HARROGATE, Tenn. – The Lady Railsplitters (7-1, 4-0 SAC) will look for their first 5-0 start to South Atlantic Conference play since 2009 on Tuesday night, when they duke it out with the Mars Hill Lions (1-6, 0-4 SAC) at 7 p.m. inside of Mary Mars Gymnasium.
 
Schedule/Game Day Links
 
Tuesday, September 20 vs. Mars Hill (7pm) Live Stats / Video
 
Notes on the Lady Railsplitters:
Preview with Coach Michael on the Papa John's Splitter Sound Bites podcast
 
-Lincoln Memorial pushed its winning streak to seven and improved to 4-0 in SAC play this past weekend by capturing a 3-0 win at Newberry and a 3-1 victory at Anderson. The Lady Railsplitters were solid on offense in both of those contests, producing 35 kills with only nine errors in the win over the Wolves before racking up 61 kills on a .224 attack percentage against Anderson. The seven-game winning streak is the longest for the program since 2011, while the 4-0 SAC start is the program's best since 2009. That team opened SAC play with six straight wins.
-In Saturday's four-set win at Anderson, Samantha Cash (New Carlisle, Ohio) and Lindsey Nartker (New Carlisle, Ohio) both turned in noteworthy performances. Cash, a redshirt-sophomore right side, posted the program's first triple-double since 2012 (Allison Beavers), logging 10 kills, 10 assists and 11 digs to go along with three total blocks. Nartker – a freshman outside hitter – tallied a career-high 13 kills and 12 digs in a breakout showing.
-After another productive week, junior outside hitter Kiera Holland (Columbia, S.C.) is leading the league in kills per set in SAC matches with 4.06, while ranking ninth in the league in hitting percentage against SAC opponents with a .287 mark. Holland had 13 kills in three sets against Newberry before leading all players with 15 kills in the Anderson match.
-Head coach Jenny Michael nabbed her 100th career victory in the Lady Railsplitters' win at Anderson, moving to 100-64 in her six-season tenure. Michael is the second coach in program history with 100 career wins, joining all-time wins leader Michael Smith, who racked up 351 wins in his 17 seasons at the helm.
-A strong block continues to play a huge role for the Lady Railsplitters this season. Lincoln Memorial is allowing opponents to hit just .153, due in large part to a front line that is averaging 2.43 blocks per set, the second-highest total in the SAC. The Lady Railsplitters have 40 total blocks in SAC play, which is also the second-best mark in the league. Tone Gill (Nashville, Tenn.) leads the team and is ranked third in the SAC with 1.22 blocks per set.
 
Notes on Mars Hill:
 
-The Lions' lone win of the season came against Emmanuel (Ga.) back on September 3 in the Columbus State Tournament. Since then, Mars Hill has dropped four consecutive matches, but that is a little bit deceiving, as three of those four contests went to five sets. The Lions were up two sets to one against Lenoir-Rhyne on Friday before letting that one slip away. On Saturday, Mars Hill rallied from a 2-0 deficit to force a fifth set, but lost 15-11 to fall to 0-4 in SAC play.
-Sustaining an efficient offensive attack has been at the root of Mars Hill's issues this season, as the Lions are ranked 11th in the SAC in kills per set (10.33) and attack percentage (.148). In SAC play, the Lions have been even worse, hitting just .132 while averaging 25 errors per match.
-The Lions are led by junior outside hitter Rebecca Butler and senior outside Mary Kate Griffin. Butler is averaging 2.41 kills per set on a .224 attack percentage with 2.15 digs per frame. Griffin is chipping in 2.07 kills per set, but is hitting just .113. She is also among the team leaders in digs with 3.00 per set. Freshman Sally Anne Johnson (1.74 kills/set, .294) and junior Lauren Hochstetler (1.70 kills, 2.52 digs per set) have also contributed. Junior setter Sara Fahrenbrook is producing 8.44 assists and 1.48 digs per set, while Victoria Kaiser leads the Lions with 5.77 scoops per frame.
-Dating back to last season, Mars Hill has lost four of its last five SAC road matches. Statistically speaking, the Lions have been marginally better on the road this season, though. In three road appearances, Mars Hill is averaging 10.00 kills per set on a .147 attack percentage as compared to 9.70 kills per set and a .099 attack percentage in two home outings.
-The Lions can be scrappy thanks to some efficiencies in a couple of areas. First, Mars Hill is leading the SAC in digs per set with 18.33. In SAC play, that number jumps to 18.89. Second, the Lions are second in the league in service aces per set with 1.70. Mars Hill's 33 aces against SAC opponents leads the league.
 
Series History:
 
-The Lady Railsplitters are 22-8 all-time against the Lions with four straight wins dating back to September of 2014. Lincoln Memorial has not lost to Mars Hill at home since suffering a 3-0 setback in the quarterfinals of the 2011 SAC Championship. Last season, the Lady Railsplitters swept Mars Hill in both regular-season contests.
-Lincoln Memorial absolutely steamrolled the Lions last season at Mary Mars, winning by scores of 25-9, 25-12 and 25-13. The Lady Railsplitters hit .259 as a team while holding Mars Hill to a -.097 mark. Holland and Liz Brock (Lima, Ohio) led the team with seven kills apiece.