener Tuesday night, where Saitaua Iosia and Haley Pa'akaula combined for 30 kills to lead the match, which also marked the opening of SECU Arena, the new home of the Tigers.
• Iosia recorded a season-high 18 kills in the Coppin State victory, along with six service aces and nine digs.
• Pa'akaula finished with a career-high 12 kills while, Kelsey Polak posted a career-high 43 assists. • Junior Paige Sekerak contributed a season-high 21 digs while Flaherty had seven kills, two service aces, four digs and a match-high five blocks.
• Sekerak currently leads the Tigers with 69 digs this season, while Iosia has contributed 50 kills in five matches for Towson.
• Lindsay Flaherty has tallied 18 blocks (one solo, 17 seventeen assists), playing in all five of the Tigers' matches so far.
• Appalachian holds a 2-1 record against Towson, last defeating the Tigers on Sept. 4, 2004.
SCOUTiNG THE BEARCATS
• Binghamton begins the season 0-3 after falling to St. John's, Central Connecticut State and Colgate in its opening weekend of play at the Colgate Classic.
• Xiomara Ortiz contributed 17 digs for the Bearcats in the final match of the Classic.
• Shannon Kirkpatrick recorded a match-high seven digs versus the Raiders.
• Kristen Hovie and Grace Vickers have both averaged better than two kills per set over Binghamton's three matches.
• Four Bearcats have put up double-digit digs so far this season, including Kristen Hovie (15), Amanda Dettmann (19), Allison Hovie (14), and team leader Ortiz, who has 41 digs in three matches.
• Appalachian is 1-0 against Binghamton, meeting just once before on Sept. 12, 2008 and winning their only match, 3-1.
UP NEXT
• Following the regular-season midpoint, Appalachian will travel to Waco, Texas next weekend, Sept. 13 and 14, to participate in the Baylor Tournament.
• The Mountaineers will square off against Baylor and Colorado on Friday at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., respectively, before facing Northwestern State at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
