Mercer Opens SoCon Play at The Citadel, Wofford

Friday, September 23

Charleston, S.C.

6 PM

Mercer University

The Citadel

Emily Krogman, Gabbi Meyering vs. Belmont

Photo by: Evan Davies

Mercer Opens SoCon Play at The Citadel, Wofford

9/22/2016 3:46:00 PM | Volleyball

Live Stats vs. The Citadel Watch vs. The Citadel Live Stats vs. Wofford Watch vs. Wofford

MACON, Ga. – Coming off of one of the best non-conference slates in program history, the Mercer volleyball team will open Southern Conference play with a pair of matches at The Citadel and Wofford on Friday, Sept. 23 and Saturday, Sept. 24.

Mercer (8-4) will face The Citadel (6-9) at 6 p.m. Friday at McAlister Field House in Charleston, South Carolina before making the short trip to Spartanburg, South Carolina to play Wofford (7-7) at Benjamin Johnson Arena at 6 p.m. Saturday.

FRIDAY'S MATCHUP
Location: Charleston, S.C. – McAlister Field House
Schedule: Friday, Sept. 23 – 6 p.m.
Watch: ESPN3
Follow Along: Live Stats

SATURDAY'S MATCHUP
Location: Spartanburg, S.C. – Benjamin Johnson Arena
Schedule: Saturday, Sept. 24 – 6 p.m.
Watch: TerrierVision
Follow Along: Live Stats

NOTABLES

Mercer finished its non-conference slate with an 8-4 record after its match against Savannah State – originally scheduled for Oct. 9 – was cancelled Thursday. It is Mercer's first winning non-conference record since 2002 and the most non-conference wins since 2006.
The Bears enter the SoCon season boasting a five-match win streak after going 3-0 to win their home tournament, the Mercer Invite, last weekend.
Mercer's 8-4 record is tied with ETSU (8-4) for the best win percentage (.667) entering SoCon play.
As a team, Mercer ranks in the top half of the SoCon in hitting percentage (.219), total blocks (96), service aces (66) and digs per set (15.54).
Mercer is 1-2 in true road matches this season.
Tori Penrod's strong play during the Mercer Invite translated into a pair of league awards this week. The senior libero/defensive specialist was named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Week on Monday and the SoCon Student-Athlete of the Week on Wednesday.
Among SoCon players, Penrod ranks second in digs per set (5.13) and third in total digs (236).
Sophomore middle blocker Paige Alsten sits atop the SoCon in hitting percentage (.407) and total blocks (60). Both figures rank in the top-50 nationally.
Junior opposite hitter Emily Krogman continues to lead the league in total aces (21) and aces per set (0.46).

SCOUTING THE CITADEL
Mercer is a perfect 5-0 against the Bulldogs with all five matches occurring since 2010. The Bears took a 3-0 victory in Macon a season ago before winning a five-set match in Charleston. Outside hitter Moriah Smith leads the charge for The Citadel and is the SoCon's No. 1 player in kills (238) and kills per set (4.10). She ranks second in the nation in total attacks and 10th in total kills.

The Citadel is 4-3 at home this season and went 2-2 in last weekend's Bulldog Invitational with victories over Charleston Southern and Savannah State following losses to Austin Peay and Elon.

SCOUTING WOFFORD
The Terriers, who are 1-1 at Benjamin Johnson Arena this season, will host UNCG in their SoCon opener Friday before taking on Mercer the following day. Wofford is riding a current two-match losing streak after dropping matches to High Point and USC Upstate, the latter of which Mercer defeated 3-1 on Sept. 17.

Wofford has a big impact in the service game, leading the SoCon with 89 total aces and an average of 1.53 per set. Catie Cronister is tied for first among league players with 21 individual aces. Additionally, the Terriers own the third-best opponent hitting percentage (.188) among league teams.

Mercer leads the all-time series against Wofford 8-4 and split two matches a year ago, winning 3-1 on Oct. 10 at home before dropping a five-set result in Spartanburg on Oct. 24.

HOW TO 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.