Volleyball Prepares for Final Regular-Season Tournament

Sept. 19, 2013

CINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati volleyball team will travel to East Lansing, Mich., on Thursday to participate in its final regular-season tournament, the Auto-Owners Insurance Spartan Invitational. The Bearcats will face Duquesne University at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 20 before playing Eastern Michigan University and host No. 14 Michigan State University on Saturday, Sept., 21 at 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., respectively.

FIVE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

1. A total of six players recorded at least one career-high mark during the 3-2 loss to Northern Kentucky as part of the UC Invitational II at Fifth Third Bank on Sept. 14. Sophomore Amelia Wegman collected a career-high 19 kills and a career-high 15 digs for her first-career double-double. Freshman Ciara Hill also managed her first-career double-double with a career-best 17 kills and a career-high 10 digs while also adding a career-high two service aces. Additionally, junior Me'Ashah Nicholson tallied a career-best 16 kills, freshman Kristin Conor dished out a career-best 52 assists and had a career-high nine digs, freshman Breanna Barksdale recorded a career-high five blocks and freshman Shelby Green had a career-high four assists.
2. Freshman Kristin Conor and junior Madi Lang are both ranked in the latest American Athletic Conference statistical leaderboards. Conor sits in ninth place in the league with a 5.70 assists per set ratio while Lang is one spot behind in tenth place with 5.42 assists per set.
3. Three Bearcats have been named to All-Tournament teams through the first three weeks of the season. On Aug. 31, Nicholson was named to the All-Tournament team of the UC Invitational held at Cincinnati. The junior recorded 20 kills, six digs and 10 blocks during the season's first three matches. Sophomore Morgan Allred was named to the Bobcat Invitational All-Tournament team on Sept. 7 after finishing with 17 kills and 22 digs for a 1.78 digs/set ratio. Wegman was the latest honoree, earning All-Tournament accolades at the UC Invitational II on Sept. 14. The sophomore hit 36 kills for a 3.27 kills/set clip. She also had 34 digs and five blocks through the tournament and finished with a career performance against Northern Kentucky with 19 kills and 15 digs.
4. The Bearcats have recorded a 10-7-2 record against its three opponents at this weekend's Spartan Invitational - Duquesne, Eastern Michigan and Michigan State. UC is undefeated against the Dukes in five meetings, while it has an even 3-3-1 mark against the Eagles of EMU. Cincinnati has a 2-4-1 mark against the Spartans, with the last meeting coming in 1990.
5. The Cincinnati volleyball team will face a ranked opponent for the third time this season when it matches up against No. 14 Michigan State at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. The Bearcats are 0-2 versus No. 24 North Carolina and No. 21 Western Kentucky in 2013.

-GoBEARCATS.com-