ANDERSON, S.C. – Following a five-day layoff, the Anderson volleyball team is slated to open a challenging three-game road swing Friday when the Trojans travel to defending conference tournament champion Lenoir-Rhyne. Less than 24 hours later, Anderson will square off against Brevard, while visiting 10-time SAC titleholder Wingate on Tuesday.
First serve at Lenoir-Rhyne is set for 7 p.m.
The Trojans
Anderson (6-5, 3-1 SAC) will be looking to bounce back after dropping its first conference decision of the season in four sets to league-leading Lincoln Memorial last Saturday. The road trip through the Tar Heel State marks Anderson's longest conference road swing of the season, with AU returning to the Abney Athletic Center on Sept. 30.
The Trojans are currently second in the league with 517 kills, 484 assists and 73 service aces this season and rank third in hitting percentage (.234), digs (711) and total blocks (95).
Junior Marissa Mitter ranks third in the conference with her team-leading 130 kills on the season, while ranking sixth in the league with a 3.25 kills per set average. The outside hitter has six double-doubles in 10 matches this season and is third on the team with 13 service aces. Fellow junior Serena Jackson is tied for second in the SAC with a .354 hitting percentage and is second on the team and 11th in the conference with 26 total blocks on the year. The Charlotte, N.C., native is 13th in the league with 90 kills.
Freshman setter Emily Conlin continues to lead the conference with 413 assists on the season, which is 60 more than the next-closest setter in the SAC. She ranks fourth with 9.60 assists per set and is tied for the league lead alongside teammate Emily Conard with 15 aces. Conard, who paces the SAC with 203 digs, has tallied double-figure digs in all but one of the Trojans' matches this season and has totaled double-figure digs on 35 occasions over the past two seasons. Senior Rachel Burts leads the squad in total blocks and trails the league-leader by just two, with 44 on the year after recording 26 in the last five matches.
The Bears
Lenoir-Rhyne (4-7, 2-2 SAC) won its season opener, then dropped five consecutive decisions, including a five-set loss at home to Catawba in the SAC opener. After falling for the second time of the early season to USC Aiken and then at home to Brevard, the Bears righted the ship and won two straight league matches on the road last weekend.
Lenoir-Rhyne, the defending SAC Tournament champion, was tabbed second in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll after posting one of the best seasons in school history with a 25-8 overall record and an 18-4 mark in league play last year. The Bears captured their first-ever SAC Tournament Championship and advanced to the NCAA Southeast Regional finals for the first time. The Bears, who won 13 straight matches at one point last fall, received three first-place votes in the SAC Coaches' Poll.
Juniors Brooke Redmond and Emily Steele both earned preseason all-league accolades. Redmond was a First-Team All-SAC and All-Southeast Region pick last year after leading the squad with 401 kills to go along with 356 digs and 60 blocks. She was named the MVP of the 2015 SAC Championship and was an Southeast Region All-Tournament honoree. Steele led the Bears with 114 blocks last year in addition to 178 kills, 88 digs and 21 service aces.
The Series vs. Lenoir-Rhyne
The Trojans and Bears have met just 15 times over the past 17 seasons, with Lenoir-Rhyne holding a 9-6 advantage in the overall series that dates back to the 2000 campaign. The Bears won the first matchup, 3-0, and the series saw a seven-year lapse before L-R edged Anderson, 3-2, during the 2008 season. The two squads have met 13 times as members of the SAC. Anderson has won four of the last six matchups with L-R after sweeping the Bears during the 2014 season before falling twice to L-R last season. Eight of the 15 contests between the two teams have gone the full five-set distance.
The Tornados
Brevard is 3-6 overall on the season, with all three of its wins coming in conference play. The Tornados stunned Lenoir-Rhyne, one of the league's preseason favorites, in five sets on Sept. 13 in Hickory, N.C. The Tornados split last weekend's SAC decisions, falling in three sets at Tusculum but rebounded to claim a five-set win at Mars Hill.
The Series vs. Brevard
Despite being separated by less than 70 miles, the Trojans and Tornados have met just 13 times, including the inaugural matchup during the 2006 campaign, with Anderson claiming a 3-1 win in that contest. AU and Brevard have met 12 times over the last seven seasons as members of the South Atlantic Conference, with the Trojans holding a 10-2 advantage in the SAC series between the two schools. Anderson had claimed five consecutive victories in the overall series before the Tornados upended AU in the 2012 season's first meeting. AU avenged the setback with a 3-0 sweep at the Abney Center later that year. The two squads split last year's matchups, with each team defending its home court.
The Bulldogs
Wingate, which is in the midst of a seven-match homestand, enters the weekend undefeated in 12 outings on the season. For the 11th consecutive season, the Bulldogs were the preseason favorite to claim the league championship after winning 10 straight regular-season titles and nine league tournament championships over the past decade, while claiming four regional championships. Wingate posted a 28-5 mark in 2015, with a 20-2 record in league play.
Led by senior All-American Abby Saehler, four Bulldogs earned preseason All-SAC honors. Saehler was a first team selection, while junior Kori Adams, sophomores Oakley Attaway and Kimberly Hovey earned second-team accolades.
The Series vs. Wingate
Anderson will enter Tuesday's contest looking for just its second win in school history past the Bulldogs and its' first since 1999, when the Trojans were in their first year as a member of NCAA Division II. Wingate has won 18 straight over AU and leads the overall series, 18-1.
In addition to the regular season home-and-home matchups, the two teams have squared off in two of the last three SAC Tournament Championships, with the Bulldogs sweeping AU on both occasions.
