Erie, Pa—The Mercyhurst Volleyball team plays three different matches this weekend for the third week in a row. The Lakers take on West Virginia Wesleyan, East Stroudsburg and University of Findlay beginning Friday afternoon. 
 
1. Senior Standout 
Kate Hennessy has  showed off her experience on a young Laker team. The fourth year outside hitter has recorded 42 kills and six blocks this season putting her near the top of the Laker leaderboard. She was also named to the All-Tournament team at the Wildcat Den Classic over Labor Day weekend. Hennessy looks to continue to provide steady numbers for the Lakers this weekend and the rest of the season. 
 
2. History on Our Side
The Lakers have an 8-0 record against WVWC. Mercyhurst's most recent win coming against the Bobcats last season when the Lakers opened play in the newly renovated Mercyhurst Athletic Center. The Lakers won in three straight sets while Maggie Thomas collected two blocks and recorded four kills. 
 
3. Home Court Advantage
Mercyhurst has not lost a home match against East Stroudsburg dating back to 2008. The PSAC East member last came to Erie in 2017 where the Lakers defeated the Warriors in five sets. The Lakers had 16 aces and 74 kills in the home victory.
 
4. New Kids on the Block 
Freshmen Andrea Zaric and Kaitlin Murphy have shown themselves to be impressive new additions to the Laker squad. Zaric has posted 27 kills in 13 sets played. She is averaging 2.08 kills per set which sets her at atop all Lakers. Murphy has proven herself as a force on the front line. The 6-foot middle blocker has denied the opponent 12 times so far this season. She has also registered 20 kills and a team high eight service aces. 
 
5. Scouting the Opponent
WVWC opened their season with a 1-4 record with their lone win coming against Salem. They started the year at the Queens Classic tournament losing four in a row with two coming against nationally ranked teams in Tampa (1) and Nova Southeastern (24). 
 
East Stroudsburg was on top of the East in the PSAC preseason polling. They return a pair of juniors Kaylee LaPresto who was recently named PSAC East player of the week and Kaitlin Bruchhauser. Together the duo recorded 302 kills and 38 blocks last season. 
 
Findlay starts their fall with a 2-6 record. They were selected second in the Great Midwest Conference preseason poll and received one first place vote. They return sophomore Journey Blevins who was named an honorable mention All-American by the AVCA.