Thursday
NSU vs. Morgan State, 7 p.m., Joseph Echols Hall
Live Stats | Live Video

Tuesday
NSU at VCU, 7 p.m., Verizon Wireless Arena
Live Stats | Live Video

NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State volleyball team will play its third straight conference match at home this Thursday as the Spartans take on Morgan State at 7 p.m. at Joseph Echols Hall.

After getting the weekend off, the volleyball team will also play at Virginia Commonwealth next Tuesday at 7 p.m.

The match against the Bears on Thursday is also part of a stretch in which NSU will play five of its first six conference matches at home before hitting the road for five of the last six MEAC contests during the latter end of the season.

NSU will offer free live stats for the contest against Morgan State as well as a live video feed. Cost of the video feed is $5 for a single match. VCU will have both live stats and a live video feed for the match with NSU.

The Spartans own a 5-11 record, including 1-1 in the MEAC, after facing Hampton and Coppin State last weekend. Morgan State dropped a pair of contests to those same schools last week, dropping its record to 5-10 overall and 0-2 in the MEAC. VCU stands 12-4 heading into Wednesday's matchup with Hampton.

Scouting the Spartans
Sophomore Jessica Johnson bumped her numbers up over the weekend and currently edges out teammate Goda Jankauskaite for the team lead in kills with 2.66. Jankauskaite averages 2.60 per set, with sophomore Janay Frazier (1.95) stepping up recently.

Senior Coralie Jarema has the third most total kills on the team with 80, while junior Adriana Ramos leads all players with 0.32 service aces.

Sophomore Darcy Moore has posted 9.16 assists and is also second on the team in digs with 2.28. Redshirt junior Noelle Eagles has posted 3.74 digs, and Jarema paces the way with 0.51 blocks.

Rankings
Moore ranks third in the MEAC with 9.16 assists per set, with Eagles sixth in digs at 3.74. Johnson stands ninth in kills with 2.66 and 10th in points with 2.97. Jankauskaite is tied for ninth in hitting percentage at .210 and 10th in kills behind Johnson with 2.60.

The Spartans rank third in assists (10.61), kills (11.11) and service aces (1.65), fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.217), fifth in hitting percentage (.124) and digs (12.95), and 11th in blocks (1.25).

NSU also ranks 30th in the nation in service aces per set.

Defensive Presence
The Spartans held Coppin State to a .052 attack percentage on Sunday, the lowest mark by an opponent all season and the third time an opponent hit less than .100 in a match.

About the Bears
Morgan State came back in the third and fourth sets but ultimately fell short against Coppin State last Friday, 3-2. Hampton easily won on Sunday against the Bears, 3-0. Morgan State has picked up wins against programs such as Providence, La Salle and Lehigh this year.

MSU's offense is led by Samantha Prescott, the only player averaging better than two kills per set (2.14). Janelle Wilson and Haley McClure also chip in on the offensive side, with Ngebui Chefeh serving as the team's primary setter.

Prescott (2.98 digs per set) and Tamara Leslie (2.77) anchor the backcourt defense, with Wilson (0.72 blocks) and Zuri Smith (0.71) serving as the team's best blockers.

About VCU
Romana Kriskova carries the VCU offense, averaging 4.82 kills per set, with Kalah Jones the only other player averaging more than one and a half kills per set at 2.95. Cecilia Aragao tallies 9.70 assists per set, with Kriskova also the team's top scorer on serve with 0.35 service aces per set.

Amanda Love has posted 3.42 digs per set to lead the Rams, with Aragao (2.26) and Kriskova (2.03) also contributing. Janelle Sykes leads the way with 1.33 blocks, followed by Aragao (1.15) and Nora Reed (1.03). VCU averages 2.63 blocks per set as a team.

Up Next
After next Tuesday's contest at VCU, the Spartans will play their first MEAC road match of the year on Oct. 11 at Howard.