BOONE, N.C. - The App State volleyball team (11-4, 2-2 SBC) is set to host Old Dominion (3-12, 0-4 SBC) at the Holmes Convocation Center on Friday and Saturday.
Friday's 6 p.m. match will be Ali's Game. The Mountaineers will celebrate their honorary captain,
Ali Waldon. Fans are encouraged to wear gold. Saturday's 2 p.m. match is Pink Day. Fans are encouraged to wear pink, there will be a pink wristband giveaway, and fans will be able to fill out "I Stand For" signs. Both matches will be available to stream on ESPN+.
Last Time Out
The Mountaineers return to Boone after splitting their weekend in Lafayette. On Oct. 3, App State fell short in four sets. Senior
Keionna Mackey led the team with 12 kills, while sophomore
MeMe Davis tallied a team high 12 digs. App State made 10 blocks to Louisiana's six. The Mountaineers bounced back for a 3-1 victory on Oct. 4. Senior
Ali Morris led the team with 14 kills and 14 digs to register her 34th career double-double (fifth of the season). Davis served up five of App State's 10 aces and made 12 digs. Helping the team to a hitting percentage of .238, Heidemann made 32 of App State's 44 assists.
Mountaineer Leaders
In the first RPI report of the 2025 campaign, App State checked in at 39th, which is the best current RPI in the Sun Belt and best RPI in the program's Sun Belt era.
Four Mountaineers have amassed triple-digit kills on the season, led by senior
Maya Winterhoff, who has 176 and averages 2.75 kills per set. Winterhoff, who is 13 kills away from reaching a career milestone of 1,000 kills, ranks 26th nationally and second in the league with a hitting percentage of .413. Additionally, Winterhoff leads the team in blocks (80 total, 14 solo, 66 assists), ranking 17th in the NCAA and second in the SBC in total blocks. Winterhoff and Mackey lead App State with 19 aces apiece. In the digs category, four Mountaineers have triple-digit digs, led by Davis, who has tallied 237 digs on the season and averages 3.70 digs per set. Heidemann, who averages 7.80 assists per set and has 499 assists on the season, is the Mountaineers' top setter. She stands third in the league in total assists and fourth in assists per set.
App State ranks 44th nationally in total blocks (146.5) and ranks among the nations' top 80 in kills (792), aces (102), and assists (721). In the Sun Belt, App State ranks second in assists, third in aces, and fourth in kills and blocks.
Series History vs. Old Dominion
App State and Old Dominion have met on eight occasions, evenly splitting the series. The Mountaineers defeated the Monarchs, 3-1, on Oct. 11, 2024, in Norfolk, Va. App State served 13 aces to ODU's four and made 12 blocks to ODU's eight.
Lulu Ambrose led the team with 12 kills, while Heidemann dished out 34 assists and helped the Mountaineers to a .421 hitting percentage in the fourth set. The Mountaineers fell short in three sets on Oct. 12, 2024.
Scouting Old Dominion
Old Dominion is 3-12 on the season and 0-4 in conference play. The Monarchs have dropped Sun Belt contests to Georgia Southern (Sept. 25 and 26) as well as Coastal Carolina (Oct. 3 and 4). ODU's last win was a 3-2 victory over N.C. State in their non-conference closer at the VCU Invitational on Sept. 21. The Monarchs defeated UMBC, 3-2, on Sept. 6 before sweeping Delaware on Sept. 12.
Three Monarchs have registered triple-digit digs this fall, led by junior Kate Kilpatrick, who has 182 digs (3.79 d/s) and leads the team in aces with 17. Fellow juniors Elisa Maggi and Adrienne Peji follow Kilpatrick in the digs category with 128 digs (2.37 d/s) and 102 digs (1.85 d/s), respectively. Maggi is ODU's top attacker, registering 172 kills on the season and averaging 3.19 kills per set. Following Maggi in the kills category is junior Bryana Jones, who has 113 kills (2.90 k/s). Leading the team in the assists category is junior Wiktoria Zagumny, who has 289 assists (8.03 a/s). Following Zagumny is redshirt sophomore Kyra Hampton, who has 173 assists, averaging 5.24 per set. Old Dominion ranks sixth in the league in attacks per set (35.15), seventh in digs per set (14.15), and ninth in total attacks (1,933).
On the Horizon
App State will hit the road for the next four matches. The Mountaineers will make a stop in Statesboro, Ga. to take on Georgia Southern on Oct. 16 and 17. Both matches are scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be available to stream on ESPN+. App State will then challenge Coastal Carolina in Conway, S.C. on Oct. 24 and 25.
