Privateers Open Southland Tournament Against McNeese State

5) NEW ORLEANS VS. 4) MCNEESE STATE
FRIDAY, NOV. 20 | 1:30 PM
FARRIS CENTER | CONWAY, ARK.

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FIRST SERVE
The New Orleans Privateers volleyball team (19-15, 7-9 Southland) will begin the opening round of the Southland Conference Tournament on Friday when they take on the McNeese State Cowgirls (14-17, 9-7) on Friday. First serve is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at the Farris Center on the campus of Central Arkansas.
 
The Privateers closed their regular season with an exclamation point, defeating Jackson State 3-0 on Monday. The victory marked the Privateers' sixth in their last seven matches against non-conference competition. Cara Sander and Keke Irby each had six kills in the opening set as the Privateers took a 29-27 decision. Irby wound up tying a match-high for kills with 13 and hit .550.
 
2015 marks the first time the Privateers have qualified for the Southland Tournament. It is also the third time the Privateers will see McNeese State this season. Each team won on their home floor with the Privateers taking a four-set victory on Oct. 30 and the Cowgirls winning 3-1 in Lake Charles on Nov. 10.
 
Blessing Dunn earned Southland Conference Honorable Mention after leading the team in kills with 293 339.5 points. Dunn also posted 243 digs and 31 service aces. On the season, Dunn had 17 matches with 10 or more kills including a match-best 16 in the Privateers' first conference victory against Nicholls on Oct. 6.
 
QUICK HITS
-The Privateers went 5-0 in neutral site matches, posting wins over Presbyterian, Fordham, Alabama A&M, South Carolina State and Citadel.
-Celeste Ramirez became the first Privateer to record 1,000 assists in a season since 2007 (Jaci Bayley).
-The Privateers are 19-22 all-time against McNeese State heading into Friday's match. Friday will be the third ever meeting between the two teams in a postseason setting.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
The Privateers will first take on McNeese State who finished the regular season by winning four of their last five matches. The Cowgirls defeated Nicholls 3-1 in their regular season finale. Three players went over 10 kills including Malina Sanchez who led the way with 14. The Cowgirls held the Colonels to just a .121 attack percentage.
 
The Cowgirls are in the conference tournament for the 29^th time, which leads the league. This marks their first appearance under Head Coach Ashleigh Fitzgerald who is in her second year. Two players were named All-Southland: Sanchez and Kelly Graham.
 
Bridget Justis ranked fourth in the Southland in digs per set during the regular season and recorded 530 total. Justis recorded 10 or more digs in every match after Sept. 19 and achieved her season best of 29 twice (vs. Central Arkansas and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.) As a team, the Cowgirls ranked fourth in the conference in digs.
 
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