WILMINGTON, N.C. - The UNC Wilmington volleyball team closes out the 2009 campaign this weekend with matches against William and Mary and Virginia Commonwealth at Hanover Hall.
The Seahawks and Tribe meet Friday in a 7 p.m. matchup before UNCW concludes the regular season Sunday with a 1 p.m. matinee against the Rams. Sunday's match will also serve as the program's annual senior day, with the team taking time to thank its four seniors - Paula McConnell, Ashlyn Morris, Anna Price and Lindsey Strucko - for their contributions to the Seahawks program.
Live stats are available for both matches while pay-per-view video is available for the William & Mary match. They can be accessed by clicking on the link above.
The Seahawks dropped to 13-16 overall and 3-9 in league play last weekend with a pair of 3-1 setbacks at Northeastern (20-25, 25-17, 25-18, 25-23) and Hofstra (25-20, 25-17, 21-25, 25-23). Strucko recorded 3.12 kills and 2.50 digs per set as she recorded her team-leading 12th double-double of the season with 13 kills and 11 digs versus Northeastern.
Sophomore Kimberly Friedl chipped in 2.12 kills per set and posted a team-best .308 hitting percentage as she recorded just five errors in 39 total attempts. Freidl also posted a team-best 12 total blocks, including two solo rejections.
Junior Kelli Clear pitched in 2.00 kills per set and added 3.00 digs per set as she recorded her second double-double of the season with 11 kills and a career-high 16 digs versus Hofstra.
William and Mary stands at 16-10 overall and 8-4 in CAA play as it enters the weekend in sole possession of the fourth and final spot in upcoming CAA Volleyball Championship. The Tribe can clinch its third straight appearance in the championship with a win in either of its two matches this weekend.
Junior Erin Skipper paces a W&M attack that features four players averaging more than two kills per set with a team-high 288 kills. Skipper recently became just the eighth player in school history to record 1,000 career kills when she reached the plateau in the team's five-set setback to Delaware on Oct. 30.
Junior Cassie Crumal and freshman Jordyn Moloney have split setting duties for the Tribe this season as the duo has combined to average 14.52 assists per set
Senior libero Lindsey Pflugner highlights the Tribe's defensive efforts as she leads the CAA and ranks 20th in the nation with 5.14 digs per set. At the net, freshman middle blocker Shaylin O'Connell leads the team with 1.03 total blocks per set.
The Rams head into the final weekend of the regular season with a half-game lead over Delaware for the top spot in the CAA standings as they boast a 10-2 league record and a 22-8 overall mark.
Four-time CAA Rookie-of-the-Week Michala Kvapilova leads the VCU attack with 2.66 kills per set while junior outside hitter Mariel Frey (2.61) and senior middle blocker Ivana Rich (2.17) are also averaging more than two kills per set for an offense that leads the league in kills per set (12.60). Rich also ranks among the league leaders in hitting percentage as she is third on the circuit with a .210 hitting percentage. Junior setter Lenka Melicharkova quarterbacks the Rams attack as she ranks third in the league with 9.43 assists per set.
Defensively, freshman Marisa Low (3.39) and sophomore Alyssa Foster (3.11) rank eighth and 10th, respectively, in the CAA in digs per set while junior middle blocker Kelsie Clegg is second in the association with 1.13 blocks per set.
