Trojans Travel to App State, Georgia State

Match Notes (PDF)

Match 17: Little Rock at Appalachian State
Friday, Oct. 9 • 5:30 p.m. (CDT)
Boone, N.C. • Holmes Center
Live Stats | Live Video

Match 18: Little Rock at Georgia State
Sunday, Oct. 11 • 11 a.m. (CDT)
Atlanta, Ga. • GSU Sports Arena 
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LITTLE ROCK – Little Rock volleyball (7-9, 3-3 Sun Belt) looks to snap its three-match losing streak and return to its winning ways with trips to Appalachian State (12-4, 5-0) and Georgia State (4-12, 0-6) on Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Sunday at noon.
 
FIRST SERVE

• Little Rock leads the all-time series with Appalachian State 3-0.
• The Trojans are 4-1 all-time against Georgia State and have a 2-0 record when playing in Atlanta.
• The Trojans' three-match skid in conference play is the longest since the end of the 2013 season.
• Little Rock is the top blocking team in the conference at 2.49 per set overall and 2.88 per set in conference play.
• Carolee Dillard is the Sun Belt's top blocker with 1.54 per set in conference play and 1.25 per set overall.
• Dillard and Edina Selimovic are the top blocking duo in the Sun Belt at 2.32 per set overall and 2.75 in conference play.
• Selimovic has the second-best overall hitting percentage in the conference at .357.
• Priscila Almeida continues to average 5.00 digs per set for the season, third-most in the Sun Belt.

 
SCOUTING APPALACHIAN STATE (12-4, 5-0 SUN BELT)
The Mountaineers enter Friday night's match with a perfect 5-0 Sun Belt record. Last weekend, App State earned back-to-back sweeps against ULM and Louisiana on the road.
 
Appalachian State is led on offense by the duo of Jess Keller and Emily Corrigan. Keller leads the Sun Belt with 4.43 kills per set while Corrigan has the fourth-most at 3.50 per set. They are assisted by setter Paige Brown, who leads the conference with 11.52 assists per set. As a team, the Mountaineers have the best hitting percentage (.289), most kills per set (14.28) and most assists per set (13.30) in the conference.
 
Little Rock will hold the blocking advantage on Friday as App State tallies the second-least blocks per set in the conference at 1.83. Ashton Gregory is the team's top blocker at 0.90 per set. The Mountaineers scoop up the second-most digs per set in the conference at 15.52. Meghan Mahoney gets the majority of digs at 4.67 per set.
 
SCOUTING GEORGIA STATE (4-12, 0-6 SUN BELT)
The Panthers come into Sunday afternoon's with eight straight losses and remain winless in Sun Belt play. Georgia State was swept by Georgia Southern on Wednesday night in Statesboro.
 
Deidra Bohannon and Kristina Stinson lead the offensive charge with 3.10 and 3.02 kills per set, respectively. They are set by Natalie Nieto, who averages 9.30 assists per set for the year.
 
Gabby Serafin leads the GSU defense with 4.44 digs per set. The Trojans should once again win the blocking battle as the Panthers only earn 1.84 blocks per set for the year, enough for eighth-best in conference play.
 
SERIES AGAINST APPALACHIAN STATE
In just three meetings with the Mountaineers, Little Rock has never lost. The two squads first met in 2004 at the TCU Invitational Classic as Little Rock won the match in four sets. Last year, the Trojans won in four sets in Boone before sweeping the Mountaineers in Little Rock.
 
SERIES AGAINST GEORGIA STATE
Little Rock is 4-1 all-time against Georgia State. The Trojans' lone loss to the Panthers came in 2011 at the Memphis Invitational as Georgia State won in five sets. Since Georgia State joined the conference, Little Rock has yet to lose a match in the series. The Trojans are perfect at 2-0 in Atlanta. Last season, Little Rock swept both matches against Georgia State.
 
BLOCK PARTY
Going off of 2014's momentum, Little Rock is once again the top blocking team in the Sun Belt. This season, the Trojans are averaging 2.49 blocks per set overall and 2.88 in conference play.
 
Carolee Dillard and Edina Selimovic seem to have returned for an encore performance in 2015 after finishing the 2014 season as the sixth-best blocking duo in the nation. Dillard and Selimovic are the Sun Belt's top duo so far as they combine to average 2.32 blocks per set overall and 2.75 in conference play.
 
Dillard remains the Sun Belt's top blocking force as she averages 1.54 blocks per set in conference play and 1.25 for the year.
 
DIGGIN' ALMEIDA
Senior libero Priscila Almeida continues to be a bright spot for Little Rock's defense. Through 59 sets, she has the third-most overall digs per set in the conference at 5.00. Almeida also has the third-most digs per set in conference play at 5.00 digs per set.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS
Priscila Almeida boasts the 29th-most digs per set in the nation at 5.00 per set and has the 57th-most total digs at 295.
 
Carolee Dillard has the ranks 51st in the nation for blocks per set at 1.25 and ranks 49th for total blocks with 74.
 
Edina Selimovic's .357 hitting percentage ranks 85th in Division I.
While leading the Sun Belt, Little Rock ranks 46th in the nation for blocks per set at 2.49.
 
A WIN AGAINST APPALACHIAN STATE WOULD…
…be the Mountaineers first Sun Belt loss of the season, and it would snap Little Rock's three-match skid.
A win would also increase Little Rock's series lead to 4-0.
 
A WIN AGAINST GEORGIA STATE WOULD…
…keep the Panthers winless in conference play, and Little Rock would remain undefeated when playing Georgia State in Atlanta.
 
FIRST SET ADVANTAGE
The Trojans are 7-2 this season when winning the first set.
 
SUCCESS ON FRIDAYS
Little Rock has played its best on Fridays this season with a 4-2 record.
 
ACE YOUR FACE
When recording more aces than its opponents, Little Rock is a perfect 6-0 this season.
 
CAREER NUMBERS WATCH

• Priscila Almeida is five digs away from the 300 mark.
• Marina Avram needs eight kills to earn 150 for her career.
• Carolee Dillard is 17 total blocks away from eclipsing the 400-mark for her career.
• Edina Selimovic is just six kills away from earning 400 for her career. Selimovic also needs just 13 total blocks to accumulate 250 for her career.

NEXT UP
After concluding this weekend's matches, the Trojans will return to Little Rock for a three-match homestand beginning with South Alabama on Saturday, Oct. 17 at 6:30 p.m.