ERIE, Pa.- The Mercyhurst volleyball team hosts two Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division matches this weekend. The Lakers face California (Pa.) Friday, October 19, and then take on Indiana (Pa.) Saturday, October 20. Both matches are set for 7:05 p.m. starts at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center.
Live stats for both contests will be available at
http://www.sidearmstats.com/hurst/wvball/scoreboard.aspx.
The Lakers have won five straight outings, including sweeps of Gannon and Edinboro last week. On October 9, Mercyhurst played its best home match of the year, defeating its rival Gannon in three games. Coach
Ryan Patton's squad hit .255 for the match, including a second set that featured 22 kills and a .340 attack percentage.
Cal enters the weekend with a 21-4 record, including a 10-2 mark in the PSAC. The Vulcans won three home matches last week, beating Clarion in five sets and then sweeping Slippery Rock and IUP.
Indiana is 18-10 overall and 6-6 in the league. It swept Slippery Rock before losing to Clarion and Cal last week.
Elyse Texido paces the conference with 5.14 digs per game. She has 411 total digs in 2012. The Lakers also lead the PSAC in team digs per game with 17.28, just ahead of IUP (17.19).
Kiera Rebert ranks fourth in the assists per game with 9.15, while
Becky Smith is second in the blocks per game at 1.16 this season. Mercyhurst also excels in serving and defense. It has tallied 161 aces and holds opponents to a .106 hitting percentage, both good for second in the league.
Cal leads the PSAC with a team hitting percentage of .269 and places second in assists, kills, and blocks. Meghan Franz is hitting .374, which is the best mark in the conference.
The Crimson Hawks rank well in digs and have one of the top servers in the league. Lauren Hester has 41 aces this season, third-most in the PSAC.
Clarion is 10-1 in the conference, good for first. Cal is next at 10-2, with Gannon sporting a 9-2 mark. Mercyhurst and Slippery Rock are both 6-5, with IUP at 6-6 and Edinboro 5-6 in 2012.
