ANDERSON, S.C. – The Anderson University volleyball team will be looking to get back in the win column when the Trojans return to the Abney Athletic Center for a Tuesday night South Atlantic Conference-matchup against Newberry. First-serve versus the Wolves is set for 7 p.m.
Admission to each volleyball match is free.
The Trojans
Anderson (21-3, 12-2) is returning to the friendly confines of the Abney Athletic Center after dropping a three-set, (23-25, 16-25, 28-30), decision at Carson-Newman last Friday night. The Trojans are an undefeated 9-0 at home on the season and ran their home win streak to 23 consecutive matches after sweeping Mars Hill a week ago at the Abney Center.
The Trojans are looking to reach the 22-win plateau for the seventh time in program history and the second straight season after posting a school-record 28 victories a year ago. AU continues to lead the conference in kills, assists and service aces and ranks second in kills per set, hitting percentage, assists per set, aces per set and digs.
Senior outside hitter Jayln Knight is one of just three players in the league with more than 200 digs and 200 kills and has moved into 12th place all-time in the school record books, with 1,129 digs. She has surpassed former standout Melissa Nodine (1997-99) and needs 70 digs to eclipse Lindsay Doggett (2007-10) for 11th place.
Junior setter Emily Conlin paces the conference in assists, assists per set and service aces and stands third in the AU record books with 3,430 career assists, behind Doggett and Leslie Nodine (1998-2001).
Sophomore Hailee Wilhelm is second on the team and 12th in the conference with 179 kills and has knocked down 84 kills over the last eight matches (2.90/set) for a 10.5 kills/match average. Fellow sophomore Regan Duty is third on the team with 170 kills, including 61 in the last six contests.
Freshman Liliana Kinder is fifth on the team with 111 kills, with teammate Meghan DeVaux leading the squad and ranking eighth in the league with 345 digs. Senior Emily Conard has recorded 189 digs on the season, while classmate Megan Embry has notched 155 on the year. Redshirt freshman Hannah Worsham leads the team and is 19th in the SAC with 40 blocks.
Newberry
The Wolves (8-12, 3-10 SAC), who posted an 9-18 overall record a season ago, including a 5-15 mark and a 10th-place finish in the conference, were a preseason pick to finish 11th in the 2018 SAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
Newberry, which is currently in eighth place in the league standings, is in the midst of a four-match road swing and has dropped four of its last five decisions.
The Wolves are coming off a 3-1 loss two days ago at Carson-Newman.
The Series vs. Newberry
The Trojans will be seeking their 11th win in the last 12 meetings with Newberry after blanking the Wolves twice last year and claiming a five-set win over Newberry earlier this season.
The Trojans and Wolves have met 25 times over the past 20 seasons, with AU holding a 17-8 advantage in the overall series that dates back to the 1999 campaign. The two squads met just once between 2005 and 2009, with 14 of the 25 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, 2015 and 2017 regular-season series.
In the earlier matchup on Sept. 18, Knight posted a dozen kills and 20 digs for a double-double and Duty recorded 11 kills on the strength of a .348 hitting percentage. Wilhelm notched nine kills, with Conlin handing out 49 assists and coming up with 12 digs for her fifth double-double of the campaign. DeVaux shared match-high honors with 21 digs, while Embry added 14 digs.
