NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Privateers volleyball team heads to Texas this week for a pair of road matches. The Privateers will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and UIW on Saturday at 11 a.m.
New Orleans split a pair of matches last week. The Privateers defeated Nicholls last Thursday and lost to defending Southland champion, HCU on Saturday. After this weekend, the Privateers will be at the halfway point in league play and currently sit in the seventh spot in the standings.
Buse Kocakaya had a stellar week offensively. The junior college transfer hit .442 for the week. She had 22 kills to just three errors in 43 attempts. On Saturday, Kocakaya hit .643 against statistically the best defense in the league in HCU which came into the weekend allowing the lowest opponent hitting percentage.
Sydney Gott ranks in the top ten in Southland play in a pair of categories. The senior middle is fifth in the conference in hitting percentage at .319 and tied for eighth in blocks per set at 0.88. Gott hit at a .550 clip in the win against Nicholls.
Last season, the Privateers went 3-1 combined against UIW and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. New Orleans swept a season series from UIW for the first time ever and the Privateers won at home against the Islanders in 2022.
SERIES HISTORY
VS. A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI 2-11
VS. UIW 4-9
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi currently sits in second place, a half game behind Southeastern. The Islanders are 6-1 against conference opponents heading into the week. The Islanders are the only team in the conference averaging more than 14 kills per set. Kyndal Payne and Leah Stolfus are first and eighth in the Southland respectively in kills.
UIW suffered a pair of five-set losses last week to Texas A&M-Commerce and Northwestern State. The Cardinals are 1-6 in conference play. Annamarie Alvarez is first in the conference in hitting percentage at .424. Natalie Kimmel leads the league in aces per set at 0.43.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow
@PrivateersVB on Twitter/X,
@PrivateersVB on Instagram, like
/PrivateersVB on Facebook and subscribe to the
PrivateerAthletics YouTube channel.
