Women's Volleyball Readies for SMU and Tulsa
11/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 5, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The Southern Miss women's volleyball looks to extend its winning streak this weekend when it hosts SMU and Tulsa. USM's match with SMU is set for Friday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m., while the Golden Eagles will meet the Golden Hurricane on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 1 p.m.
Southern Miss improved to 23-4 and 11-2 in conference play with two C-USA victories on Oc. 30 and Nov. 1. The Golden Eagles defeated Memphis in straight sets (25-18, 25-22, 25-14) and UAB in five sets (25-21, 14-25, 24-26, 25-16, 15-12).
Southern Miss averaged 13.38 kills, 12.50 assists, 1.25 aces, 18.62 digs and 2.75 blocks per set for the weekend. Redshirt sophomore Ashley Mell the squad totaling 28 kills (3.50 kps) to go with 34 digs (4.25 dps) and sophomore Kelsea Seymour setter posted 86 assists (10.75 aps). Senior Angela Hlavaty, who missed the two matches prior to last weekend, totaled 25 kills (3.12 kps) while attacking at a .271 clip. She also led the squad with 10 total blocks (1.25). Senior libero Maia Ivanova led the team with 32 digs (4.0) and had on ace.
Mell continues to lead the team in kills with 325 (3.39 kps), while Seymour has totaled 1042 assists (10.53 aps). Ivanova, who topped the 1,800-dig mark this season, has 452 (4.48 dps). SJ Bowden leads the team in total blocks with 96.
SMU is coming off a weekend where it lost to Tulane in four sets, but defeated UTEP in three sets. The Mustangs own an 18-8 record and 8-4 in league play. Dana Powell leads the Mustangs offensively with 382 kills (3.90 kps), while Sidney Stewart patrols the back row with a team-leading 467 digs (4.58 dps). At the net, Kendra Kahanek and Courtney Manning are averaging over 1.10 blocks per set. Setter Kelli Becerra is averaging 10.45 assists per set.
Tulsa is on an 11-match winning streak after dropping its first two C-USA matches to Tulane and UTEP to open its conference slate. Tyler Henderson, the current C-USA Offensive Player of the Week, leads the Hurricane in kills with 397 (4.27 kps), while Jessica Adams has a team-best 471 digs (5.01 dps).
The Golden Eagles conclude the regular season when they host UCF at 7 p.m. in Reed Green Coliseum, Nov. 13.