Mountaineer Invitational
Tournament Info – Thursday, Sept. 14 - Friday, Sept. 15
Location – WVU Coliseum (Morgantown, W.Va.)
Watch – ODU at West Virginia | ODU vs. Robert Morris | ODU vs. NDSU
Live Stats – ODU at West Virginia | ODU vs. Robert Morris | ODU vs. NDSU
Full Schedule
Thursday, Sept. 14
10 a.m. – West Virginia vs. Old Dominion
12:30 p.m. – North Dakota State vs. Robert Morris
3 p.m. – Robert Morris vs. Old Dominion
7 p.m. – West Virginia vs. North Dakota State
Friday, Sept. 15
12 p.m. – Old Dominion vs. North Dakota State
6 p.m. – West Virginia vs. Robert Morris
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion volleyball will be in Morgantown, West Virginia this Thursday and Friday for West Virginia's Mountaineer Invitational.
Thursday's action begins with the Monarchs and host Mountaineers squaring off at 10 a.m. ODU then plays again at 3:30 p.m. against Robert Morris and concludes the tournament with a noon match versus North Dakota State on Friday.
Every match of the Invitational will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available.
Fan Information
Tickets for West Virginia's matches can be purchased online at WVUGAME.com or in person at the WVU Coliseum ticket window, with tickets going on sale one hour prior to the match. All non-WVU matches will have free admission.
Gates will open one hour prior to first serve of the opening match each day and parking will be free for all fans outside of the Gold Gate at WVU Coliseum. West Virginia's clear bag policy will also be in effect for all matches and can be found here.
About ODU
The Monarchs (5-5) made the trip to the nation's capital last weekend to play in the DC Showdown, co-hosted by Georgetown and George Washington. After a 3-0 loss to the Hoyas and a 3-1 setback against the Revolutionaries on Friday, ODU got back in the win column with a 3-2 comeback victory over North Alabama on Saturday.
Myah Conway leads the Sun Belt Conference in both kills and points. Her 138 kills rank 26th nationally and her 154 points are 32nd. Bryanna Jones follows Conway with 97 kills and Alice Munari enters the Invitational with 72. Teresa Atilano is currently second in the Sun Belt and 22nd in the country with 19 service aces. She's also third in the league and 24th nationally with 348 assists and needs 98 more to reach 2,800 for her career. Defensively, libero Kate Kilpatrick owns 117 digs and Atilano is second on the team with 82. At the net, Bailey Burgess has the team high in blocks with 33, Conway is up to 27 and LeeAnne Lowery has 25.
As of Sept. 12, the Monarchs rank second in the Sun Belt in both team service aces (67) and team total blocks (84).
About West Virginia
The Mountaineers (4-5) made the trip to Hamilton, New York last week for Colgate's Ellis Rowland Memorial Tournament. After falling in five sets to the hosts on Thursday, WVU defeated Cornell 3-1 on Friday and Albany 3-0 on Saturday.
Hailey Green and Bailey Miller are the top two attackers with 129 and 105 kills, respectively. Setter Lauren DeLo owns 327 assists and has served a team-high 14 aces. Camilla Covas is the team leader in digs with 119 while Jackson Tierney has recorded 43 blocks. Tierney's 1.39 blocks per set ranks 27th in the nation.
As a team, the Mountaineers currently lead the Big 12 in team kills (458) and team assists (416) and are second in total attacks (1,108). WVU was picked to finish 13th in the conference's preseason poll. Head coach Reed Sunahara, who is in his ninth season with the program, secured his 100th victory at West Virginia with the win over Cornell.
Thursday's match will mark the third meeting in the all-time series, which WVU leads 2-0. ODU fell 3-1 to the Mountaineers on March 30, 2021 in the final match of its first season as a program. WVU then returned to Norfolk that fall for the Old Dominion Invitational, with the Monarchs dropping the Aug. 27 meeting, 3-0.
About Robert Morris
The Colonials (3-5) were at the George Mason Invite last Friday and Saturday. RMU fell to the Patriots in straight sets on Friday and dropped their first match on Saturday to Brown, also in straight sets. However, the team corrected course with a 3-1 win over Radford and setter Ashleigh Wallin earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team.
Abby Ryan is the go-to option on offense with 122 kills and leads the Horizon League with 11.23 attacks and 4.07 kills per set. Following her are Natalie Stepanovich (93 kills) and Rosina Esposito (68 kills). Wallin and fellow setter Kaitlyn Brown have combined for 301 assists. Stepanovich is RMU's best server with 15 aces, though Wallin is close behind her with 13. Allena Carmody anchors the back row with 111 digs and Emma Brown has made 22 blocks.
RMU was picked to finish ninth in the Horizon League Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Colonials are led by head coach Danny Doherty, who is in his second season with the program.
ODU and Robert Morris are meeting for the first time.
About North Dakota State
The Bison (6-2) hosted Portland State and Toledo for their NDSU Tournament last Friday and Saturday, defeating both teams 3-0. Outside hitter Morgan Middleton was named the MVP and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by Alexis Boling and Arianna Blohm.
Ali Hinze has scored 102 kills and Boling 86 to pace the NDSU attack. Kelley Johnson is the team's primary setter with 307 assists, which ranks first in the Summit League. Johnson and Taylor Quan share the team lead in service aces at 10 apiece. Logan O'Brien comes into this week's Invitational with 103 digs, Quan is next with 95, Hinze has 93 and Johnson is at 90. Blohm has tallied 34 blocks (seven solo).
NDSU leads its conference in hitting percentage (.253), assists (378) and kills (411). The Bison are also second in the Summit League in aces per set (1.55), assists per set (12.19), digs per set (15.77), kills per set (13.26), opponent hitting percentage (.190) and service aces (48). The team received two first-place votes and was picked to finish second in the Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll. Head coach Jennifer Lopez is in her seventh season at NDSU.
Friday's match marks the first meeting between the Monarchs and Bison.
Up Next
ODU wraps up its non-conference schedule next Tuesday as the Monarchs host Liberty for a 5 p.m. match at the ODU Volleyball Center.
ODU Volleyball Travels to West Virginia for Mountaineer Invitational
