FORT MYERS, Fla. (October 17, 2024) – The University of North Alabama volleyball team is set for two important Atlantic Sun Conference matchups in Florida this weekend, taking on the FGCU Eagles and Stetson Hatters.
The roadtrip continues for the Lions, who head to the Sunshine State for two more conference contests. North Alabama split its previous two matchups at Lipscomb and Austin Peay, but they'll look to add two more wins with the conference tournament a month away. Both matches went five sets.
UNA looks to claim victory for the first time against both squads, but it will be a battle of top four teams against FGCU. The Lions are currently fourth in the ASUN standings while the Eagles are second.
The Lions open at FGCU on Friday, Oct. 18 at 5 p.m., followed by Stetson on Sunday, Oct. 20 at noon. North Alabama's match against FGCU will be played in Alico Arena, while the Stetson match will be in the Insight Credit Union Arena at Edmunds Center. Tickets are available for purchase against the Eagles, but the match against the Hatters is free of charge to all spectators.
Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+ and have live stats available courtesy of SIDEARM Live Stats.
Full results and a recap will be posted on RoarLions.com following the action, but fans can also follow along in real time on the UNA Volleyball social media pages.
MATCH 1
North Alabama at FGCU
Friday, Oct. 18, 2024
5 p.m.
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets | Twitter
MATCH 2
North Alabama at Stetson
Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024
NOON
Watch | Live Stats | Twitter
NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: UNA split two matchups on Oct. 11-12 against Lipscomb and Austin Peay, ending the weekend with a five-set road victory over the Governors. North Alabama battled the Bisons to five sets, with Lipscomb taking a tight matchup between top ASUN teams. In both road matches, UNA trailed 2-0 and came-from-behind to tie in the third and fourth sets.
BACK-TO-BACK: Freshman Reese Ricketts' accolade list continues to climb, earning her second-consecutive and fourth overall ASUN Freshman of the Week honor on Tuesday, Oct. 15. Ricketts breaks the record for most ASUN Freshman of the Week honors in the program's Division I history, also winning her fifth weekly honor of the season – also a program Division I record. The other was an ASUN Player of the Week award on Sept. 9.
A TEAM EFFORT: North Alabama is second in the ASUN in four statistical categories as a team, ranking among the best ASUN teams in opponent service aces, opponent hitting percentage, opponent blocks and digs. The Lions have totals of 1.14 opponent service aces per set, 16.29 digs per set, .186 opponent hitting percentage per set and 1.84 opponent blocks per set.
LEADERBOARD LIONS: Five individual Lions are also ranked in the top 10 of the ASUN in respective categories. Ricketts is fifth in kills with 267 kills and a 3.66 kill/set average and sixth in points, averaging four a set. Ricketts also has the second-most kills among the top 10. Fellow freshman Audrey Small is fifth in the ASUN in digs, registering a 4.33 digs/set average with her 316 digs third among the top 10. Small's totals also rank her in the top 50 nationally, with the freshman 36th in the nation. Senior Elif Ozsoy is eighth in the conference with 553 assists and a 7.58 set average, while sophomore Nicole Sargent has 64 blocks and a .88 blocks/average – good for 9th in the ASUN. Sophomore Olivia Fenoff rounds out the leaders with the outside hitter ranking sixth in the conference with 27 service aces and a .38 per set average.
AMONG THE BEST: North Alabama's backline defense has been among the best in the country, with the Lions ranking among the top 20 in the NCAA in digs. As of Oct. 17, the Lions are 17th in the nation in digs, with 1,189 on the season.
MILESTONE WATCH: North Alabama has several players that have either surpassed career marks or approaching them this season. Ozsoy surpassed the 1,000-dig mark against UT Martin on Sept. 6, with the senior now on pace for over 1,500 digs for her career. Graduate Jasmine Brooks and senior Brenna Tietz are approaching 500-kill career mark, totaling 454 and 453 kills, respectively. Brooks is also approaching 100 career blocks with 83 for her career, as well as Sargent with 93. Tietz secured her 100th block at UT Martin earlier this season, with senior Katy Floyd earning her 100th career service ace against Bellarmine on Oct. 6.
SCOUTING THE LIONS: UNA has been victorious in seven of its past 10 matches, including six of the last seven. The Lions picked up non-conference wins against Alabama, Jackson State and Little Rock, also taking ASUN wins against EKU, Bellarmine and Austin Peay. In the span, North Alabama has led in kills (511 to opponents' 506), service aces (63-51) and blocks (82-78.5) while committing fewer attack errors (200-241).
SCOUTING FGCU: The Eagles enter their first weekend matchup at 14-4 overall with 6-1 record in conference play. FGCU is second in the ASUN standings behind league-leading Central Arkansas at 6-0. The Eagles won their last matchup against Stetson on Oct. 15, sweeping the Hatters in Fort Myers, Fla. Shelby Kent leads the ASUN in kills and points, totaling 323 points (4.75 avg/s) and 283 kills (4.16 avg/s). FGCU also has seven other players on the leaderboard list, including the top two in blocks in Skylar English and Raegan Richardson. The Eagles are led by 11th-year head coach Matt Botsford.
SERIES HISTORY: North Alabama and FGCU are playing in the eighth all-time meeting, with the Lions going for its first win in program history over the Eagles.
SCOUTING STETSON: The Hatters come into the match at 3-15 overall with an 0-7 record in the ASUN. Stetson faces the Lions in the second match of its weekend, taking on Central Arkansas first on Friday, Oct. 18. The Hatters have six players in the top 10 in individual statistics, but three come in the blocks category. Ayala Halfon, Kayla Balfour and Leilani Vitale all are in the top 10 in blocks, ranking second, third and eighth, respectively. Yang Deng leads the Hatters, who's in her seventh season with Stetson.
SERIES HISTORY: UNA looks to get its first win against Stetson in the eighth all-time meeting.
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