HARROGATE, Tenn. – A pair of pivotal South Atlantic Conference matches await the Lady Railsplitters (17-3, 11-1 SAC) this weekend, as they welcome the Newberry Wolves (12-10, 9-5 SAC) to Mary Mars Gymnasium at 7 p.m. on Friday before hosting the Anderson Trojans (12-10, 8-6 SAC) at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Lincoln Memorial enters the weekend atop the SAC standings, while Newberry and Anderson are fourth and fifth, respectively.
 
Schedule/Game Day Links
 
Friday, October 21 vs. Newberry (7pm) Live Stats / Video
Saturday, October 22 vs. Anderson (2pm) Live Stats / Video
 
Notes on the Lady Railsplitters:
 
-Lincoln Memorial dominated from the opening serve to the final point in a 3-0 win over the Carson-Newman Eagles on Tuesday at Mary Mars Gym, which kicked off a stretch that will see the Lady Railsplitters play seven of their last 11 matches at home. The Lady Railsplitters out-hit the Eagles 43-27 and only trailed for a brief span early in the first and third sets. With the victory, Lincoln Memorial matched the 1998 team for the best 20-game start in program history by improving to 17-3.
 
-As has been the case for most of the season, the Lady Railsplitters received contributions across the board in that win over the Eagles. Tone Gill (Nashville, Tenn.) had 10 kills on only 12 attempts, while Jamie Jehne (Hollywood, Fla.) and Samantha Cash (New Carlisle, Ohio) posted eight kills apiece on 15 attempts without an error. Kiera Holland (Columbia, S.C.) had eight kills as well.
 
-Six different players are averaging more than 1.30 kills per set for the Lady Railsplitters this season. Holland is leading that group with 3.19, the fourth-most in the SAC, while Sam Cash is chipping in 2.76 kills per set on a .298 attack percentage, the fifth-best mark in the league. Liz Brock (Lima, Ohio) is contributing 2.52 kills per set, while Danielle Ged (Smyrna, Tenn.) is posting 1.61, Gill is adding 1.43 and Jehne is pitching in 1.38.
 
-In Tuesday's win over Carson-Newman, Abby Cash (New Carlisle, Ohio) recorded seven digs to overtake Katie Holly for eighth place in LMU's career record book for digs. Cash is just 62 scoops away from matching Courtney Marton for seventh on the list. Along with that, the New Carlisle, Ohio native has an outside chance of catching Shanna Snyder for second in all-time assists. Cash is currently third with 3,606, while Snyder accumulated 3,882 over her four-year tenure in the Blue and Gray.
 
-The Lady Railsplitters are a perfect 5-0 at Mary Mars Gym this season and have won eight straight home matches dating back to last season. LMU's last two home matches – wins over Queens and Carson-Newman – went down in straight sets.
 
-Lincoln Memorial is also riding a six-game SAC winning streak dating back to a 3-0 win over Coker on September 24. None of those six matches have required more than four sets.
 
Notes on Newberry:
 
-Since falling to 4-8 following a straight-sets loss at Wingate on September 20, the Wolves have been one of the hottest teams in the South Atlantic Conference with wins in eight of their last 10 matches. Newberry has been exceptional of late with a 3-0 win at Coker, a surprising 3-1 win over 10-time defending SAC regular-season champions Wingate and a 3-0 win at Anderson on Tuesday.  Newberry's only two losses during this recent surge came in five sets at Queens and Catawba.
 
-The Wolves have been outstanding on offense against SAC opponents, compiling 13.49 kills per set on a .195 attack percentage. They have racked up a SAC-leading 688 kills in league play. Defensively, Newberry leads the league with 18.65 digs per set in SAC matches.
 
-Newberry has been a different team since the calendar flipped to October. In 16 matches in September, the Wolves averaged 12.35 kills per set on a .181 clip, but those numbers have jumped to 12.91 and .197 over six appearances in October. The Wolves are also averaging nearly a dig more per set this month (18.65-17.79).
 
-The Wolves have weapons all over the court with five different players averaging more than 1.60 kills per set. Senior outside hitter Logan Hayward is putting up 3.04 kills per set, while senior middle Madison Darby-McClure is racking up 2.65 kills per set on a .285 attack percentage. Freshmen Toni-Anne Whitlow (2.21 kills/set), Andie Meredith (2.18 kills/set) and Sidra Triplett (1.69 kills/set) are also playing a major role for the Wolves.
 
-Sophomore setter Maggie Marsh has accounted for 10.18 assists per set in SAC matches, ranking second in the league in that department. Sophomore Kensley Jordan leads the team with 4.24 digs per set and 339 total.
 
-Newberry is 5-4 on the road this season and 2-2 over its last four appearances outside of Eleazer Arena. The Wolves have been significantly worse on offense on the road, averaging 12.08 kills per set with a .186 attack percentage compared to 14.33 kills per set and a .207 attacking clip at home.
 
Notes on Anderson:
 
-The Trojans enter the weekend having lost four of their seven matches in the month of October, including a 3-0 loss at home against Newberry on Tuesday. However, Anderson showed its wealth of talent with a lopsided 3-0 win against Wingate this past weekend. In that contest, the Trojans handed the 23rd-ranked Bulldogs arguably its worst loss of the last decade, winning by scores of 25-16, 25-8 and 25-14. 
 
-Anderson is a middle-of-the-road offense unit with 12.00 kills per set and a .199 attack percentage. The Trojans have averaged slightly more kills per set in SAC play (12.11), but their efficiency has slipped a bit with a .193 clip.
 
-The Trojans are led offensively by the veteran trio of Marissa Mitter, Rachel Burts and Serena Jackson. Mitter is putting up 3.12 kills per set and hitting .186, while Burts is racking up 2.11 kills per set on a SAC-leading .315 attack percentage. Jackson has accounted for 1.99 kills per set with an efficient .296 clip. Freshman Kathryn Hughes (1.76 kills/set) and senior Allison Gaminde (1.40 kills/set) have also had a major impact for the Trojan offense.
 
-Freshman setter Emily Conlin has been outstanding in her first season of collegiate volleyball, compiling 9.82 assists per set, which ranks second in the league. Her 854 total assists lead the SAC. In addition to that, she is 21st in the SAC with 211 total digs.
 
-Anderson is 4-4 on the road this season, but hasn't won a road contest since edging Brevard 3-1 on September 24. Since then, the Trojans have suffered a 3-0 loss at Wingate, a 3-1 loss at Catawba and a 3-1 setback at Queens.
 
-The Trojans face Carson-Newman in Jefferson City on Friday night before making the trip Harrogate for Saturday afternoon's tilt.
 
Series History:
 
-The Lady Railsplitters are 17-7 all-time against Newberry, which includes a 3-0 win in Newberry, S.C. earlier this season. However, the two teams have split the regular-season series in each of the last four seasons. All-time, Lincoln Memorial holds a 7-3 record against the Wolves at Mary Mars Gymnasium. The Wolves have won three of the last four in Harrogate, though.
 
-Lincoln Memorial swept Newberry in straight sets back on September 16, hitting .241 while holding the Wolves to a .092 clip. Holland led the way with 13 kills, while Brock and Sam Cash had eight apiece. Hayward led the Wolves with 10 kills despite committing eight of the team's 28 errors.
 
-The Lady Railsplitters improved to 14-5 all-time against Anderson and defeated the Trojans for the third straight time earlier this season with a 3-1 victory on the road. Lincoln Memorial holds a 7-1 record versus the Trojans at Mary Mars Gym.
 
-In the 3-1 victory at Anderson on September 17, the Lady Railsplitters out-hit the Trojans 61-41. Holland powered the victory with 15 kills, while Lindsey Nartker (New Carlisle, Ohio) had a career-best 13 kills. No Anderson player finished with more than nine kills.