MATCH FACTS – – The No. 6-ranked Emory volleyball team returns home for the first time in a month this Friday and Saturday (Oct. 26-27) when it hosts its National Invitational Tournament. Joining the Eagles in this weekend's action will be Wittenberg University, Washington and Lee and UMASS-Boston. The schedule of matches is as follows:
Friday, October 26
1:00 pm – Wittenberg vs. Washington & Lee
3:30 pm – Washington & Lee vs. UMASS-Boston
6:00 pm – Emory vs. Wittenberg
Saturday, October 27
10:30 am – Wittenberg vs. UMASS-Boston
1:00 pm – Emory vs. Washington & Lee
3:30 pm – Emory vs. UMASS-Boston
Prior to Emory's Friday evening match vs. Wittenberg, the Eagles will hold Senior Night ceremonies with the program recognizing the accomplishments and contributions of Breanah Bourque, Alex Duhl, Alena Ransom and Taylor Trew.
THE COACHES – Emory Head Coach Jenny McDowell (Georgia, '89) is in her 17th year at the helm of the Eagles' program. During her stint at Emory, McDowell has posted a school and career won-lost ledger of 539-132. She has 13 campaigns of 30 or more wins, including last year's 36-5 slate, and has directed the program to 16 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament. She has steered the Eagles to three berths to the national semifinals and has a national championship to her credit in 2008.
Wittenberg is guided by Paco Labrador (Hiram, '95), who is in his 10th year at the helm of the Tigers' program. Heading into the Invitational, he has compiled a school and career won-lost ledger of 315-45 that includes a 37-3 mark en route to the 2011 D-III national crown.
In his 13th season in directing the fortunes at Washington & Lee is Bryan Snyder (W&L, '95). Heading into a Wednesday match vs. Bridgewater, Snyder has compiled an impressive school and career mark of 361-97. In 15 campaigns as a head coach, which includes a two-year stint at St. Mary's (MD), Snyder has a career performance of 402-122.
Terry Condon (UCLA, '77) is in her eighth campaign as head coach at UMASS-Boston and will bring a school record of 168-74 into the weekend's action. Condon, who also has head coaching stints at Cal State Bakersfield and Texas A&M, has a career slate of 360-187.
RECORDS – Emory, ranked No. 6 in this week's AVCA Poll, holds a record of 27-4. The Eagles are coming off an 8-1 record of its nine-match road swing of Pennsylvania that started at the UAA Round Robin II (3-1) followed by wins at Slippery Rock and Point Park. This past weekend, Emory came away with a 3-0 showing at Juniata College's Wid Guisler Invitational, defeating No. 21 and host Juniata (3-0), No. 23 Eastern (3-1) and Heidelberg (3-1). This weekend's matches will be the team's first home contests since the weekend of Sept. 24-25.
Wittenberg, ranked No. 3 nationally among D-III programs, comes to town with an overall record of 19-4. A member of the North Coast Athletic Conference, the Tigers own a six-match winning streak that includes 3-0 triumphs over conference foes Allegheny and Marietta (OH) last weekend.
Washington and Lee sports an overall mark of 21-7 as it prepares for the Wednesday bout vs. Bridgewater. The Generals started the week with wins in their last seven outings.
The Beacons of UMASS-Boston claim an overall effort of 15-8 following a 3-2 setback to Little East Conference opponent Plymouth State on Tuesday.
SERIES RECORDS – Emory holds a slim 5-4 edge in the all-time series against Wittenberg. The last meeting between the programs took place when the Tigers hosted Emory at the 2011 Wittenberg Invitational, topping the Eagles by a 3-1 margin.
Emory has captured 22 of the 23 meetings vs. Washington and Lee. The Eagles and Generals met earlier this year at the Maryville College Tournament with Emory prevailing by a 3-0 margin.
Saturday's match between Emory and UMASS-Boston will represent the first-ever meeting in volleyball.
EMORY IN THE RANKINGS – In UAA statistics released at the start of the week, Emory holds down the No. 2 spot in the conference (22nd nationally) with a .243 hitting percentage … The Eagles have hit .300 or better in eight matches this year ... Emory is averaging 12.03 assists per set, good for the No. 2 spot in the league and 19th on the national scene ... The Eagles also stand No. 2 in the loop (22nd nationally) with a 13.05 kills-per-set average ... Individually, senior Breanah Bourque (Houston, TX) ranks as the UAA's most efficient hitter with her .385 attack percentage good for the No. 15 position among all D-III players ... Freshman setter Sydney Miles (Oklahoma City, OK) also finds herself as among the nation's leaders with her 10.57 assists per set average 14th nationally.
BOURQUE NAMED AVCA D-III NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Breanah Bourque was tabbed as the Sports Imports/AVCA Division III National Player of the Week after helping the Eagles to a 5-0 record. She led the squad in kills in all five outings and closed out the week with team-leading averages in kills (5.12 kps), attack percentage (.467) and blocks (0.76 bps).
Included in her totals was a MVP performance at the Wid Guisler Invitational where she averaged a team-high 5.09 kills, hit .484 (56-10--95) and chalked up a club-best 0.82 blocks per set. In a 3-0 win over No. 21 Juniata, she pounded out 16 terminations and totaled four blocks and followed that performance by blasting away for 18 kills that accompanied a .630 attack percentage (18-1--27), the second-best mark by any Emory player this year, and five blocks in a 3-1 triumph vs. No. 23 Eastern. In the final match of the Invitational, she totaled 22 kills, tying her second-highest career total, and hit .571 (22-2--35) in a 3-1 triumph vs. Heidelberg. Bourque's selection represents the seventh time that an Emory player has earned the Sports Imports/AVCA Division III National Player of the Week Award.
ERWIN NAMED UAA DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Freshman Taylor Erwin (Woodlands, TX) was recognized by the UAA and chosen as the league's Defensive Player of the Week after playing in all 17 of the team's sets over the five matches and averaging a squad-best 4.65 digs per set. Erwin topped the Eagles in digs in three matches including back-to-back outings of 20 defensive saves in triumphs over Division II member Slippery Rock and NAIA foe Point Park University. She continued her heady defensive play at the Guisler Invitational, landing a spot on the all-tournament team, registering a team-high 14 digs in a 3-1 decision over Juniata followed later by 18 digs in the match vs. Heidelberg.
EMORY AND TOP 25 OPPONENTS – Emory met up with three top-25 ranked Division III teams during its Pennsylvania trip and posted a 2-1 verdict in those encounters. Entering this weekend, the Eagles stand 7-1 against top 25 foes (2-0 at home, 5-1 at neutral/road sites) this year. The Eagles have fared well against opponents that have garnered top 25 acclaim, fashioning a won-lost effort of 27-7 in those matches since the 2010 season.
EMORY WELL VERSED IN FIVE-SET MATCHES – The five-set battle against No. 1 Washington University (Oct. 14) at the UAA Round Robin II represented the Eagles' eighth five-set match of the season, well surpassing last year's total of four. So far this year, Emory stands 5-3 in five-set affairs and claims a 13-6 ledger in such matches since the 2010 season.
EMORY BATTLES BACK FROM DEFICITS -- Emory bounced back from a pair of 0-2 deficits and came away with victories against Cal Lutheran and Trinity at the Trinity Invitational (Sept. 14-15), the first time an Eagle team had posted a comeback win like that since the 2008 NCAA Tournament vs. Ohio Northern.
Ironically, prior to the CLU and TU matches, Emory had recorded comeback wins from 0-2 obstacles just 10 other times in school annals.
EMORY MAKES THE MOST OF HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE -- Since 1992, Emory volleyball has won close to 86 percent of its home matches, compiling an impressive 293-48 won-lost record in that stretch.
Since 2008, the Eagles have hammered out an impressive 70-5 slate in matches contested at the Woodruff PE Center including a 17-1 effort in 2011.
NOTES: In addition to Bourque and Erwin, senior middle Alex Duhl (Los Angeles) was chosen to the Guisler Invitational All-Tournament Team after chalking up double-figure kills in all three matches and finishing with a classy .438 hitting percentage (37-5—73). Duhl also averaged 0.72 blocks over 11 sets of play … Duhl has 15 career contests of 10 or more terminations, 11 of which have come during the 2012 season … In her last five matches, Duhl is hitting .420 (50-8—100) … Her 270 career blocks is good for the No. 12 position on the school's all-time list … Erwin enters the weekend with nine matches of 20 or more digs this year and her total of 500 ranks fifth on the Eagles' seasonal chart, definitely within striking distance of the top mark of 574 set by defensive dynamo Maggie Ramm in 2007 … Sophomore Kate Bowman (Corpus Christi, TX) totaled 11 kills in the Heidelberg match, her 16th performance of double digits in that category this year … Bowman also contributed 14 digs vs. the 'Berg, her 13th double-double (kills/digs) of the campaign … Sophomore Cami Silverman (Bellevue, WA) came through with a pair of back-to-back performances of 13 terminations, tying her season high, in the Eastern and Heidelberg contests … In addition, the 5-foot-11 Silverman picked up a career-best 23 digs in the Heidelberg affair, her 20th match of double digits … Silverman's 353 digs is 19th on Emory's seasonal chart … Freshman setter Sydney Miles (Oklahoma City, OK) continues her climb up the school's season ladder with her 1,035 assists placing her 18th … Bourque has pounded 1,405 kills during her four-year career, good for the No. 7 slot all-time at Emory … Bourque also figures prominently on the Eagles' career chart with 375 total blocks, good for seventh place.
ON THE HORIZON – Following the hosting of the National Invitational this weekend, Emory will gear up for welcoming its conference members to Atlanta when the Woodruff PE Center serves as the host venue for the UAA Championships, Nov. 2-3.