Black & Gold Challenge
Tournament Info – Friday, Sept. 3 & Saturday, Sept. 4
Location – Holmes Convocation Center (Boone, N.C.)
Live Stats – vs. ETSU (Sept. 3, 10 a.m.) | vs. App State (Sept. 3, 7 p.m.) | vs. Kansas City (Sept. 4, 11 a.m.)
Full Schedule
Friday, Sept. 3
10 a.m. – Old Dominion vs. East Tennessee State
12:30 p.m. – Appalachian State vs. Kansas City
4 p.m. – Kansas City vs. East Tennessee State
7 p.m. Old Dominion vs. Appalachian State
Saturday, Sept. 4
11 a.m. – Old Dominion vs. Kansas City
1:30 p.m. – East Tennessee State vs. Appalachian State
NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion volleyball team returns to action this weekend for its second of four tournaments prior to the start of conference play. This time, the Monarchs travel to Boone, North Carolina for the Black & Gold Challenge, where they will play East Tennessee, Kansas City and the hosts Appalachian State.
About ODU
The Monarchs went 1-2 at the Old Dominion Invitational last weekend, the first tournament ever hosted at the ODU Volleyball Center. ODU topped Hampton in its first match of the year before losing to both West Virginia and Loyola (Md.).
As a team, the Monarchs tallied 29 total blocks across those three matches and currently rank third in Conference USA in both total blocks and blocks per set (2.90). On the national stage, ODU is 26th in blocks per set. Hailey Duncan notched 19 blocks and currently leads the team in that category. The redshirt sophomore middle blocker is second in C-USA and sixth in Division I in total blocks.
A pair of first-year players in Myah Conway and Kira Smith saw significant playing time at the ODU Invitational. Both players started all three matches for the Monarchs and played in all 10 sets. Smith racked up 21 kills, and Conway had 19. Those totals are second and third, respectively, on the team. Additionally, Smith tallied 19 digs, second-best on the squad, and Conway is second on the team with 13 total blocks. Smith recorded ODU's first double-double of the year with 13 kills and 12 digs, both match highs, against Hampton in her collegiate debut.
Olivia De Jesus garnered recognition on the all-tournament team. She tallied 13 kills, four aces, and eight blocks across three matches.
About Appalachian State
The Mountaineers are hosting an early-season tournament for the second-consecutive weekend after going 2-1 at the Appalachian Invitational. App State pulled out a pair of five-set victories against Eastern Kentucky and Radford before falling in three sets to UNCG.
McCall Denny leads all Mountaineers with 44 kills and is top-25 nationally with 135 total attacks. Victoria Wilform also notched 31 kills while hitting .215. Sam Bickley paces the team with 103 total assists, and Emma Reilly leads all App State players with 51 digs.
Last season, the Mountaineers went 1-15 and 1-12 in the Sun Belt. They were picked to finish fourth in the Sun Belt East Division this season.
About East Tennessee State
The Buccaneers are coming off a 1-2 showing at the Tennessee Classic last weekend. ETSU sandwiched a sweep of NC State with three-set losses to Texas Tech and Tennessee. In the win over the Wolfpack, Josannah Vazquez notched a double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs while hitting .237. Taylor Roberts also tallied 17 digs.
Vazquez has 33 kills on the season and is just outside the top-100 nationally in kills per set (3.67). Roberts has 48 digs to lead the team and is 23rd in Division I in digs per set. Sara Esposito and Jenna Forster are second and third on the team in kills, respectively. In the spring, Esposito was named Second Team All-SoCon, and Forster earned a place on the all-freshman team.
ETSU competed exclusively against Southern Conference opponents during the spring season and went 7-9. The Buccaneers were selected to finish fifth this season.
About Kansas City
Kansas City started off the season by going 2-1 at the Mizzou Invitational. The Roos lost to Creighton in three sets before pulling off a 3-1 win over Missouri and a 3-2 victory against Saint Louis.
Kansas City returns the services of Melanie Brecka, the Summit League Player of the Year and an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American last season, as well as Summit League Setter of the Year Alli Schomers. Last season, Brecka was top of the conference and 41st nationally with 4.17 kills per set and also ranked 48th in DI with 292 total kills. Schomers' tally of 718 total assists was good for 44th in the country.
Brecka is the Roos leader in kills this season with 38 and is hitting at a .289 clip. She had a 20-kill, 10-dig double-double in the win over Missouri. Schomers has handed out 110 assists so far, including 46 against the Tigers and 43 against Saint Louis.
Last season, Kansas City posted a 13-4 overall record and finished tied for second in the Summit League with a 13-3 mark. The Roos were picked to finish fourth this season.
Voucher Books!
The 2021-22 Old Dominion voucher book is available for sale on ynottix.com. New this year, ticket vouchers come with the flexibility for customers to use them across several of ODU's ticketed sports, including men's and women's soccer, volleyball and baseball. Purchase now and vouchers remain valid through the end of the home baseball schedule in mid-May. Each year, these four programs account for approximately 60 combined home events that will be accessible with the ticket vouchers.
Each voucher book contains 25 tickets and is priced at $50, which is a 60 percent savings off the single-game ticket price. Vouchers are good for any regular season home game played at the ODU Soccer Complex, Volleyball Center or Bud Metheny Baseball Stadium, and can be presented at the gate for admission.
Single-game tickets can also be purchased for $5.
Click here to purchase the 2021-22 ODU voucher book.
Volleyball Competes in Black & Gold Challenge this Friday and Saturday
