NC State Volleyball Opens 2017 Season at Home This Weekend

Dates: Friday – Saturday, August 25-26
Location: Raleigh, N.C.
Site: Reynolds Coliseum
Times: 5:30 p.m. (Fri.) | 3:30 p.m. (Sat.) | 7:00 P.M. (Sat.)
Live Video: ACC Network Extra
Live Stats: SideArm Stats

RALEIGH, N.C. – Coming off a record-breaking 2016 campaign, the NC State volleyball team is set to kick off its 2017 slate this weekend when the eighth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks and Missouri State Bears visit Reynolds Coliseum. The Wolfpack's season opener is Friday at 5:30 p.m. versus Kansas.

NC State takes on Missouri State in its first match Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and returns to the court later that evening for a rematch with the Jayhawks at 7 p.m. All three matches will be streamed live on the ACC Network Extra, accessible through Watch ESPN and the Watch ESPN App.

Tickets are adults - $7, youth (17 and younger) - $5, and groups (15 or more) - $3. Children age two or younger will be admitted free. Season tickets are also available for adults ($50) and seniors/youth ($25). Single match and season tickets can be purchased here.

Match Promotions
- Student Wolfpack Club Event
- Student Tailgate at the Coaches Corner in front of Reynolds Coliseum
- Free food, tailgate games, music and more
- Welcome Back Pack Faculty Appreciation Day

Looking Back at 2016
In her first season as an NCAA division I head coach, Linda Hampton-Keith was one of just five first-year head coaches to lead his/her team to at least 20 wins. The 2016 squad ended the season with a 20-13 overall record, highlighted by breaking the program record for Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) wins with 13.

Hampton-Keith and her staff helped guide the squad to its first top-10 win in program history when the Wolfpack upset Florida State in Tallahassee last season. NC State ended the year ranked 66 in the NCAA RPI, a jump of nearly 100 spots from its final 2015 listing.

Opening at Home
The Wolfpack opens the season at home for the first time since 2009, when NC State opened the year against Morgan State inside Reynolds Coliseum.

Opening Against Top-10 Opponent
For the first time in the history of the program, NC State opens the season against an opponent ranked in the top 10 of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll. The Kansas Jayhawks check in at No. 8 in the ranking.

Powerful Returns
The Wolfpack returns each of its top-five kill leaders from last season and is the only program in the ACC to do so. Julia Brown, a First Team All-ACC and AVCA All-East Region selection, led the way with 489 kills to break the rally-scoring era program record. Teni Sopitan was second on the squad with 342 and Kaitlyn Kearney was third with 263. Perry Ramsey and Erin Chatman rounded out the top five with 141 and 131 kills, respectively.

In total, 94.6 percent of NC State's kills from last season return for the 2017 campaign.

Sister Act (2)
NC State's 2017 squad features two sets of sisters (Erin and Kristen Chatman, Jasmine and Melissa Evans) and is the only program in the conference with the distinction of having two sets of sisters on the team.

Scouting #8 Kansas
The Kansas Jayhawks are coming off a strong 2016 campaign in which the squad won the Big 12 Championship for the first time in program history. Kansas compiled a 27-3 overall record, including a 15-1 mark in conference play.

The Jayhawks advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2016 and made it to the NCAA Final Four in 2015.

Senior right side Kelsie Payne leads the squad offensively, as she is a two-time First Team All-American and was selected as the 2017 Big 12 Player of the Year.

Scouting Missouri State
Missouri State turned in a 26-9 overall record last season to win the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) regular season championship. The Bears received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, their ninth NCAA appearance since 2003.

MSU was a near unanimous choice to repeat as Missouri Valley Conference champions in 2017.

Senior outside hitter Lily Johnson is the program's only three-time All-American. She was the MVC Player of the Year in 2016 and 2015.

NC State Volleyball Opens 2017 Season at Home This Weekend

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Players Mentioned

Julia Brown

Erin Chatman

Kristen Chatman

Melissa Evans

Kaitlyn Kearney

Perry Ramsey

Teni Sopitan