NEW ORLEANS, La. ? Coming off its first Sun Belt Conference victory of the season, the South Alabama volleyball team will begin a three-match road swing Thursday evening when it travels to New Orleans to take on the Privateers at 7 p.m. at the Human Performance Center. USA will also face Louisiana-Lafayette ? Friday at 5 p.m. ? and Louisiana-Monroe ? Sunday at 1 p.m. ? on the road swing.
Live webcast can be accessed at www.usajaguars.com as part of the Jaguar Nation package. A monthly subscription to Jaguar Nation is just $9.95. Friday night’s contest versus Louisiana-Lafayette will also be available via the web, as well as live stats.
South Alabama (7-6, 1-4 SBC) enters the Sun Belt Conference match versus New Orleans riding the momentum of a 3-1 (25-21, 19-25, 25-17, 25-18) victory over Troy for its first SBC victory of the year on Monday.
The trio of Tereza Bendlova (12), Hristina Markova (10) and Juliana Pallamin de Almeida (10) led the way offensively for the Jags. Almeida also added 10 digs to give the Jag sophomore her fourth straight double-double of the season. Senior middle blocker Brittany Blackwelder also became USA’s all-time career block assists leader against Troy.
Coming into the contest versus the Privateers, four starters are averaging over two kills each, led by Markova’s 2.61 kills per set. Almeida is close behind her at 2.58 kps, followed by Bendlova and Lindsay Schwartz, who are each averaging 2.30 kps.
Defensively, freshman libero Samia Salomao leads the way with 4.12 digs per set. Through 13 matches, Salomao has recorded double-digit dig tallies 10 times. Schwartz and Blackwelder have also provided stellar defensive play for the Jags this season as the duo ranks fourth and fifth in the Sun Belt, respectively, in blocks per set entering play this week. Schwartz comes into the match against UNO averaging a team-best 1.14 per set, while Blackwelder is close behind (1.00 bps).
Entering play this past week, USA led the SBC in service aces. The Jags are averaging 1.56 aces per set, while allowing their opponents to hit just .159.
Thursday’s opponent, New Orleans, comes into the match up versus the Jags with a 9-5 mark this season and a 2-2 record in Sun Belt action. Last weekend, UNO split its two conference matches, falling 3-0 at Denver on Friday, while winning 3-0 at North Texas on Sunday.
So far in 2008, New Orleans has been one of the top offensive teams in the league. The Privateers currently lead the Sun Belt in both kills (14.41 per set) and assists (13.16 per set), while also ranking third in hitting percentage at .269. In conference play, UNO has been just as consistent as it ranks atop the league in both kills and assists in those matches.
Individually, Dobrilla Kovacevic and Lindey Lloyd rank among the league leaders in kills. Kovacevic ranks third in the conference and 30th nationally - 4.06 kps - while Lloyd is right behind her in fourth - 3.88 kps. Sophomore libero Nicky Valenti has been solid in the defensive backcourt for the Privateers as she ranks second in the Sun Belt in digs - 4.47 per set.
The meeting between South Alabama and New Orleans on Thursday evening will mark the 40th in the all-time series that dates back to 1977. UNO holds a commanding 35-4 advantage in the series, including picking up a 3-1 (30-26, 21-30, 30-26, 30-16) victory in Mobile over the Jags. The last time the Lady Jags were able to defeat the Privateers came back in the 2001 season, when USA won 3-1 (27-30, 30-28, 30-21, 30-25) in New Orleans.
Louisiana-Lafayette comes into play this weekend with a 4-10 record on the season and a 1-3 mark in the Sun Belt. Last weekend, ULL picked up its first league win of the season, when it defeated North Texas 3-0 (25-21, 28-26, 25-17) in Denton, Texas.
Offensively, sophomore middle blocker Caroline Dufrene leads the team in both kills (84) and kills per game (2.00 kps). Former Lady Cajun basketball player Sonora Edwards is second on the club in kills with 1.86 per set. Sophomore libero Lindsay Brown ranks eighth in conference in digs with 3.55 per set.
As a team, Louisiana-Lafayette is hitting just .116, while allowing its opponents to hit .222.
The meeting between South Alabama and Louisiana-Lafayette this weekend will be the 39th time. ULL holds a dominant 30-8 lead in the all-time series, but USA was able to pick up a 3-1 (28-30, 30-22, 30-26, 32-30) victory over ULL last season in Mobile. The win snapped a six-match losing skid to the Cajuns and was marked the first time USA had won back-to-back conference matches since the 2001 season.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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