Oct. 2, 2008
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest volleyball team is riding high after back-to-back ACC victories and will look to keep the momentum rolling with a pair of home matches this weekend. Wake will host NC State at 7 p.m. on Friday and North Carolina at 6 p.m. on Saturday. The Deacons are 11-4 overall and 2-1 in the ACC after a thrilling five-set victory over Duke on Tuesday night. Wake opened ACC play with a five-set loss to Florida State last Thursday but rebounded one night later to sweep Miami in impressive fashion. Both NC State and North Carolina come into this weekend's matches with 2-0 marks in the conference as both teams took care of Boston College and Maryland last week. Wake Forest has enjoyed success in the early part of the season thanks in large part to its defensive play. Four different Demon Deacons are averaging over 2.50 digs per set on the season while the Deacs are third in the ACC with an opponent hitting percentage of .141. Leading the way in the back row is sophomore libero Megan Thornberry. The St. Louis, Mo., native leads the team with 262 digs and is averaging 4.68 digs per set, which is second in the ACC. She has also notched double-digit digs in 13 straight matches. Junior defensive specialist Abby Miller has also played well in the back row this season, averaging 2.83 digs per set and she is third on the team with 158 total digs. Sophomore setter Kelsey Jones has notched nine double-doubles this season, including one in five of the last six matches. She not only tops the team with 590 assists but she is also second on the squad at 3.02 digs per set. Despite only having a year and a half under her belt, Jones is already fifth in school history with 1,659 career assists.
Sophomore Kristen White has had a solid all-around start to the season. She is second on the team with 151 kills and fourth at 2.55 digs per set. Graduate student Natalie Mullikin and sophomore Lauren McIntyre have led the team defensively at the net, recording a combined 109 total blocks. McIntyre tied her season-high with six block assists against the Blue Devils on Tuesday and Mullikin continues her assault on the Wake Forest record book. Mullikin is just 17 total blocks away from tying Margaret Davidson's career-mark of 472 total blocks. Mullikin also leads the Deacons offensively with 178 kills. She has posted double-digit kills in 13 of 15 matches this season and is averaging 3.26 kills per set. White is second on the team with 151 kills and freshman Kadija Fornah has been a pleasant surprise with 118 kills this season. Scouting the Wolfpack
NC State had lost 56 straight ACC matches before last week and a key to the Wolfpack's early season success has been the play of Arlee Tamietti. She tops the team with 186 kills and 15 service aces while also recording 113 digs and 32 total blocks. Another bright spot for NC State has been senior Aiwane Iboaya, who is the reigning ACC Player of the Week. She is second on the team with 106 kills and tops the team with 55 total blocks. Sophomore Alex Smith has built upon a solid freshman season to lead the team with 499 assists and she is also second with 132 digs and 13 service aces. Smith has also been a threat offensively, recording 70 kills this season. The Deacs hold a slim 22-19 advantage in the all-time series with NC State but Wake has dominated as of late. Wake has won the last 19 meetings between the two schools including sweeping 14 of the last 15 matches. Scouting the Tar Heels
North Carolina is 8-5 overall this season but the Tar Heels have played a challenging schedule. UNC is not only coming off wins against Boston College and Maryland, but the Tarheels defeated Minnesota in the finale of the Gopher Invitational on Sept. 20. Opponents are hitting just .135 against North Carolina, which is the lowest percentage in the ACC. One of the main reasons for that is because junior Ingrid Hanson-Tuntland has set up a wall at the net. She tops the ACC with 1.57 blocks per set. Offensively, senior Lauren Prussing leads the team with 101 kills while sophomore Suzanne Haydel is not far behind with 91. Senior Stephanie Jansma has guided the offense, dishing out 396 assists and is averaging 2.89 digs per set. The Tar Heels have dominated the all-time series with the Deacs, holding a 34-12 advantage. Wake Forest won both meetings in 2006 but last season, UNC won 3-0 in Chapel Hill and hung for a 3-2 win in a hard-fought match in Winston-Salem. The match against NC State can be seen over the internet through ACC Select. Fans can also follow both matches with live scoring through CSTV's Gametracker. After this weekend's matches, Wake will have a week off before heading out on the road for the first time in conference play. The Deacons will take on Clemson Friday night and Georgia Tech on Saturday. The two teams were picked 1-2 in the ACC preseason poll. |
