ANDERSON, S.C. – After beginning the season with 10 consecutive road contests, the Anderson University volleyball team will open its home slate against a pair of South Atlantic Conference foes, as Newberry and Coker invade the Abney Athletic Center for a pair of matches this weekend. 

First-serve versus the Wolves is slated for 7 p.m., Friday, while the Trojans and Cobras will get underway Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.

Admission to each volleyball match is $5, but students, faculty and staff, along with members of the Trojan Club will be admitted free of charge.

The Trojans
The Trojans are looking to win their third straight decision and have recent history in their favor, as AU has won its last two home openers and is 7-1 in home openers over the last eight seasons. The lone setback was a narrow five-set loss to Tusculum during the 2014 campaign, which ironically saw the Trojans set a school record for wins in a season.    

Anderson head coach Todd Hay spent six seasons roaming the Newberry sidelines, posting an 84-72 mark with the Wolves and leading the Scarlet and Grey to four appearances in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament and a pair of appearances in the NCAA Southeast Regional Tournament.

AU assistant coach Rachel Moran, a former standout with the Wolves, helped lead Newberry to three South Atlantic Conference Tournament appearances and back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Southeast Regional in 2012 and 2013. Moran wrapped up her collegiate career with nearly 500 digs, 110 kills, a dozen double-doubles and notched 67 service aces during her final two seasons.

The Trojans (7-3, 1-1 SAC) are riding a two-match win streak after capturing road wins over Queens and Erskine and following last weekend's matches, AU ranked 22nd in the nation in assists per set (12.97/set), 32nd in digs per set (18.51/set), and 39th nationally in opponents hitting percentage (.129).  

Sophomore setter Emily Conlin ranks seventh nationally in assists per set (11.77) and continues to pace the conference in both assists (412) and assists per set, while ranking third in the league with a team-high 17 service aces on the season. She posted a season-high four aces in the sweep of Erskine Tuesday night. Conlin has notched double-doubles in three of the last four matches and has six double-doubles on the season.

Senior outside hitter Marissa Mitter needs 28 kills to become the 11th player in school history to record at least 1,000 career kills and continues to lead the SAC with 123 kills on the year. The Redondo Beach, Calif., native has four double-doubles on the season, while notching a season-high 21 kills at USC Aiken and a season-high 19 digs at Queens.

Senior Rachel Burts is second on the squad with 84 kills on the season and is seventh in the SAC with 31 total blocks. The Anderson, S.C., native is fourth in the league with a team-high .361 hitting percentage. Junior Jayln Knight is second on the team with 115 digs and is third on the team with 78 kills, while senior Serena Jackson has added 71 kills and is tied for fourth in the conference with 33 total blocks.

Sophomore Kathryn Hughes is fifth on the squad with 55 kills on the season, including a season-high 15 against Lander. Junior libero Emily Conard leads the Trojans and is 12th in the league with 4.13 digs per set.

The Wolves
Newberry (6-4, 2-2 SAC) has won two of its last three decisions, but is coming off a five-set home loss to Coker two nights ago after knocking off Carson-Newman and Lincoln Memorial last weekend. 

The Wolves were picked to finish sixth in the Preseason SAC Coaches' Poll after finishing last season with a 20-12 overall record and a 16-6 mark in league action. The 20 wins were Newberry's most overall victories since joining the NCAA. 

The Series vs. Newberry
The Trojans will be searching for their eighth win in the last nine meetings with Newberry after splitting last season's matchups, as each team won on the other's home court. After AU knocked off the Wolves, 3-1, at Eleazer Arena last season, Newberry prevented the fourth consecutive series sweep by shutting out the Trojans, 3-0, at the Abney Center.

The Trojans and Wolves have met 22 times over the past 20 seasons, with AU holding a 14-8 advantage in the overall series that dates back to the 1999 campaign. The two squads met just once between 2005 and 2009, with 11 of the 22 overall matchups coming since the Trojans joined the SAC in 2010. AU claimed the first three league meetings, with Newberry then winning three straight before Anderson swept the 2013, 2014 and 2015 regular-season series.

Burts shared match-high honors with 11 kills in the home setback, while adding five total blocks and recording a team-best .375 hitting percentage. Conlin handed out 27 assists and added 11 digs for her 10th double-double of the season. Conard shared match-high honors with 17 digs.

The Cobras
After falling to Lander in its season opener, Coker (6-6, 2-3 SAC) reeled off four wins in five outings and has won two of its last three decisions, including the five-set road win over Newberry last Tuesday night. 

The Cobras were predicted to finish 11th in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll following a season that saw them finish with a 13-17 overall record and a 5-17 mark in conference play last year. 

Coker returned 11 letterwinners from last season, including senior outside hitter Madison Bingle, who led the team with 217 kills a year ago. The Grand Rapids, Mich., native ranks eighth all-time in kills and 10th all-time in digs in the school record books. Junior Kara Overholt led the Cobras with 556 digs a year ago and holds the all-time match record with 38 digs.

The Series vs. Coker
The Trojans own a 27-7 record versus the Cobras over the past 19 seasons and have won 16 of the last 19 meetings, including 14 straight.

In the last meeting, a 3-0 win in the Electric City, Mitter led all players with 11 kills on the strength of a .364 hitting percentage and shared match-high honors with 13 digs, while Burts and Hughes each tallied 10 kills. Burts recorded a .625 attack percentage, with Hughes posting a .474 hitting percentage. Conlin dished out 38 assists and came up with eight digs, with Knight recording 10 digs.