ANDERSON, S.C. – After rallying from a 2-0 deficit for the first time since the 2011 campaign in last Friday night's come-from-behind win over Tusculum, the Anderson volleyball team is set to square off against Mars Hill in South Atlantic Conference action, Tuesday night at the Abney Athletic Center.
First serve versus the Lions is slated for 7 p.m. Admission is $5, but students, faculty and staff, along with members of the Trojan Club will be admitted free of charge.
The Trojans opened the two-match homestand by dropping the first two sets to Tusculum on Friday, but rebounded to claim three straight sets to mark the first time since the Black and Gold rallied from the deficit since downing Newberry, 3-2 (6-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-22, 15-12) on Sept. 7, 2011.
The Trojans
Anderson (9-6, 6-2 SAC) is looking to move to 7-2 in league play for the first time since joining the SAC in 2010. The Trojans, who are one of five teams to have a winning SAC record, are tied for third place in the conference standings alongside Queens, and have won three of their last four decisions and five of their last seven.
AU's position in the league standings parallels their statistical rankings in the conference, as the Trojans stand no lower than seventh in 17 categories, including solo blocks (1st), service aces (2nd) and third in kills, hitting percentage, assists and aces per set.
Individual players are posting stellar outings, with junior Marissa Mitter ranking third with 189 kills and fifth with a 3.32 kills per set average. She notched her eighth double-double of the season in last Friday night's comeback victory past Tusculum and has reached double-figure kills in 11 matches. Fellow junior Serena Jackson is second on the squad with 116 kills and is second in the league with her team-high .312 hitting percentage.
Freshman setter Emily Conlin has posted five double-doubles this season and continues to lead the conference in both assists (589) and assists per set (9.82) after dishing out a career–best 60 assists in the win over Tusculum. The 60 assists equaled the ninth-highest total for a single match in program history. The native of Glendale, Ariz., has recorded at least 30 assists on a dozen occasions this season and is on pace to reach the top-10 in the school record books for assists in a single season.
Sophomore Emily Conard has tallied double-figure digs in 14 matches this season and ranks fourth in the SAC with 278 digs and seventh with a 4.63 digs per set average. Senior Rachel Burts leads the league with 16 solo blocks, ranks second with 56 total blocks and stands fifth with 40 block assists.
The Lions
Mars Hill (1-10, 0-8 SAC) is mired in an eight-game skid and is seeking its first conference win of the season. The Lions' lone win of the season came over Emmanuel on the second day of the Hughston Clinic Invitational, hosted by Columbus State in early September. Emmanuel then knocked off the Trojans a week later at the Francis Marion Invitational.
Mars Hill was tabbed 10th in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll after posting an 8-21 overall record and a 6-16 mark in league play last year.
The Series vs. Mars Hill
After MHU won the first-ever meeting in 1997, the Trojans won five of the next six meetings over the following 11 seasons. After the Trojans earned three straight wins over the Lions to gain a narrow advantage in the overall series, Mars Hill swept last season's regular-season matchups to claim a 10-9 edge in the overall series.
Anderson defeated the Lions in AU's inaugural season in the SAC in 2010, with Mars Hill countering by claiming seven straight wins before AU won the 2013 series finale over the Lions and swept both regular-season matchups two years ago.
