GREENEVILLE, Tenn. –The Lady Railsplitters (4-0) seek their best start since the 2007 season this weekend when they take part in the Pioneer Volleyball Classic, facing Georgia College on Friday before tangling with Montevallo on Saturday.
Lincoln Memorial was nearly flawless in opening its 2018 campaign with four consecutive wins over Belmont Abbey, King, Chowan and Emmanuel last weekend at Mary Mars Gymnasium. The Lady Railsplitters won the first three matches in straight sets and needed just 13 sets total to complete the weekend sweep.
The Basics
Friday, September 7 vs. Georgia College at 2pm
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Saturday, September 8 vs. Montevallo at 2pm
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Quick Hits
- Freshmen
Emily Walter and
Emma Flowers announced themselves as forces to be reckoned with monster performances last weekend. The Lady Railsplitters' new setter, Walters recorded two double-doubles while averaging 9.46 assists and 3.31 digs per set. She also produced seven kills on only 16 attempts. Flowers – a 6-0 outside hitter – led the Lady Railsplitters in kills in three of the four matches, averaging 3.17 per set on a .400 attack percentage.
- Flowers is one of five Lady Railsplitter attackers currently averaging over two kills per set along with
Lindsey Nartker (2.55),
Rylee Storms (2.15),
Kai Wesemann (2.13) and
Tone Gill (2.08). Over the weekend, Lincoln Memorial averaged 12.77 kills per set on a .272 clip.
- Senior libero
Erica Whiteaker picked right back where she left off last season, averaging 6.85 digs per set over the opening weekend. She put up a season-high 30 digs against King and added 26 against Emmanuel.
- The Lady Railsplitters served well last weekend, amassing 33 aces total and 2.54 per set. Whiteaker currently leads the team with 11, followed closely behind by Storms' eight. Lincoln Memorial combined for 24 of those aces against Chowan and Emmanuel.
- The Lady Railsplitters are one of four unbeaten South Atlantic Conference programs along with Wingate (7-0), Lenoir-Rhyne (5-0) and Carson-Newman (3-0). With a win on Friday, Lincoln Memorial would move to 5-0 for the first time since 2007.
Notes on Georgia College
- The Bobcats enter the weekend with an even 4-4 record. Georgia College opened the season in Turlock, Calif., at the NorCal Volleyball Classic, where they beat Humboldt State and Sonoma State while losing to Chico State and Stanislaus State. The Bobcats followed that up with two straight losses to Barton and Anderson before beating Winston-Salem and Queens in straight-set fashion.
- Georgia College is led by middle blocker Taylor Svehla, who leads the Peach Belt Conference in kills with 112 and ranks second in kills per set with 3.73. In addition to that, Svehla is hitting .361 and ranks third in the conference in blocks per set with 1.03.
- As a team, GC ranks second in the conference in kills with 352, fifth in kills per set with 11.73 and fourth in attack percentage with a .206 clip. Svehla is the only Bobcat with over two kills per set, though, as Emma Boughner is putting up 1.97 and Libby Bochniak and Emily Crowell are averaging 1.77 and 1.76 per set, respectively.
- Senior setter Kayla Brockway is leading the Bobcats with 9.33 assists per set to go with 2.60 digs per set. Jordyn Moellering leads Georgia College with 4.97 digs per set.
- Georgia College ranks second in the PBC in blocks per set with 2.13. Despite that, opponents are outpacing the Bobcats in kills per set, 12.77 to 11.73. However, opponents are hitting just .165 against GC this season.
Notes on Montevallo
- The Falcons are off to a solid start at 6-1 overall and enter the weekend riding a four-match winning streak. Montevallo has won 12 of its last 13 sets in victories over Miles, Tuskegee, Southern Wesleyan and Limestone.
- Montevallo leads the Gulf South Conference in attack percentage (.256), opponent attack percentage (.086) and aces (3.00 per set).
- The Falcons have a balanced offensive attack with five players averaging over two kills per set. Evelina Teran leads the team with 2.65 kills per set on a GSC-best .412 attack percentage. Amanda Nugent is putting up 2.47 kills per set on a .267 attack percentage, while Brioni Dixon (2.09, .363) and Brie Blume (2.05, .221) have also been effective offensively.
- Montevallo's two-setter system is fueled by Savannah Roys and Harley Masoner, who are averaging an identical 5.18 assists per set. They are also chipping in 1.59 and 1.64 digs per set, respectively.
- Blume leads the Falcons with 3.65 digs per set, and she is one of three players with over three digs per set along with Skyler Sieber (3.32) and Michaela Henderson (3.17).
Head-to-Head
- The Lady Railsplitters are 2-0 all-time against Georgia College, as they defeated the Bobcats 3-0 in 2017 and 3-2 in 2016. In last season's matchup, Storms and Nartker helped power the LMU attack with 11 kills apiece. That duo also combined for just two attack errors as the Lady Railsplitters hit .330 as a team.
- Montevallo owns a 19-6 mark all-time against its former Gulf South Conference foe. Between 1999 and 2003, the Lady Railsplitters lost nine consecutive matches against the Falcons, but have won four of the last seven since that stretch, including a 3-0 sweep in 2012. The two teams have not met since that Lady Railsplitter sweep six seasons ago.
