Oct. 3, 2007
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest returns to action this week with a pair of ACC matches at in-state rivals North Carolina and NC State. The Demon Deacons will take on the Tar Heels on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and the Wolfpack Saturday at 6 p.m. Thursday's match will be broadcast on ACC Select. Wake Forest enters its match at UNC with a record of 6-8 overall and 3-2 in the ACC. The Deacons are coming off a five-game loss at Florida State on Sunday. Prior to the setback, Wake had won three straight matches, all three-game sweeps. It was the first time in program history that the Deacs had swept three consecutive conference opponents. Wake Forest is currently tied with Virginia for fourth place in the conference standings. The Deacons are a half game back of Georgia Tech (3-1) in third and two games back of league leader Duke (5-0). Junior Natalie Mullikin ranks among the league leaders in hitting percentage, kills and points. Mullikin is fifth in hitting percentage with a mark of .364, ninth in points with 4.39 per game and 10th in kills with 3.59 per game. Mullikin continues to climb the charts on Wake Forest's career blocking list. She ranks third in total blocks with 315. Mullikin is fourth on each the block solos (78) and block assists (237) lists. She is nine block solos away from the Deacons' all-time record of 87, set by Jenny Kraner from 1984-86. Junior Jessica Furlong is third in the conference in kills with 4.33 per game, while freshman Kelsey Jones is eighth in assists at 10.03 per game. As a team, Wake Forest is fourth in the ACC in hitting percentage with a mark of .218. North Carolina comes in to Thursday's match with a record of 6-8 overall and 2-3 in league play. The Tar Heels have lost three of their last four but are coming off a three-game sweep at Boston College on Sunday.
UNC has gone 2-3 at home this season, including an 0-2 record in the conference. The Heels are one of the better blocking teams in the league, ranking third with 3.07 blocks per game. North Carolina also ranks fifth in the conference with 16.20 digs per game. Thursday will be the 45th all-time meeting between Wake Forest and North Carolina. The Tar Heels hold a 32-12 advantage in the series, but the Deacons have won the last two. Last season, Wake earned a four-game win in Chapel Hill and then posted a five-game comeback win in Winston-Salem. Prior to 2006, UNC had won six of seven meetings since 2002. NC State, who will play Duke on Thursday, is currently 3-12 overall and 0-5 in the ACC. The Wolfpack have lost 11 straight matches, dating back to Aug. 31. NCSU is 0-6 at home this season. Saturday will be the 40th all-time meeting between Wake Forest and NC State. The Deacons hold a slim 20-19 margin over the Wolfpack. However, Wake has won each of the last 17 matches dating back to 1998. NC State has not taken a single game from the Deacs since 2002. Over the 17-match winning streak, Wake Forest has swept NCSU 13 times. The Deacs will return home on Tuesday, Oct. 9, for a re-match with Duke at 7 p.m. Tuesday will begin a five-match homestand for Wake Forest. On the weekend of Oct. 12-13, the Deacons will host Clemson and Georgia Tech. Wake will then take on Virginia and Virginia Tech Oct. 19-20. |
