Volleyball Hosts Southeastern Louisiana On Senior Day

NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans volleyball ends the 2016 on Saturday, Nov. 12, with a home match against Southland Conference foe Southeastern Louisiana. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m.

Prior to the match, UNO will honor its three seniors in right side hitter Takierra Boughton (Interdisciplinary Studies), middle blocker Keke Richards (Business Management) and outside hitter Cara Sander (Marketing).

"Our three seniors have been an intricate part of the rebuilding of our program," head coach Millicent Van Norden explained. "Even though things this season didn't go as planned, winning tomorrow will prove that although things have been tough we are very committed to our future."

In the first leg of the regular season series, UNO left Hammond, Louisiana with a 3-2 victory, extending the Privateers' current winning streak over the Lions to three. Sophomore defensive specialist Samantha Uline (Exercise Physiology) posted a career-high 30 digs in the match while sophomore outside hitter Blessing Dunn (Business Management) logged 18 kills and digs for a double-double. All-Time, the Privateers lead the series 40-20.

New Orleans (5-24, 1-14 SLC) enters the season finale after ending its road slate with a 3-0 victory over Jackson State. The Privateers average 11.41 kills on a .150 hitting percentage with 13.94 digs, 10.70 assists, 1.67 blocks and a Southland Conference best 1.57 service aces.

Freshman Sarah Thomas (Accounting & Finance) quarterbacks the offense with 9.54 assists per set, third-highest in the conference, with freshman outside hitter Jordan Yauch (Biological Science) recording a team-best 2.78 kills per set and ranks third in the league with 0.33 service aces. Richards boasts the top hitting percentage on the team at .280, ranking eighth in the conference, followed by sophomore Kaitlyn Grice (Biology) who ranks ninth with a .271 clip.

On defense, sophomore defensive specialist Samantha Uline leads the Privateers with 3.52 digs per set, ranking eighth in the SLC, followed by Dunn who averages 3.03. At the net, Grice posts a team-best 0.89 blocks per set.

Southeastern Louisiana (6-22, 5-10 SLC) enters its final match of the season after a 3-0 setback at Stephen F. Austin. The Lions average 11.0 kills on a .141 hitting percentage with 15.3 digs, 10.3 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.1 service aces.
               
Southeastern boasts one of the most versatile student-athletes in the country in Elyssa Purcell, who is tied for the most triple doubles in Division I with eight. Chloee Holden leads the offense with 2.13, with Haley Baker posting 5.26 assists as the Lions' primary setter. On defense, Monica Ramon leads Southeastern with 3.81 digs.