Volleyball To Play Thursday at McNeese State

NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans volleyball team travels to Lake Charles, Louisiana on Thursday, Oct. 27, when the Privateers take on McNeese State in the second leg of the regular season series.

When the two sides met at the Human Performance Center earlier this season, McNeese prevailed over UNO 3-1, giving them a 24-19 lead in the all-time series. Freshman outside hitter Jordan Yauch (Biological Sciences) led UNO in the contest with 13 kills on a .273 hitting percentage with four service aces while defensive specialist Samantha Uline (Exercise Physiology) boasted 27 digs.

"Heading into the final stretch of the schedule, every team we are facing we will have played once already," head coach Millicent Van Norden explained. "McNeese is a team that's looking for postseason positioning and will play aggressive. They are one of the more accurate hitting teams in our conference, so we will need to be prepared on defense."

New Orleans (4-19, 1-9 SLC) enters the contest after a week of three home matches, falling in the finale 3-0 to Incarnate Word. The Privateers average 11.56 kills on a .153 hitting percentage with 13.39 digs, 10.88 assists, 1.62 blocks and 1.61 service aces, best in the Southland Conference and 25^th in Division I.

Freshman setter Sarah Thomas (Accounting & Finances) sets up the offense with 9.56 assists per set, sending the bulk of her sets to Yauch, sophomore outside hitter Blessing Dunn (Business Management) and freshman Brianna Vega (Biological Sciences) who average 2.70, 2.24 and 2.16 kills respectively. From the service line, junior outside hitter Cara Sander (Marketing) paces the Privateers with 0.38 aces per set.

On defense, Uline averages 3.70 digs, followed by Dunn with 2.93. Sophomore middle blocker Kaitlyn Grice (Biology) is UNO's top enforcer at the net with 0.82 blocks per set.

McNeese (8-17, 4-6 SLC) enters the second week of a four-match homestand, splitting its opening two matches of the span against Houston Baptist and Lamar. The Cowgirls average 11.89 kills on a .184 clip with 15.78 digs, 11.19 assists, 1.39 blocks and 0.81 service aces.
Alexandra Aguilera quarterbacks the offense with 9.6 assists, the second-best average in the conference, with five McNeese players averaging over 2.0 kills per set led by Katelyn Elliot with 2.91. Justic Bridget anchors the Cowgirls' defense with 4.55 digs, followed by Adison Giambrone with 2.46, while Jenny D'Alessanndro averaging a team-best 0.67 blocks.

UNO returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 29, when New Orleans concludes the regular season series against Nicholls at 6:30 p.m. in Thibodaux, Louisiana. The Privateers return to the Human Performance Center on Tuesday, Nov. 1, when Northwestern State comes to town with first serve slated for 7 p.m. Admission to all home volleyball matches is free.