Monarch Invitational
Old Dominion (2-4) vs. Navy (1-5) | vs. Maryland Eastern Shore (1-5)
Tournament Info – Friday, Sept. 11 - Sunday, Sept. 13
Location – ODU Volleyball Center (Norfolk, Va.)
Watch – ESPN+ (ODU vs. Navy | ODU vs. UMES)
Live Stats – ODU vs. Navy | ODU vs. UMES
Tickets – Click Here
Full Schedule
Friday – ODU vs. Navy at 6 p.m.
Saturday – Navy vs. UMES at 2 p.m.
Sunday – ODU vs. UMES at 2 p.m.
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion volleyball welcomes Navy and Maryland Eastern Shore to the ODU Volleyball Center this weekend for the Monarch Invitational. The Monarchs will host the Midshipmen this Friday at 6 p.m. and will play the Hawks on Sunday at 2 p.m. Navy and UMES will square off on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Both of ODU’s matches will be streamed on ESPN+, and all three matches will have live stats available.
The Series
ODU and Navy have previously met three times, with the Monarchs holding a slight 2-1 advantage in the all-time series. The two programs last met on Sept. 14, 2024 at the George Mason Invite, with the Silver and Blue coming away with a 3-0 victory. The sweep marked ODU’s fifth win in what would end up being a 10-match win streak, the longest in program history. Ashlynn Belcher and Elisa Maggi were both named to the All-Tournament Team.
Sunday will mark just the second meeting between Old Dominion and Maryland Eastern Shore. The Monarchs swept the Hawks, 3-0 on Sept. 21, 2024 in the final match of the Old Dominion Invitational. Myah Conway, Hailee Blankenship, and Kate Kilpatrick represented ODU on the All-Tournament Team.
About ODU
The Monarchs (2-4) were in Rock Hill, South Carolina last weekend for the Winthrop Invitational. After falling to Virginia in straight sets last Friday, ODU looked to complete a reverse sweep of the Eagles after falling behind 2-0 and jumping out to a 5-1 start to the fifth set. The tournament hosts spoiled the comeback bid, though, as the Monarchs came up just short, 15-13.
Despite ODU dropping both of its matches last weekend, first year outside hitter Leilani Lawrence is still ranked nationally in multiple offensive categories. Coming into the week, the Tampa, Florida native is third in the nation with 132 points, sixth with 19 service aces, eighth with 109 kills, ninth with 281 attack attempts, and 10th with 5.28 points per set. In addition to leading the Sun Belt in each of those categories, she’s also the league leader in aces per set (0.76), kills per set (4.36), and attacks per set (11.24).
Maggi, a fourth year outside hitter from Pavia, Italy, is second on the team with 57 kills and 70 points. First year setter Erica Duffy is up to 125 assists (6.58 per set) and has served six aces, followed by Maggi and second year outside hitter Rita Benidio with five aces each. On defense, first year libero Ashlyn Gent paces the back row with 54 digs, Lawrence is next with 49, and Maggi has 48. At the net, third year middle blocker Emma Schelah and first year middle block Emma DiRocco have made 20 and 17 blocks, respectively.
As a team, the Monarchs rank second in the Sun Belt with 45 service aces and they are fourth in the conference with 264 assists.
About Navy
The Midshipmen (1-5) hosted the Kristen Dickmann Invitational last weekend in Annapolis, Maryland. Navy opened its home tournament with a 3-1 victory over Coppin State on Friday, its first win of the season, but fell 3-1 to Penn on Saturday and 3-0 to Stony Brook on Sunday. Third year outside hitter Farrah Eike earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team after tallying 42 kills, 26 digs, nine blocks, three aces, and two assists over the three matches.
Eike is the go-to option on offense, leading the Mids with 70 kills and 81 points. She ranks second in the Patriot League with 208 attack attempts, 9.90 attacks per set, and 3.33 kills per set. Third year setter Isa Boyd comes into the weekend with 113 assists (5.14 per set) and a team-best eight service aces. The back line is paced by third year defensive specialist and libero Amara Chambers, who leads the Patriot League with 94 digs and is second in the conference with 4.27 digs per set. Fourth year middle blocker Grace Burgoyne has recorded 17 blocks, followed by second year middle blocker Siena Morgan with 14 blocks and second year outside hitter Ellen Gundlach with 13.
The team ranks second in its conference in attacks per set (36.18), is third in blocks per set (2.05), and fourth in total attacks (796), digs (308), digs per set (14.00), and blocks (45).
Navy was picked to finish fifth in the Patriot League’s Preseason Poll after finishing 13-14 overall and 8-8 in conference play last season. The Mids are led by ninth year head coach Paco Labrador, who has gone 112-94 during his time in Annapolis.
About UMES
The Hawks (1-5) have dropped four in a row and are coming off an 0-3 week at the University of Maryland Tournament in College Park, Maryland. UMES fell to George Mason, 3-1 and to Hampton, 3-0 last Saturday. The team then lost in straight sets, 3-0 to the host Terrapins last Sunday.
Fourth year outside hitter Karielys Melendez paces the offense with 39 kills (2.44 per set) and 46 points and ranks second on UMES with six aces. Third year setter and rightside hitter Jayda Hutchins is second on the team with 26 kills, is the Hawks’ top server with nine aces, and owns 85 assists (5.31 per set). Fifth year libero Arianna Warner has a team-high 49 digs (3.06 per set), while graduate student and middle blocker Dynasty Andrews has made 21 blocks, good for third in the MEAC in both total blocks and blocks per set (1.33).
UMES is currently third in its conference in total blocks (44) and blocks per set (2.32). The Hawks are also fourth in the MEAC in winning percentage (.167), service aces (30), and assists (189).
Head coach Vanessa Faircloth is in her fourth year leading the program and has gone 40-50 with the Hawks. UMES went 11-18 overall and 7-7 in the MEAC last season and was picked to finish fifth in the league’s Preseason Poll.
Up Next
ODU will wrap up its non-conference schedule at East Carolina’s No Quarter Invitational next Thursday through Saturday, Sept. 17-19 in Greenville, North Carolina. The Monarchs will take on the Pirates on Thursday at 7 p.m., followed by a 2 p.m. meeting with Campbell on Friday at 2 p.m. The Silver and Blue then conclude the trip with a 1 p.m. match versus Maryland on Saturday.