Live Stats
NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State volleyball team will begin its first of three straight weekend road trips as the Spartans head to Radford for the Radford Tournament Friday and Saturday.
NSU will take on the host Highlanders Friday at 5 p.m. followed by matches against Canisius at noon and East Tennessee State at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Coming in at 3-2 overall, the Spartans last played Tuesday at Hampton, earning a hard-fought 3-2 win after rallying from a 2-1 deficit.
The offense was led by redshirt sophomore Paige Gary-Canty with 16 kills and freshman Arielle Knafel with 12 kills and eight service aces. Freshman Noelle Eagles added a match-high19 digs, while Knafel and Gary-Canty completed their double-doubles with 16 and 13 digs, respectively. Junior Nicole Kessner added 38 assists in the effort.
Getting Closer
Now third after entering the season fourth all-time, Kessner owns 1,471 career assists, exactly 500 away from Solange Honore's school record of 1,971. This weekend Kessner should pass Dianne Harris, who sits second all-time with 1,514.
Smokin' Aces
Knafel totaled eight service aces in Tuesday's match at Hampton, the most by a Spartan since Yolanda Roberts set the program's all-time record with 10 on Sept. 29, 2006 against Winston-Salem State. Knafel now has 13 for the season and is averaging 0.62 per set, a mark that would have put her in a tie for second among all Division I athletes at the end of the 2009 season.
The 2010 national statistics will be released in a week and a half.
Comeback Player of the Year
The MEAC doesn't award a Comeback Player of the Year award, but if the conference did, redshirt Gary-Canty would be perhaps the leading candidate to garner the honor. After competing in just eight sets her first two seasons due to a knee injury and then concussion symptoms, Gary-Canty ranks second on the team with 2.90 kills per set and third with 2.38 digs. Gary-Canty was sixth in the MEAC in kills per set entering the week.
About Radford
The Highlanders dropped all four of their opening-weekend matches at the Robert Morris/Duquesne Tournament, falling to the two host schools along with Montana State and Lehigh.
The offense is led by Emily Carlin, who averages 3.19 kills per set, and Megan McWhorter, who contributes 2.60 kills. Storm Melnick anchors the backcourt defense with 3.31 digs per set, with Carly Fleming (0.71) and Carlin (0.69) leading the team in blocks. Desiree Aramburu paces the offense with 8.88 assists.
As a team, Radford attacks at a .103 clip while opponents hit .222. So far this season Radford has been outblocked, 34-20.
About Canisius
The Griffs come in with a 1-3 record on the year, winning the first match of the year against Hofstra in the Hofstra/Asics Inviational last weekend before dropping matches to Missouri State and Texas State in the tournament and an individual match at St. Francis (N.Y.).
Samantha Good is the team's top offensive threat at 3.93 kills per set, with Renee Lettow second on the team with 2.36 kills. Good also has the most total blocks on the team and averages 0.93 per set, while Allyson Severyn ranks first in digs (4.71). Syndey Palka posted 8.08 assists per set through 3+ matches before giving way to Janelle Davis, who totaled 43 in the contest against St. Francis.
Although the Griffs attack at a .230 rate, opponents are faring even better, hitting .288. Canisius holds the advantage in blocks (23.5-18.5) and service aces (25-18) with opponents leading in digs (14.1-13.5 per set).
About East Tennessee State
Like Canisius, East Tennessee State also owns a 1-3 record. Two of those losses came to George and Wake Forest in the Deacon Invitational before a win over Coastal Carolina. The team dropped its home opener to Appalachian State on Tuesday by a 3-2 score.
Four players posted double-digit kills against the Mountaineers, led by Alysa Long with 13. Kiley Tamblyn led ETSU with 18 digs, and Whitney Cogburn added 46 assists. Cogburn also had four blocks while Jamie Stancliff added five.
Up Next
The Spartans head to the Coastal Carolina Classic Sept. 10-11 with matches against USC Upstate and the Citadel along with the host Chanticleers.
