HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The Lady Railsplitters (8-6, 4-2 SAC) return to the court after a nearly week-long layoff, hosting their first South Atlantic Conference weekend series by welcoming the 10th-ranked Wingate Bulldogs (13-1, 6-0 SAC) and the Coker Cobras (3-10, 0-6 SAC) to Mary Mars Gymnasium. Lincoln Memorial is set to square off against the Bulldogs at 7 p.m. Friday (10/3) and the Cobras at 2 p.m. Saturday (10/4) in Harrogate, Tenn.
 
The Lady Railsplitters have not played since last Saturday's straight-set triumph over the Brevard Tornados in Brevard, N.C., which ensured a split for the weekend after Lenoir-Rhyne defeated Lincoln Memorial in straight sets the night before. The Lady Railsplitters enter the weekend in a tie with Anderson for fourth place in the league standings.
 
This past weekend was indicative of the inconsistency the Lady Railsplitters have displayed offensively. In Friday's loss to Lenoir-Rhyne, the Lady Railsplitters stumbled to a .151 attack percentage with 29 kills and 13 errors. LMU bounced back by hitting .237 (the team's second-highest attacking percentage this season) with 42 kills and 15 miscues in the win over the Tornados. The Lady Railsplitters have gradually produced more consistently efficient efforts in the attack, hitting above .200 in four of their last seven matches after failing to surpass that mark in any of their first seven games.
 
Freshman outside hitter Kiera Holland (Columbia, S.C.) has tallied double-digit kills in six of her last seven appearances as she leads the Lady Railsplitters and ranks second in the South Atlantic Conference with 164 total kills. Holland's 3.15 kills per set are the fifth-most among SAC student-athletes. Sophomore right side Brooke Fleeman (Nashville, Tenn.) has also finished with 10 or more kills in six of the last seven matches as she ranks 14th in the league with 2.52 per frame. Junior Jazzy Oates (Franklin, Tenn.) has contributed seven or more kills in three of her last five appearances including a 10-kill outing against Catawba two weekends ago.
 
One of the premier programs at the Division II level, the 10th-ranked and first place Wingate Bulldogs arrive in Harrogate riding a seven match winning streak. Winners of an unparalleled eight consecutive SAC Championship titles, Wingate has appeared in the NCAA Elite Eight in back-to-back years. The Bulldogs have been as dominant as ever in 2014, earning 11 of their 13 wins in straight sets.
 
The Lady Railsplitters have never defeated Wingate since the initial meeting between the two programs in 2009 as the Bulldogs have ripped off 15 unanswered victories in the series. Of those 15 head-to-head encounters, three have needed five sets to decide the final outcome. The Lady Railsplitters nearly knocked off Wingate in 2012, taking the first two sets at Mary Mars before the Bulldogs rallied for the victory.
 
Wingate leads the SAC in nearly every offensive category, sitting atop the rankings in kills (656), kills per set (14.26), hitting percentage (.286), assists (613), assists per set (13.33) and service aces (103). The Bulldogs have finished with a .300 hitting percentage or better in five matches this season including an astounding .435 mark against the Catawba Indians.
 
Junior outside hitter Shelly Stumpff is pacing the 'Dogs with 3.24 kills per set and 136 total kills to go alongside an average of 2.24 digs per frame. Reigning AVCA All-America second team selection Lexi Potter has accounted for 2.58 kills per set on a cumulative .366 attack percentage, the fourth-highest mark in the league. Both Susie Murach and Abby Saehler are contributing better than two kills per frame as Murach has 2.57 per to Saehler's 2.33. Saehler ranks third in the SAC with a .381 attack percentage. The Bulldogs run a two-setter system with Alison Cooke and Iris Brewer combining for more than 16 assists per set. Cooke leads that duo with 9.64 per and 376 total. The Wingate defense is fronted by Kori Adams and her 126 digs.
 
Trending in the opposite direction, the last place Coker Cobras are still looking for their first South Atlantic Conference win since joining the league prior to the start of the 2013 season. The Cobras are 0-28 in league play since transitioning from Conference Carolinas including a 0-6 mark this year. After winning three of its first five matches, Coker has dropped eight consecutive outings to fall to 3-10 overall.
 
The Cobras are ranked in the bottom three of the SAC in kills (454), hitting percentage (.149), assists (411), digs (614) and digs per set (14.62). The visitors from Hartsville, S.C. enter the weekend having hit less than .150 in six of their last eight appearances including three separate instances in which they have failed to surpass the .100 clip.
 
Nine different Cobras have contributed at least one kill per set, led by freshman outside hitter Madison Bingle. Bingle has posted 1.93 kills per set and 89 total. Bingle also leads the Cobras in digs with 105 total and 2.28 per set. Freshman right side Libby Merrifield has produced 62 kills and 1.59 per set, while Megan Hardy has 54 total kills and 1.69 per frame to her credit. Celia Duggan is Coker's most efficient hitter as she has accumulated 44 kills on a .317 attack percentage. Freshman setter Christen Bragg is running the show for the Cobras with 8.00 assists per set and 368 total.
 
The Cobras feature one of the youngest rosters in the South Atlantic Conference as 12 of its 16 players are freshmen. Seven of those freshmen have appeared in 10 or more matches this season.
 
The Lady Railsplitters swept the Cobras in both regular-season meetings in 2013, the first year the two programs have competed against one another.
 
Lincoln Memorial opens the weekend at 7 p.m. Friday against Wingate before turning around to play Coker at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Live stats will be available for both of those matches, while Friday evening's match will be streamed live at www.lmurailsplitters.com.  

Friday vs. Wingate 
Live Stats
Video
Saturday vs. Coker
Live Stats