Volleyball Travels to Top Defensive Team In The Country On Thursday

NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans volleyball begins its final road swing of the 2016 season on Thursday, Nov. 3, when the Privateers take on Stephen F. Austin at 6:30 p.m. The match will be carried on ESPN3.

This is the lone matchup between the two sides this season. In the 2015 installment of the series, Stephen F. Austin bested the Privateers at the HPC 3-1. Then-freshman middle blocker Kaitlyn Grice (Biology) recorded a match-high six blocks while outside hitter Blessing Dunn (Business Management) led UNO with 11 kills and nine digs

"We will have to run a tempo offense to offset their strong blocking," head coach Millicent Van Norden said. "We need to work on how we start; the slow starts have been one of our biggest obstacles to overcome this season."

New Orleans (4-22, 1-12 SLC) enters the contest after a competitive match at home against Northwestern State, losing 3-1. The Privateers average 11.56 kills on a .156 hitting percentage with 13.71 digs, 10.82 digs, 1.61 blocks and a Southland Conference-best 1.60 service aces.

Freshman setter Sarah Thomas (Accounting & Finance) quarterbacks the offense with 9.62 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 Dunn and freshman Brianna Vega (Biological Science) who all average over two kills per set with 2.69, 2.17 and 2.08 respectively. The royal blue & silver boast two of the most accurate hitters in the conference in senior middle blocker Keke Richards (Business Management) and sophomore Grice who are both hitting .293 on the season. From the service line, junior outside hitter Cara Sanders (Marketing) ranks second in the SLC with 0.36 aces per set while Yauch leads UNO in total aces with 29.

Defensively, sophomore defensive specialist Samantha Uline (Exercise Physiology) anchors the Privateers with 3.74 digs per set, the eighth-highest mark in the conference, followed by Dunn at 3.00. At the net, UNO has three student-athletes averaging over 0.5 blocks led by Grice with 0.85.

Stephen F. Austin (16-9, 9-3 SLC) returns to its homecourt after a three-match road swing, ending with a 3-1 loss to Sam Houston State that snapped their four-match winning streak. The Ladyjacks lead the conference in digs with 18.18, sixth-highest in the country and  in blocks with 2.50 while boasting the top individually with Lexus Cain, the reigning Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week, averaging the 5.35 digs and Justice Walker recording 1.17 blocks, SFA also averaging 11.82 kills on a .181 hitting percentage with 11.01 assists and 1.19 service aces.

The Ladyjacks attack is led by Abby McIntyre who averages 2.50 kills on a .224 hitting percentage, followed by Walker with 2.15 kills on a .324 clip. Ann Hollas feeds the offense as Stephen F. Austin's primary setter, averaging 8.21 assists per set.

UNO continues its final road trip of the season on Saturday, Nov. 5 when New Orleans takes on Sam Houston State. The Privateers conclude the 2016 campaign at home on Saturday, Nov. 12 when the royal blue & silver host Southeastern Louisiana.