Volleyball:Mountaineers Set for BIG EAST Road Trip
September 29, 2011 09:42 AM | General
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – The West Virginia University volleyball team is set to head out on its first BIG EAST road trip of the season as it travels to Villanova and Georgetown.
The Mountaineers (3-10, 1-1) will start at Villanova, playing the Wildcats (10-5, 2-0) at 7 p.m. on Sept. 30 before traveling to Georgetown to take on the Hoyas (8-7, 0-2) on Oct. 2 at 2 p.m.
Senior Michelle Kopecky was named WVU Student-Athlete of the week after helping lead the Mountaineers to a 1-1 start in BIG EAST play. The Schaumburg, Ill., native, led the team with 26 kills and 3.71 kills per set. She also recorded eight service aces in the two matches, which put her tied for first in BIG EAST competition this past weekend.
“There are still a few things about our game that we need to clean up,” coach Jill Kramer says. “Mainly getting a good rhythm going offensively since that will help us be successful against teams. Villanova actually blocked really well against Notre Dame so I am curious to see what they are doing to make that happen. Georgetown went 0-2 this past weekend but they got a pretty dominate freshman outside hitter named Alex Johnson who I am very familiar with and she is a good player, so a lot of the game plan needs to be stopping her.”
Villanova is coming off a strong weekend where the Wildcats had a five-set victory over DePaul before pulling an upset victory at Notre Dame. Senior Kim Maroon was honored for the third week in a row by being named to the BIG EAST weekly honor roll for averaging 4.67 digs per set and 4.00 assists per set. The Wildcats are led by preseason all-BIG EAST team selections Maroon and Maggie Mergen. Mergen currently leads the team with 150 kills, 2.83 kills per set and a .239 hitting percentage. Maroon is ranked No. 1 in the BIG EAST and No. 3 in the nation in digs per set with 6.59.
Last year, the Wildcats swept the Mountaineers 3-0 in Villanova, Pa., and currently hold a 13-7 advantage over WVU.
Georgetown struggled last weekend as the Hoyas were swept by Notre Dame before falling in a tough five-set battle to DePaul. Freshman Alex Johnson led the Hoyas with 25 kills and 26 digs while senior Ashley Malone dished out 72 assists and four service aces. Malone is currently No. 2 in assists per set and No. 3 in service aces in the BIG EAST with 10.74 and 0.43, respectively.
At the WVU Coliseum last year, the Hoyas narrowly pulled out a win and beat the Mountaineers 3-2.
“We had two days of practice this week to work on everything and we are confident about our week of practice and heading into another BIG EAST weekend prepared and ready to win some matches,” Kramer says.
The Mountaineers (3-10, 1-1) will start at Villanova, playing the Wildcats (10-5, 2-0) at 7 p.m. on Sept. 30 before traveling to Georgetown to take on the Hoyas (8-7, 0-2) on Oct. 2 at 2 p.m.
Senior Michelle Kopecky was named WVU Student-Athlete of the week after helping lead the Mountaineers to a 1-1 start in BIG EAST play. The Schaumburg, Ill., native, led the team with 26 kills and 3.71 kills per set. She also recorded eight service aces in the two matches, which put her tied for first in BIG EAST competition this past weekend.
“There are still a few things about our game that we need to clean up,” coach Jill Kramer says. “Mainly getting a good rhythm going offensively since that will help us be successful against teams. Villanova actually blocked really well against Notre Dame so I am curious to see what they are doing to make that happen. Georgetown went 0-2 this past weekend but they got a pretty dominate freshman outside hitter named Alex Johnson who I am very familiar with and she is a good player, so a lot of the game plan needs to be stopping her.”
Villanova is coming off a strong weekend where the Wildcats had a five-set victory over DePaul before pulling an upset victory at Notre Dame. Senior Kim Maroon was honored for the third week in a row by being named to the BIG EAST weekly honor roll for averaging 4.67 digs per set and 4.00 assists per set. The Wildcats are led by preseason all-BIG EAST team selections Maroon and Maggie Mergen. Mergen currently leads the team with 150 kills, 2.83 kills per set and a .239 hitting percentage. Maroon is ranked No. 1 in the BIG EAST and No. 3 in the nation in digs per set with 6.59.
Last year, the Wildcats swept the Mountaineers 3-0 in Villanova, Pa., and currently hold a 13-7 advantage over WVU.
Georgetown struggled last weekend as the Hoyas were swept by Notre Dame before falling in a tough five-set battle to DePaul. Freshman Alex Johnson led the Hoyas with 25 kills and 26 digs while senior Ashley Malone dished out 72 assists and four service aces. Malone is currently No. 2 in assists per set and No. 3 in service aces in the BIG EAST with 10.74 and 0.43, respectively.
At the WVU Coliseum last year, the Hoyas narrowly pulled out a win and beat the Mountaineers 3-2.
“We had two days of practice this week to work on everything and we are confident about our week of practice and heading into another BIG EAST weekend prepared and ready to win some matches,” Kramer says.
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