HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The Lady Railsplitters (22-4, 16-2 SAC) look to move two steps closer to clinching the South Atlantic Conference regular-season title and match the program's single-season record for wins as they pay visits to Catawba (13-10, 11-7 SAC) and Queens (17-5, 14-3 SAC) this weekend. Lincoln Memorial squares off against the Indians at 7 p.m. on Friday in Salisbury, N.C. before heading over to Charlotte to face the Royals at 2 p.m. on Saturday in a match with major postseason implications.
 
Schedule/Game Day Links
 
Friday, November 4 at Catawba (7pm) Live Stats / Video
Saturday, November 5 at Queens (2pm) Live Stats / Video
 
Notes on the Lady Railsplitters:
 
-Lincoln Memorial extended its winning streak to five games and retained the top spot in the SAC standings on Tuesday night with a 3-0 win at Tusculum. The Lady Railsplitters displayed workman-like efficiency by producing 44 kills on a .284 attack percentage, an effort led by 13 kills from Liz Brock (Lima, Ohio) and 12 from Kiera Holland (Columbia, S.C.).
 
-With that win at Tusculum, the Lady Railsplitters pulled within two victories of matching the program's single-season record for wins of 24 set by the 1998, 1999 and 2000 teams.
 
-The first NCAA Division II Southeast Region poll was released on Wednesday afternoon, with the Lady Railsplitters slotted at No. 4. The top eight teams from each of the nation's eight regions earn bids to the NCAA Tournament. Wingate, USC Aiken and Flagler are the three teams immediately ahead of Lincoln Memorial, who has a 4-2 record this season against teams represented in the top 10 of the Southeast Region poll. The Lady Railsplitters are looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012.
 
-Three different LMU players are ranked in the top 13 in the South Atlantic Conference in kills per set. Holland leads that trio and is ranked sixth in the league with 3.02 kills per set, while Samantha Cash (New Carlisle, Ohio) and Brock are ranked 12th and 13th, respectively. Cash is putting up 2.75 kills per set, while Brock is averaging 2.71. Wingate is the only other team in the conference to have three players ranked in the top 15 in kills per set.
 
-The Lady Railsplitters have at least five aces in three consecutive matches and 11 of their last 13 appearances. Since the start of October, Lincoln Memorial has averaged 1.65 aces per set, which would rank second in the SAC.
 
-With four matches remaining in the regular season, the race for the SAC regular-season championship has tightened. Lincoln Memorial currently leads the pack at 16-2, while the 10-time defending SAC champions Wingate Bulldogs are a game back at 15-3. Queens is just a half game back of the Bulldogs at 14-3.
 
Notes on Catawba:
 
-The Indians enter Friday's match riding a four-game winning streak, but three of those victories came against teams currently positioned in the bottom half of the league standings (Coker, Mars Hill, Lenoir-Rhyne). Prior to that four-game streak, Catawba was handed a pair of four-set losses at Wingate and Queens.
 
-Since falling in four sets at Lincoln Memorial on September 30, the Indians are 8-2, which includes five-sets wins over Carson-Newman, Newberry, Mars Hill and Lenoir-Rhyne. The Indians are tied with Anderson for fifth place in the SAC standings because of that mid-season turnaround, which moved Catawba from 3-5 to 11-7 in league play.
 
-The Indians sport middle-of-the-road offensive numbers, ranking seventh in the SAC in kills per set with 12.09 and sixth in attack percentage with a .185 clip. Catawba turned a corner in October, though, hitting .191 as a unit in nine appearances in the season's second month.
 
-Catawba is a veteran bunch led by seniors Bri Howard, Alex Hopper, Audrey Hoffman and McKenzie Garrison. Howard is putting up 2.48 kills per set on a .314 clip, while Hopper is contributing 2.36 kills per set. Hoffman and Garrison are neck-and-neck with 2.17 and 2.13 kills per set, respectively. Junior Rachel Stanford leads the team with 9.86 assists per set to go along with 218 total digs. Senior Meredith Furr is ranked sixth in the SAC in digs per set with 5.20.
 
-The Indians are 4-5 on the road, but 8-2 in Salisbury this season. Catawba has won eight consecutive home matches dating back to a 3-0 win over Coker on September 20. Wingate was responsible for the Indians' last home loss on September 17.
 
Notes on Queens:
 
-Since dropping a 3-0 decision at Lincoln Memorial on October 1, the Royals have been on a roll with wins in eight of their last nine matches. Queens won four of those contests, including the last three, in straight sets. Wingate is the lone blemish on the Royals' record over that span, as the Bulldogs handed Queens a 3-0 loss on October 21.
 
-Queens was one of three SAC teams, along with Lincoln Memorial and Wingate, represented in the top 10 of the first NCAA Division II Southeast Region poll. The Royals are currently ranked sixth.
 
-The Royals are a dangerous offensive team that ranks fourth in the SAC in kills per set (12.66) and attack percentage (.199). Queens is also a stellar defensive unit that has allowed opponents to account for just 11.18 kills per set on a .148 attack percentage this season. That effort has been fueled by a block that ranks second in the league in stonewalls per set with 2.29.
 
-Senior outside hitter Meredith Jones is one of the most productive offensive weapons in the South Atlantic Conference, as she leads the league in kills (320) and kills per set (3.76). However, Jones also leads the league in total errors with 152 while boasting just the 41st-best attack percentage with a .184 mark. In addition to Jones, Rebecca Cochran is chipping in 2.78 kills per set and Jessica Raines is adding 2.25.
 
-Junior setter Sydney Kunz is fifth in the SAC in assists per set with 9.79. She has also been potent in the attack with 1.08 kills per set and a .279 attack percentage on 215 total attempts. Senior Megan Mancini leads the Royals with 4.35 digs per set.
 
-Queens is outstanding at home with an 11-3 mark at Curry Arena. The Royals have won nine consecutive home matches dating back to a 3-2 win over Coker on September 17.
 
Series History:
 
-The Lady Railsplitters are 14-11 all-time against Catawba and have won 10 of the last 11 meetings, including a 3-1 victory on September 30 at Mary Mars Gym. Lincoln Memorial is just 5-6 in Salisbury, though.
 
-In this season's first meeting, Lincoln Memorial and Catawba played a closely-contested match, as all four sets were decided by three points or less. The Lady Railsplitters got the better of the Indians by scores of 25-23, 22-25, 26-24 and 28-26. Brock had 19 kills and Cash had 18 to lead the Lady Railsplitters, while Hoffman led the Indians with 14 kills.
 
-The Lady Railsplitters lost in four sets to Catawba in last season's trip to Salisbury.
 
-Lincoln Memorial is 7-4 all-time against Queens, but just 1-2 in Charlotte.
 
-The Lady Railsplitters dispatched of the Royals in straight sets on October 1 at Mary Mars Gym, winning by scores of 25-23, 25-14 and 25-20. Queens hit just .047 in that contest, while Lincoln Memorial produced 39 kills on a .216 clip. Holland led LMU with 12 kills, while Jones paced all players with 13 kills, albeit with seven errors.
 
-The Lady Railsplitters suffered a four-set loss at Queens last season.