LOUISVILLE, Ky. (November 13, 2024) – The University of North Alabama volleyball team has already clinched a postseason bid, but will embark on its last roadtrip of the regular season this weekend with road matchups against the Bellarmine Knights and EKU Colonels.
North Alabama hits the road for the first time in nearly a month, taking on the Knights and Colonels for the second time this season. UNA took the first matchups in home fixtures on Oct. 4 and 6, and the Lions will look to sweep the season series and carry momentum into next week's Atlantic Sun Conference Volleyball Tournament. The weekend also is a potential opening-round matchup in the tournament, with the Colonels fourth and the Lions fifth in the standings.
North Alabama opens at the Knights on Thursday, Nov. 14, at 6 p.m., then travels to Richmond to face the Colonels on Sunday, Nov. 16, at 3 p.m. North Alabama's match against Bellarmine will be in Knights Hall, while the EKU contest will be in the Olympic Sports Training Center. Both matches are free of charge to all spectators.
Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+ and have live stats available courtesy of SIDEARM against Bellarmine and StatBroadcast for EKU.
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 Bellarmine
Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024
6 p.m.
Watch | Live Stats | Twitter
MATCH 2
North Alabama at EKU
Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024
3 p.m.
Watch | Live Stats | Twitter
NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: North Alabama split a two-match weekend on Nov. 8-10 against Austin Peay and Lipscomb in home bouts. The Lions opened with a sweep over the Governors before a top-five conference matchup versus the Bisons ended in a 3-1 win for Lipscomb.
A TEAM EFFORT: North Alabama is in the top three of three statistical categories as a team, ranking among the best ASUN teams in opponent service aces, opponent hitting percentage and opponent blocks. The Lions lead the conference in opponent service aces (1.17 per set), while second in opponent hitting percentage (.193 per set) and opponent blocks (1.76 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 367 kills and a 3.63 kill/set average and fifth in points, averaging 4.05 a set. Ricketts also has the second-most kills among the top 10. Graduate Jasmine Brooks also appears in the kills top 10, ranking seventh with 322 and a 3.46 per set average. Freshman Audrey Small is fifth in the ASUN in digs, registering a 4.49 digs/set average with her 471 digs third among the top 10. Sophomore Olivia Fenoff ranks seventh in service aces with 38, and senior Elif Ozsoy is eighth in the conference with 707 assists and a 7.94 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 25 in the NCAA in digs. As of Nov. 13, the Lions are 23rd in the nation in digs, with 1,714 on the season. UNA also ranks in the top 50 in kills (36th/1,329 total) and digs per set (46th/16.32 per set). Freshman Audrey Small is the lone Lions to appear in the top 50 individually with a 30th ranking in the nation in digs.
MILESTONE WATCH North Alabama has several players that have either surpassed career marks or approaching them this season. Ozsoy surpassed the 1,000-assist mark against UT Martin on Sept. 6, with the senior getting her 1,500th career assist against Stetson on Oct. 20. Brooks accumulated her 500th kill against West Georgia on Oct. 25, while Tietz and Sargent secured their 100th career block earlier this season against UT Martin and Stetson, respectively. Senior Katy Floyd earned her 100th career service ace against Bellarmine on Oct. 6. Tietz approaches the 500-kill career mark, totaling 487 kills, and Ozsoy is close to 500-career digs with 481 for her career. Brooks is also approaching 100 career blocks with 98 for her career.
SCOUTING THE LIONS: UNA concluded the home portion of its season against the Bisons, ending with seven wins in CB&S Bank Arena. In the six matches prior to the final weekend, the Lions went 4-2 with victories over West Georgia, Queens, Central Arkansas and Austin Peay. North Alabama also looks to make program history in Kentucky. One win will clinch a 10th ASUN victory for the Lions, marking a new Division I program record for conference wins. UNA set the mark in 2023 with nine wins, setting up the goal to surpass the record by the weekend's end.
SCOUTING BELLARMINE: The Knights are 6-18 on the year with a 3-11 record in conference play. Bellarmine sits ninth in the ASUN standings and will compete with Queens for the eighth and final tournament seed. Queens is one game ahead of Bellarmine and has the head-to-head, meaning Bellarmine would need to beat UNA and hope for a QUC loss to stay alive. Bellarmine dropped both contests against EKU and FGCU last time out on Nov. 5 and 9. The Knights look to break a seven-match losing streak. The Knights' Natalie Bland continues to lead the team in points (338.5) and kills (317), with Bland fourth in the ASUN in kills per set and seventh in points per set. Bellarmine is led by third-year head coach, Rick Nold.
SERIES HISTORY: The Lions and Knights will play for the 10th time, with Bellarmine leading the series, 6-3. North Alabama won the first meeting this season with a 3-1 win in Florence on Oct. 6.
SCOUTING EKU: The Colonels enter the final regular-season weekend at 19-8 overall with a 10-4 record in the ASUN. EKU is currently fourth in the conference, one spot above North Alabama and one game up. EKU won both contests on Nov. 5-9, defeating both Bellarmine and Stetson in 3-1 victories last time out. The Colonels' Sarah Mitchell leads with 397.5 points on a team-high 348 kills. EKU's Carson Ledford and Paige Wagers lead in their respective categories, with Ledford leading in hitting percentage (.367) and Wagers tops in total blocks (117) and blocks per set (1.18). Johnna Bazzani is the head coach for EKU, who is in her sixth season.
SERIES HISTORY: The Lions and Colonels face each other in the seventh all-time meeting, with the series tied at 3-3. North Alabama won the last meeting, 3-1, on Oct. 4, 2024 in Florence, Ala.
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