Old Dominion (11-15, 3-9 Sun Belt) vs. Georgia State (5-18, 2-10 Sun Belt)
Match Info – Thursday, Nov. 2 at 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 3 at 6:30 p.m.
Location – ODU Volleyball Center (Norfolk, Va.)
Watch – ESPN+ (Thursday | Friday)
Live Stats – CLICK HERE
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion volleyball has its final two home matches of the regular season this week as the Monarchs host Georgia State on Thursday and Friday at the ODU Volleyball Center.
Thursday's match will be the team's Military Appreciation Night and Friday will mark Senior Night for the Monarchs. ODU will recognize Tessa Mati, Teresa Atilano, Kira Smith and Olivia De Jesus in a ceremony before first serve. Fans can watch both matches on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available.
Series History
The two programs met for the first time last season, with ODU claiming both matches 3-1 in Atlanta, Georgia on Nov. 4-5. In the first contest, ODU took the opening set 25-18 before the hosts answered with a 25-21 decision in the second set. The Monarchs then won the next two sets, 25-21 and 25-20. Myah Conway recorded an 18-kill, 10-dig double-double, Atilano finished with 49 assists, Hailey Duncan made five blocks (two solo) and Anna Burkhardt contributed 21 digs.
ODU then completed the Sun Belt series sweep of the Panthers the following day. After dropping the first set 25-15, the Monarchs responded with scores of 27-25, 25-18 and 25-22 to earn the victory. Conway scored 15 kills, Madeline Rudd followed with 13, and Mati contributed an 11-kill, 11-dig double-double. Atilano and Ashlynn Belcher had 21 assists each, De Jesus led ODU at the net with five blocks (one solo), and Burkhardt led both teams with 17 digs.
About ODU
The Monarchs (11-15, 3-9 Sun Belt) return to Norfolk after splitting their conference series at App State last week. The Mountaineers won the first match in straight sets on Thursday, but ODU bounced back with a 3-1 victory on Friday.
ODU currently sits in sixth place in the league's East Division with a 3-9 mark in the Sun Belt, but the Monarchs are right behind App State (4-8) and Marshall (4-8) with four matches still to play before the conference tournament on Nov. 15-19.
Conway, who continues to lead the conference and is ranked 10th nationally with 387 kills, needs 50 more to reach 1,000 for her career. The junior from Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania is also first in the Sun Belt and ninth in the country with 439.5 points and ranks third In the league with 3.87 kills per set. Atilano is currently third in the conference in both service aces (39) and total assists (918).
Alice Munari and Elisa Maggi follow Conway with 164 and 146 kills, respectively. ODU's back row is paced by Kate Kilpatrick's 300 digs. At the net, Bailey Burgess owns 90 blocks (20 solo), good for sixth in the conference. LeeAnne Lowery is next with 78 blocks and Conway has 77.
As a team, ODU ranks first in the Sun Belt with 155 service aces. The Monarchs are also second in the conference and 16th in the country with 230 blocks, and rank third in the league in both kills (1,213) and assists (1,124).
About Georgia State
The Panthers (5-18, 2-10) have dropped seven in a row and are coming off a pair of 3-0 losses to Southern Miss. GSU's two wins in conference came against Marshall (3-2 on Sept. 29) and at App State (3-2 on Oct. 6).
Erin Wyatt owns the team highs in both kills (157) and points (200). Jahniya Jackson is second with 147 kills, and Izzy Durnell and Aaliyah Mitchell both have 133 kills. Setters Laughlin Murray and Jexsamarie Perez have combined for 443 assists. Maren Palmer leads the team's servers with 19 aces, though Jackson is right behind her with 18 and Wyatt has served 17. Defensively, Livy Kowalkowski enters the series with 400 digs and Akira Burt has made 81 blocks (14 solo).
Through matches played on Oct. 31, GSU ranks fourth in the Sun Belt in digs per set (15.61), sixth in team attacks per set (35.37) and seventh in team digs (1,311). Burt ranks first in the Sun Belt in blocks per set (1.29) and Kowalkowsi is first in total digs and digs per set (4.76).
Up Next
ODU concludes the regular season next week when the team heads to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to play Southern Miss. The first match of the series is scheduled for a 7 p.m. ET start next Friday, and the teams will play again that Saturday at 12 p.m. ET.
Volleyball Hosts Georgia State for Final Home Series of the Regular Season
