Mercer University
Western Carolina
Mercer Hosts Western Carolina, ETSU in Final Weekend
11/10/2016 5:26:00 PM | Volleyball
MACON, Ga. – Mercer takes a two-match win streak into the final weekend of regular season play as it will host Southern Conference foes Western Carolina and league-leading ETSU on Friday and Saturday at Hawkins Arena.
The Bears (14-12, 6-8 SoCon) will face Western Carolina (10-17, 5-9) at 2 p.m. Friday before ending the regular season against ETSU (19-7, 11-3) at 3 p.m. Saturday. The season finale will also serve as Mercer's Senior Day; Tori Penrod, Ellie James and Hannah Noon will be honored prior to the match.
Stakes remain high for Mercer, which can finish the season with a .500 record in SoCon play by defeating both the Catamounts and Bucs at Hawkins. Mercer fell to both teams on the road earlier in the season – a five-set loss at Western Carolina on Oct. 14 and a 3-0 loss at ETSU on Oct. 21. Mercer is currently sixth in the SoCon standings as well.
FRIDAY'S MATCHUP
Date: Friday, Nov. 10 | 2 p.m.
Teams: Mercer (14-12, 6-8 SoCon) vs. Western Carolina (10-17, 5-9)
Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena
Live Stats: MercerBears.com/livestats
Twitter Updates: @MercerBearsVB
SATURDAY'S MATCHUP
Date: Saturday, Nov. 11 | 3 p.m.
Teams: Mercer (14-12, 6-8 SoCon) vs. ETSU (19-7, 11-3 SoCon)
Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena
Live Stats: MercerBears.com/livestats
Twitter Updates: @MercerBearsVB
THANK YOU, SENIORS!
Head coach Damian Elder and company will honor Mercer's three senior leaders – Hannah Noon, Ellie James and Tori Penrod – prior to Saturday's match at Hawkins Arena. The trio has impacted the Mercer program with impressive individual and team-related contributions.
Hannah Noon – Mercer's longest-tenured player as a redshirt senior – has appeared in 82 matches and logged a career 1,609 assists, highlighted by career-bests of 709 assists and 6.45 assists per set in 2014.
Ellie James has played in 91 matches while logging 559 career kills and 854 career digs. She's reached at least 100 kills in all four seasons and 200 digs in three of the four.
Tori Penrod will finish her career with the second most digs (currently 1,732) in school history. She's reached 500 or more digs in two seasons (2014 and 2016) and is in the midst of her best season with career-highs in total digs (528) and digs per set (5.18), which rank 18th and 17th nationally. Additionally, Penrod has 496 assists and 109 aces career-wise.
NOTABLESÂ
- A single win this weekend would mark the most for Mercer in a single season (15) since winning 18 matches in 2008. It would also give Mercer seven SoCon wins, which would be the most since joining the league in 2014.
- Mercer goes into the final home stand having already clinched a winning record at Hawkins Arena (6-3) for the second straight season.
- Mercer ranks sixth among SoCon teams in opponent hitting percentage (.209) after limiting Wofford, Furman and UNCG to respective marks of .143, -.012 and .178 last week.
- The Bears are top-two in the conference in total blocks (220) and aces per set average (1.40). Their 17 blocks at Furman last week are the second-most by a SoCon team in a single match this season.
- A handful Bears can reach season milestones this weekend:
- Emily Krogman: Eight kills away from 250
- Claire Waliczek: 22 assists away from 500
- Morgan MacGilvary: 24 kills away from 350
- Paige Alsten: Four kills away from 150
- Alsten: Seven blocks away from 100
- Ellie James: 16 kills away from 150
- Tori Penrod: 22 digs away from 550
SCOUTING WESTERN CAROLINA | SERIES HISTORY
The Catamounts are 2-3 in their last three matches, including a 3-1 loss to UNCG on Wednesday in Greensboro, North Carolina. Behind the play of a pair of freshmen in Meagan Sanchez (4.38 digs per set) and Aleah Keaton (80.0 total blocks), Western Carolina owns the third-best opponent hitting percentage (.187) in the SoCon. Western's defensive presence was felt by the Bears on their trip to Cullowhee earlier this season, as they only hit .098 for the match.
Mercer has lost two in a row to the Catamounts and trails 5-14 in the all-time series. Morgan MacGilvary, Emily Krogman and Danielle Faust all finished with double-digit kills in the head-to-head matchup earlier this year, but the Bears squandered a 2-1 lead over the final two sets.
SCOUTING ETSU | SERIES HISTORY
The Bucs sit at the top of the SoCon standings with two matches remaining in their regular season slate. They'll take on The Citadel in Charleston on Friday evening before continuing south to battle Mercer. While the Bucs are the SoCon's best at home (11-0), they've struggled on the road (4-5). ETSU ranks among the top-three SoCon teams in every major statistical category other than digs this season.
ETSU's 3-0 sweep of Mercer on Oct. 21 was another poor offensive display by the Bears, who hit only .100 for the match. Tori Penrod notched 19 digs, however the Bucs were able to keep Mercer out of striking range all match to cruise to the sweep. Mercer is 5-15 against ETSU entering Saturday's match.
FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Volleyball, please follow the Bears on social media at@MercerBearsVB (Twitter), and @mercervolleyball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.Â
