Old Dominion (4-11, 0-4 Sun Belt) vs. Coastal Carolina (4-9, 0-4 Sun Belt)
Match Info – Friday, Oct. 9 at 6 p.m. | Saturday, Oct. 10 at 2 p.m.
Location – ODU Volleyball Center (Norfolk, Va.)
Watch – ESPN+ (Saturday)
Live Stats – Friday | Saturday
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion volleyball welcomes Coastal Carolina for a pair of Sun Belt matches at the ODU Volleyball Center this weekend. The series opener is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start on Friday, and the teams will return for a 2 p.m. first serve on Saturday.
Saturday’s match will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will be available for both matches.
The Series
ODU and Coastal Carolina have previously met eight times, with the Chanticleers ahead in the all-time series, 5-3. The Monarchs made the trip to Conway, S.C. on Oct. 3-4 last season and dropped both matches in straight sets. Former Monarch Bryanna Jones led the Silver and Blue in the first contest with 13 kills and 10 digs. Kyra Hampton finished with 16 assists, and Elisa Maggi also had 10 digs.
In the second match, Jones tallied 11 kills followed by Katie Rakoski and Rita Benidio with seven each. Hampton had a team-high 24 assists and Adrienne Peji led the team with 16 digs.
About ODU
The Monarchs (4-11, 0-4 Sun Belt) were in Statesboro, Georgia last week for a pair of Sun Belt matches at Georgia Southern and dropped both matches to the Eagles, 3-0 and 3-0. In the first match, Weronika Urbanska scored a team-high 11 kills, Hampton had 14 assists, Adrienne Peji registered 17 digs, and Emma Schelah made four blocks. In the second match, Urbanska, Benidio, and Leilani Lawrence ended up with seven kills each. Wiktoria Zagumny finished with 10 assists, Peji set a new career best with 19 digs, and Emma DiRocco recorded two blocks. The series also pitted ODU’s Erica Duffy against her older sister, Lexi Duffy, who was named Sun Belt Setter of the Week on Tuesday.
Lawrence leads the Monarch offense with 193 kills (3.57 per set) and 229.5 points (4.25 per set). The first year from Tampa, Florida enters the week ranked second in the Sun Belt and 35th in the country with 0.52 aces per set. She’s also fourth in the conference with 28 service aces. Maggi follows Lawrence with 131 kills (2.38 per set) and 152 points (2.76 per set). Zagumny and Duffy own 240 and 179 assists, respectively. Zagumny, who spent her first two seasons at Chicago State before transferring to ODU, is 43 assists away from 900 during her time in Norfolk and currently has 2,600 career assists.
On defense, libero Ashlyn Gent has a team-high 123 digs (2.51 per set) and Peji is close behind her with 114 digs (2.23 per set). At the net, Schelah has made 52 blocks (0.93 per set) and DiRocco is next with 36 (0.66 per set).
Head coach Fred Chao is in his seventh season leading the program and is 71-101 overall with a 20-44 mark in the SBC.
About Coastal Carolina
The Chanticleers (4-9, 0-4 Sun Belt) are looking to snap a seven-match losing streak after 3-0 and 3-2 at App State last Friday and Saturday. In the series opener, CCU tied the third set at 23-23, but the host Mountaineers secured the final two points. Anzley Rinard and Talia Johnson combined for 17 kills, Kaylee Musick ended up with 16 assists, and Jonna Spohn tallied nine digs. In the series finale, the Chants forced a fifth set and was tied 14-14 before App State’s Amelia Mancino denied the comeback bid with back-to-back kills.
Rinard is the team’s leader in kills with 121 (2.47 per set), Hatteras Welker is second with 104 (1.96 per set), and Natalie Hughes is third with 103 (1.94 per set). Musick is CCU’s primary setter with 332 assists (6.92 per set) and is tied with Abby Bucey in service aces with 14 each. Spohn, the team’s libero, leads the back line with 240 digs and ranks fifth in the Sun Belt with 4.53 digs per set. Hatteras and Hughes have made 59 and 47 blocks, respectively. As a team, the Chants are fifth in the conference with 2.30 blocks per set.
Coastal is led by fourth-year head coach Steve Loeswick, who previously spent six seasons at North Florida. He is 55-43 overall with a 31-21 mark in the Sun Belt during his time in Conway, South Carolina. The Chanticleers were picked to finish third in the Sun Belt East Division in the league’s Preseason Coaches’ Poll with fourth-year middle blocker Anna Rita named to the Preseason All-Sun Belt Team.
Up Next
Old Dominion will travel to Atlanta, Georgia for a Sun Belt series at Georgia State on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 16-17. The first match against the Panthers is scheduled for 6 p.m., and the second match will start at 2 p.m.