This Weekend
Friday: UMES at NSU, 7 p.m., Joseph Echols Hall
Live Stats | Live Video
Sunday: NSU at Hampton, 3 p.m., Holland Hall

NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State volleyball program will be at home once again in MEAC play before going over the water to play a heated rival in what is shaping up to be a key conference weekend across the board.

The Spartans will host UMES on Friday at 7 p.m. at Joseph Echols Hall and then traverse the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel to take on Hampton Sunday at 3 p.m. at HU's Holland Hall.

Norfolk State will offer free live stats as well as a live video feed for Friday night's contest against the Hawks. The video feed carries a cost of $5.

NSU currently sits at 3-2 in MEAC play and in third place in the MEAC Northern Division standings ahead of fourth-place Coppin State (3-3). The top four teams in each division advance to the conference tournament. With a win on Friday, the Spartans can further cement their spot while pushing UMES (1-4) further back.

Hampton and Howard continue to lead the North at 5-0 and 4-1, respectively, with Morgan State in fifth (2-3). UMES and Delaware State (0-5) round out the standings.

Howard takes on Morgan State on Friday, with Hampton facing Delaware State. Coppin State and Morgan State face off on Sunday, with Delaware State and UMES also playing each other.

Scouting the Spartans
A couple of big matches recently have put senior Goda Jankauskaite in the team lead in kills with 2.86 per set. Fellow senior Coralie Jarema now ranks third on the team with 119 total kills, averaging 1.70 per set. Sophomore Jessica Johnson ranks second with 2.31, with sophomore Janay Frazier (1.80) and Angie Darcus (1.65) also chipping in.

Sophomore Darcy Moore is now posting 9.22 assists per set, with junior Adriana Ramos boasting a team-leading 0.31 service aces.

Moore stands second in digs with 2.35 behind team leader Noelle Eagles (3.88). Jarema has 36 total blocks on the year, with Jankauskaite (34) and junior Jasmin Flowers (30) not far behind. On the year, NSU has totaled 1.28 blocks per set, compared to 2.33 for opponents.

Strong Hitting
Jarema has hit .462 and .440 in the last two matches, and she and Jankauskaite are the only two players this year to hit above .400 in a match with a minimum of 10 kills. Jankauskaite hit .452 in the first match of the year against Sam Houston State and .667 against UMES on Sept. 14. That latter mark is the best by an NSU player since Elayne Greer hit .692 on Oct. 25, 2009.

National Rankings
In Monday's national rankings release, NSU now stands 28th out of 328 teams with 1.58 service aces per set. Moore's 9.22 assists puts her at No. 163 in the nation as well.

MEAC Rankings
Moore ranks third in the league in assists at 9.22, with Eagles fifth in digs at 3.88. Jankauskaite stands eighth in kills (2.86), ninth in points (3.15) and 10th in hitting percentage (.216).

As a team, NSU ranks third in assists (10.68) and service aces (1.58), fourth in kills (11.22) and opponent hitting percentage (.208), fifth in digs (12.85), sixth in hitting percentage (.123) and 11th in blocks (1.28).

About UMES
A 3-1 win over Delaware State and a sweep of Bethune-Cookman at the Spartan Classic in mid-September are the only two wins of the year for the Hawks. A year after winning the MEAC title, UMES has slumped to 2-15 overall, 1-4 in conference play.

Ashley Smith is the only player averaging more than two kills per set at 2.25. Sonia Rosales and Petra Jerabkova have split time at setter, with Allison Woods tops on the team with 0.29 service aces. Jingqiao Li ranks fourth in the MEAC with 4.30 digs, while Haley Robinson leads all players with 0.67 blocks per set.

About Hampton
The Pirates stand 11-8 overall, with a 3-0 loss to VCU their only setback in the last seven matches. Vendula Strakova continues to be the Hampton offense with 5.72 kills per set, with Krista Kraskura second at 2.39. Bibiany Fonseca is tops in the MEAC with 10.49 assists, and Strakova also leads the team with 0.52 service aces.

Strakova (2.89 digs) and Kraskura (2.64) lead the backcourt defense, with Marija Kocevska tallying a team-best 0.97 blocks.

Up Next
NSU will be on the road next weekend, as the Spartans take on Morgan State and Coppin State on Oct. 25 and 27, respectively.