BOONE, N.C. — App State Volleyball returns home to Holmes Convocation Center for the Sun Belt Conference home opening series against Coastal Carolina on Friday and Saturday, headlined by a stacked weekend of promotions including "Volley for Dolly" on Friday night and "Community Day" on Saturday.
LAST TIME OUT
The Mountaineers (9-7, 2-0 SBC) opened their conference slate at Old Dominion, securing a series sweep with victories on Friday and Saturday.
App State dominated the two-match series, holding Old Dominion to just 82 total points across seven sets while scoring 138 points of its own.
In the opener, Bella Hutchens led the attack with 17 kills on a .452 hitting percentage, while Raegan Richardson dished out 42 assists and added three blocks. Chelsea Gilmore anchored the net with nine blocks alongside eight kills.
Delanie Grevengoed led the charge in game two with nine kills while hitting .444, adding three service aces and four blocks. Charlotte Thompson paced the team with 13 kills on a .391 hitting percentage.
On the first play of Friday's opener, Richardson eclipsed the 2,000-assist career milestone, an achievement she will be recognized for prior to Friday's match.
SERIES HISTORY vs. COASTAL CAROLINA
App State and Coastal Carolina (4-7, 0-2 SBC) have met 29 times, with the Chanticleers holding a 21-8 advantage in the all-time series.
The Mountaineers last defeated the Chanticleers in 2024 with a series sweep on Oct. 24 and Oct. 25. In 2025, Coastal Carolina responded with a series win of their own in Conway, S.C., despite App State pushing the Oct. 25 match to five sets.
SCOUTING APP STATE
App State is led by juniors MeMe Davis on defense, Richardson at setter and Hutchens on offense.
Last season, Davis led the back row in digs (467) while Hutchens was one of the squad's primary offensive threats on the outside with 244 kills.
Richardson, a transfer from South Florida, has stepped seamlessly into the starting setter role, leading the offense in assists and surpassing 2,000 total career assists.
SCOUTING COASTAL CAROLINA
Coastal Carolina went 18-11 overall and 10-6 in Sun Belt play last season under head coach Steve Loeswick.
The Chanticleers return six players from last year's squad, led by All-Sun Belt middle blocker Anna Rita. They added four transfers and four freshmen to the 2026 roster.
Last fall, Rita ranked fourth in the Sun Belt with 143 total blocks and recorded the second-most solo blocks (30) and blocks per set (1.39) in the league.
ON THE HORIZON
The Mountaineers will host Georgia Southern in the Holmes Center to open Homecoming weekend on Oct. 8 and Oct. 9. Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+, with live stats available at appstatesports.com.
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