Thursday, November 17, 2011

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The first round of play in the 2011 Atlantic Sun Volleyball Championship is set for play on Thursday between third-seeded FGCU and No. 6 seed North Florida at 5 p.m. CT and No. 4 seed Kennesaw State and fifth-seeded ETSU at 7:30 p.m.

The Eagles swept the regular season meeting against the Ospreys, which included a 3-2 win at UNF on Nov. 11th. FGCU also defeated North Florida, 3-0, on Sept. 24th in Fort Myers.

The Owls and Lady Bucs split the regular-season meeting with both teams claiming victories on the road. Kennesaw State captured a 3-0 win on Oct. 22nd in Johnson City, while ETSU returned to Kennesaw six days later to earn a 3-2 triumph.

The top-seeded Belmont Bruins await the winner of the Kennesaw State/ETSU match, while host school, Lipscomb earns the winner of FGCU and North Florida.

FGCU vs. North Florida Match Notes:
• FGCU is making their second-ever appearance in the A-Sun Championship. In their first appearance in 2009, the Eagles advanced to the Championship Final as a three-seed in Fort Myers.
• In four of the last six championships, the three seed has reached the championship final, but has not won the title since FAU in 1999.
• The Eagles are 4-2 in their last six matches.
• The last team to reach the finals after missing the previous year’s championship was ETSU last season. No team has ever won the title after missing the previous year.
• FGCU earned two wins in the regular season against UNF with a 3-0 win at Fort Myers (9-24) and a 3-2 road win in Jacksonville on Nov. 11.
• Freshman of the Year Jill Hopper led all freshman with 358 kills and ranked seventh in the A-Sun for points/set with 3.74.
• Senior Holly Youngquist ranks sixth all-time in the A-Sun for career digs with 1,630. With nine more she will move into fifth place and with 14 will take over fourth-most all-time.
• Six seeds are 2-12 all-time in the current format of tournament play. Those two wins came in 2003 and 1997. All-time, six seeds are 9-20.
• Junior Paige Pridgeon has 1,139 career kills, which is second-most amongst active A-Sun players. She is 42 kills away from tying for 11th all-time in the A-Sun.
• Nicole Baran ranks fourth-best in the A-Sun amongst active players with 1,247 career digs. It also ranks her 12th most in A-Sun history.
• This marks UNF’s second appearance in the championship with their previous coming last season, also as the six-seed.
• The Ospreys enter 6-2 in their last eight matches. UNF doubled their win total from last season (7-22).
• North Florida’s last win against FGCU came on Nov. 11, 2005. FGCU owns the series advantage at 12-2 all-time.
• Dagnija Medina’s 182 career blocks is seventh-most amongst active players.
• Casey Giovanazzi’s 65 assists against Jacksonville on Oct. 21 are the most in the A-Sun since Sept. 26, 2009 when UNF’s Jessica Catelano tallied 68 vs. FGCU.

Kennesaw State vs. ETSU Match Notes:
• In four of the last 10 championships the four-seed has reached the championship final. On two occassions they have won the title (Lipscomb - 2007; Jacksonville - 2004).
• Sara Metroka’s 2,031 career assists ranks as the third-most amongst active players.
• Holly Knight’s 238 career blocks is fourth-most amongst active players.
• Kennesaw State has appeared in three-straight A-Sun Championships, which is the third-longest streak. However, the Owls are still searching for their first win.
• The Owls enter with a 8-3 record in their past 11 matches, which includes a season-high six match winning streak from Sept. 30-Oct. 22.
• Alyssa Lang was one of three players selected as unanimous choices to the first team all-conference.
• Kennesaw State and ETSU split the regular-season match-up with both teams capturing wins on the road.
• The last five-seed to win in the A-Sun Championship was ETSU in 2008 with a 3-2 victory against #4 Mercer, 3-2. In the current format, five-seeds are 2-14 all-time.
• On 12 occassions, the runner-up from the previous year’s championship has returned to the championship final. Four times the runner-up has won the following year’s title.
• Senior Jamie Stancliff leads all active A-Sun players with 321 career blocks. She is 12 away from tying for 10th in the A-Sun for career blocks.
• ETSU is one of two A-Sun teams (Belmont) to defeat Lipscomb in the past three seasons.
• ETSU enters with a 4-2 record in their past six matches.
• Sophomore Megan Devine recorded 465 kills this season, which ranks second-most in the A-Sun. Her 825 career kills is seventh-most amongst active players.
• Kiley Tamblyn has 1000 career digs, which makes her one of seven in the A-Sun to reach that mark.

All Championship matches are broadcasted for free on ASun.TV.

Follow the Atlantic Sun on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.