Volleyball Hosts Northwestern State On Tuesday

NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans volleyball team begins a week of three matches on Tuesday, Nov. 1, when the Privateers host Northwestern State. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.

The two sides met earlier this season, with Northwestern prevailing at home 3-0. Junior middle blocker Rondolyn Bryant (Exercise Physiology) paced the offense with nine kills while Samantha Uline (Exercise Physiology) had a team-high 11 digs.

"When we played against them last we did not receive as well as we are capable of," head coach Millicent Van Norden explained. "If we can have a quality first contact throughout the match and run the offense we are tough to defend. We struggle to score when we are out of system which has affected us this season."

New Orleans (4-21, 1-11 SLC) returns home after a week on the road, most recently dropping a 3-1 decision at Nicholls. UNO averages 11.59 kills on a .154 hitting percentage with 13.84 digs, 10.87 assists, 1.56 blocks and a Southland Conference-best 1.64 service aces, the 22^nd highest average in the country.

Individually, freshman setter Sarah Thomas (Accounting & Finance) averages 9.64 assists per set, the second-highest average in the league, sending the bulk of her sets to freshman outside hitter Jordan Yauch (Biological Science), sophomore Blessing Dunn (Business Management) and freshman Brianna Vega (Biological Science) who all average over two kills per set with marks of 2.70, 2.21 and 2.21 respectively. Senior middle blocker Keke Richards (Business Management) and junior Kaitlyn Grice (Biology) both rank in the top 10 of the conference in hitting percentage with .290 and .286 clips, ranking fifth and ninth. Junior Cara Sander (Marketing) leads UNO's strong service game with 0.36 aces per set, second-best average in the SLC, with Yauch chipping in the fourth-best mark at 0.33.

On defense, Uline anchors the Privateers with 3.81 digs, ranking seventh in the SLC, followed by Dunn with 3.00. At the net, Grice leads UNO with 0.81 blocks per set.

Northwestern State (11-16, 6-6 SLC) enters the match after a one-match week, falling 3-0 on the road at Abilene Christian. The Lady Demons boast one of the top defensive units in the Southland Conference, ranking second in the league and 23^rd in Division I in digs with 16.43 while  averaging 11.31 kills on a .138 hitting percentage with 10.62 assists, 1.62 blocks and 1.26 service aces.

Channing Burleson leads Northwestern State's defense with 4.93 digs per set, the third-highest average in the SLC and 44^th in the country, while Alexis Warren chips in 3.07 digs and a team-best 2.99 kills. Natalie Jaeger sets up the Lady Demons with 9.05 assists, ranking sixth in the league, and is their top threat from the service line with the third-best ace per set mark at 0.34.

The Privateers are back in action on Thursday, Nov. 3, when they travel to Nacogdoches, Texas to take on Stephen F. Austin. UNO returns to the Human Performance Center on Saturday, Nov. 12 when they host Southeastern Louisiana in the last match of the season at 2 p.m. Admission to all home volleyball matches is free.