Wolfpack Volleyball Hosts UNC-Chapel Hill Friday to Open ACC Play

Match 12	NC State (5-6, 0-0 ACC) vs. UNC-Chapel Hill (3-5, 0-0 ACC)
Date	Friday, Sept. 22
Time	7 p.m.
Location	Raleigh, N.C.
Venue	Reynolds Coliseum
Directions	Waze Driving Directions
TV	ACC Network Extra
Live Stats	GoPack.com
Social Media	@Pack Vball
Match Notes	NCSU \| UNC-CH

RALEIGH, N.C. – After concluding the non-conference portion of its schedule last weekend, the NC State volleyball team will open Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play against UNC-Chapel Hill Friday night at 7 p.m. inside Reynolds Coliseum. Last year, the squads also met in the conference opener for both teams.

The match will be broadcast live on the ACC Network Extra, accessible through Watch ESPN or the Watch ESPN App. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth (17 or younger). Admission is free for children age two or younger.

NC State heads into the matchup with a 5-6 overall record, having won five of its last six matches. UNC-Chapel Hill, the preseason favorite in the ACC, has dealt with a few key injuries and owns a 3-5 ledger.

Match Promotions
- Friday's match is a RED OUT, as fans are encouraged to wear red.
- Also, free red t-shirts will be available for the first 2,000 fans in attendance.
- The Wolfpack volleyball team will be signing autographs following the match.

Last Time Out
In its most recent outing, NC State picked up a 3-0 win against the Milwaukee Panthers to conclude play in the Michigan Challenge. UNC-Chapel Hill earned a 3-2 win against Coastal Carolina in its last outing on Saturday.

Two of a Kind
NC State's Bree Bailey recorded the 1,000^th kill of her career against No. 21 Michigan last Friday to join Julia Brown in the 1,000 kill club. Brown surpassed the mark versus LIU Brooklyn on Sept. 10.

The Wolfpack is now one of just six programs to have two active players on its roster with 1,000 or more career kills.

Leading The Way in the ACC
Heading into Friday's night match, NC State leads the ACC with a .267 team attacking percentage, which ranks 27^th in the NCAA. Additionally, the Wolfpack's 14.02 kills per set ranks second in the conference and 35^th nationally.

NC State's 589 total team kills leads the conference ahead of the start of league play. The Pack's 547 total assists headline the ACC in that category and its 13.02 assists per set is second in the conference and 44^th in the NCAA.

HIT-ting Stride
The NC State offense has hit its stride in the last six matches, as the Wolfpack has recorded a .289 team attacking percentage in those contests. Similarly, NCSU's defense has also been stellar as opponents have been held to a .124 team attacking percentage during that same span.

The Wolfpack is averaging 14.65 kills per set to its opponents 10.00, 13.25 assist per set to its opponents 9.50 and 13.40 digs per set to its opponents 10.45.

Offensive Prowess
The Wolfpack's offense was firing on all cylinders in NC State's 3-0 win against Cincinnati last Friday. NC State compiled a .447 team attacking percentage – the third highest in the program's rally-scoring era and sixth best in program history.

That total is also the highest attacking percentage by a team in the ACC this season and ranks among the top 40 of the NCAA.

NC State swatted 47 kills on 85 attempts and only committed nine errors in the contest.

Tough Schedule
When second-year head coach Linda Hampton-Keith announced the program's schedule in July, she knew that it would be a challenge and test her squad. NC State's schedule ranks as the 21^st toughest in the NCAA this season.

Opponents have logged a 68-41 overall record to chart a 62 percent winning percentage. Four of the Wolfpack's losses have come against top-25 opponents and another was against a conference champion from a season ago.

NC State Remains in PrepVolleyball Rankings
After compiling a 2-1 record at the Michigan Challenge last weekend, NC State remains at No. 45 in this week's PrepVolleyball Rankings. UNC-Chapel Hill is listed at No. 47 in the poll.

Each of the Wolfpack's losses this season were against teams ranked higher than the squad in the listing, as Florida is No. 3, Kansas is No. 14, Michigan is No. 24, Auburn is No. 37 and Missouri State is ranked 43^rd.

Preseason Honor Roll
Five different players were named to all-tournament teams during the non-conference portion of the season. Brown garnered NC State All-Tournament honors on opening weekend and also collected the honor at the High Point Tournament.

Freshman Melissa Evans was named to the NC State All-Tournament Team and Bailey collected High Point All-Tournament honors. Most recently, Kaitlyn Kearney and Kylie Pickrell were tabbed to the Michigan Challenge All-Tournament Team.

Scouting UNC-Chapel Hill
The UNC-Chapel Hill Tar Heels were the preseason favorite in the ACC in a vote of the league's head coaches, but have had a few injuries interrupt the squad's chemistry. The Tar Heels sit at 3-5 overall, after dropping a five-set match to LMU last Friday before defeating Coastal Carolina in five sets on Saturday.

Last season, the Wolfpack and Tar Heels met twice with UNC-CH winning both contests. NC State led 2-1 in last year's matchup in Reynolds Coliseum before the Heels rallied for the five-set win.

Preseason ACC Player of the Year Taylor Leath leads the squad offensively with 110 kills, an average of 3.67 kills per set. Holly Carlton has served as the team's primary setter and has dished out 7.33 assists per set. Defensively, Mia Fradenburg paces the group in digs with 136 or 4.53 digs per set.

#GoPack | @PackVball

Wolfpack Volleyball Hosts UNC-Chapel Hill Friday to Open ACC Play

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Players Mentioned

Bree Bailey

Julia Brown

Melissa Evans

Kaitlyn Kearney

Kylie Pickrell