North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Volleyball Hosts UNC Friday, Louisville Sunday
10/16/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
RALEIGH, N.C. – After a four-match road swing, the NC State women’s volleyball team will return to the friendly confines of Reynolds Coliseum this weekend to host No. 11 North Carolina on Friday and Louisville on Sunday.
Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN3 with Friday’s contest set for a 6:30 p.m. start and Sunday’s tilt slated for 2 p.m. Friday’s match will be held on center court with the NC State basketball Throwback with the Pack event to follow.
The Wolfpack (12-5, 1-4 ACC) will look to remain unbeaten at home this season, as the squad has posted a 7-0 record winning its last four matches in Reynolds by 3-0 sweeps. North Carolina enters Friday’s match ranked No. 11 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll with a 13-2 overall mark and 4-1 in ACC.
Louisville is 11-7 on the year, including a 3-3 record in conference action.
Bunn’s Beat
On returning home after the four-match road swing…
“It’ll be nice to be back at home this weekend,” said head coach Bryan Bunn. “We’ve only had seven of our 16 matches at home this season, so it’ll be nice to be home for a couple of matches.”
On playing UNC Friday…
“UNC is tough matchup. They’re a very talented team and they’re ranked among the top-15 teams in the country. They have some experienced players, so it will be a challenge."
On playing before the Throwback with the Pack event…
“It should be a lot of fun. We’re excited to be able to do this and open up for the basketball team. Hopefully, we’ll get a lot of people there and draw some new fans."
Last Time Out
In the Pack’s last outing, it dropped a 3-0 decision against the fourth-ranked Florida State Seminoles in Tallahassee.
Serve Hard, Serve Tough
One of Bunn’s philosophies is for his team to serve tough in order to get opposing teams out of system. This season the Wolfpack leads the ACC in total service aces with 99 and is fourth in the conference in aces per set with 1.52.
State recorded a season high 11 service aces in a 3-1 win against UNC Asheville earlier this year.
Defensive Minded
NC State has limited its opponents to a .174 attacking percentage in 2014, which ranks as the fifth best in the ACC. The Wolfpack is 9-0 on the season when holding its opponents to a team hitting percentage of .200 or below.
Scouting No. 11 North Carolina
The North Carolina Tar Heels make the short trip over to Reynolds Coliseum on Friday with a 13-2 record on the year and ranked No. 11. The Tar Heels defeated Virginia, 3-0, in its last outing.
Last season, UNC won both matches against State. The Wolfpack last defeated the Tar Heels in 2012 at home, 3-1.
Senior Chaniel Nelson leads North Carolina offensively with 2.68 kills per set, while classmate Lauren McAdoo and junior Leigh Andrew have contributed 2.60 and 2.66, respectively. Junior Jordyn Schnabl and sophomore Abigail Curry have split time at the setter position with the prior handing out 6.22 assists per set and the latter 4.80. Defensively, senior Ece Taner paces the squad with 4.04 digs per set.
Scouting Louisville
Louisville has compiled an 11-7 record to this point in the season, including a 3-3 mark in its inaugural season in the ACC. The Cardinals will travel to Syracuse on Friday prior to Sunday’s contest with the Wolfpack.
The Cards split a pair of matches last weekend, dropping a 3-1 decision to No. 4 Florida State before defeating Notre Dame on Sunday, 3-0.
Sunday’s matchup will be just the second meeting between the two teams and first as conference opponents. Louisville won the only previous meeting, 3-2, in 1992.
Offensively, the Cardinals are led by sophomore Maya McClendon with 3.18 kills per set and classmate Janelle Jenkins with 3.06. Junior Katie George is the team’s setter and has dished out 10.52 assists per set. Junior Roxanne McVey serves as the libero with 4.03 digs per set.
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