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Volleyball

Wolves host Newberry Invitational to open 2014 season

NEWBERRY- The Newberry College volleyball team is set to open the 2014 season as it plays host to the Inaugural Newberry College Invitational on Friday and Saturday in Eleazer Arena.

The Wolves are scheduled to play Columbus State and King on Friday at 10 a.m. and 8 p.m., respectively. On Saturday, Newberry will take on USC Aiken and Belmont Abbey at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.

Tournament Central
Friday: vs. Columbus State, 10 a.m.
Friday: vs. King, 8 p.m.
Saturday: vs. USC Aiken, 1 p.m.
Saturday: vs. Belmont Abbey, 5 p.m.
On Twitter: @NewberrySports @NewberryGameday
Live Stats: newberrystats.com
Video: newberrywolves.tv 
Tickets: $5 at the door, Students with college ID and children 5 and under are free

Tournament Program

Quick Hits

  • Newberry volleyball enters its third year under head coach Todd Hay.
  • Last year the Wolves went 18-13.
  • Newberry returns 13 letter winners from last year, including five starters and the libero (Amanda Soper, Logan Hayward, Rachel Moran, Jessica King, Alexus Horton, Elayni Stokes).
  • With the departure of Academic All-American and Second Team All-South Atlantic Conference selection Samantha Parrish, the Wolves lose the all-time leader in kills at Newberry College. She accounted for 21% of last year’s total kills.
  • The Wolves return All-SAC freshman Logan Hayward and Honorable Mention All-SAC senior Jessica King. King led the team in hitting last year (.301) and led the South Atlantic Conference with 22 solo blocks. Hayward was second on the team in kills (271) and kills per set (2.17), while finishing fourth in the conference in solo blocks with 17.
  • Senior Lauren Prachar returns to the court after missing last season due to an injury. Prachar was a member of the SAC All-Freshman team and had 300 kills and 371 digs her sophomore year to go along with 30 service aces.

 Home Match Notes

  • The Wolves host 15 home matches this season.
  • Newberry's most home wins dating back to 1996 is nine (’03), and the best record posted was 8-3 (’07).
  • Under Hay, the Wolves are 13-11 at home.

 Tournament History

  • This is the first non-conference tournament that Newberry has ever hosted.
  • The Wolves are 7-5 in tournaments under Todd Hay, including a four game sweep of the Francis Marion Invitational last year.
  • Dating back to 2004, Newberry is 36-38 in tournament play.

 Wolves in Season Openers

  • Since 1996, Newberry is 8-10 in season openers, but 11-7 in home openers.
  • The Wolves are 2-0 in openers under Hay’s command.

 Roster Breakdown

  • Newberry has five freshmen, six sophomores, two juniors and nine seniors.
  • Newberry volleyball is representative of nine different states. Six from South Carolina, four from Texas and California, two from North Carolina and Indiana and one from Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio.

 Scouting the Belmont Abbey Crusaders

  • Belmont Abbey is beginning their fifth year with Mary DeJute (90-35).
  • The Crusaders went 28-4 last year, including a 17-1 conference record which tied for conference best with King University. Belmont Abbey won the conference tournament with a 3-0 decision versus King to advance to the NCAA Tournament.
  •  Belmont Abbey returns five letter winners and four starters.
  •   Junior outside hitter Hannah Schellenberg, defending Conference Carolinas Player of the Year,      is the leading offensive returner after leading the conference in kills (427) and kills per set (3.95).
  • Junior middle hitter Caitlin Hankins returns after earning 2013 second team All-Conference and averaging 2.08 kills per set and 0.71 blocks per set.
  •  Sophomore setter Gabby Martinez returns after earning second team All-Conference and dishing out 5.48 assists per set.

 Series History vs. Belmont Abbey

  • Saturday’s meeting between the Crusaders and Newberry will be the fifth meeting since 1996.
  • The Wolves lead the series 3-1.

 Last Game vs. Belmont Abbey – Sept. 3, 2011

  • Newberry was swept by Belmont Abbey with scores of 25-20, 25-15 and 25-16.
  • The match was part of the Francis Marion Tournament.

 Scouting the Columbus State Cougars

  • The Cougars are entering their second season with Casey Cornett at the helm.
  • Columbus State went 20-11 overall last year and 12-6 in the Peach Belt Conference. The Cougars finished tied for third in the regular season standings and lost out to Montevallo in a four set thriller in the first round of the Peach Belt Conference Tournament.
  • The Cougars return 10 letter winners and five starters.
  • Senior outside hitter, and 2014 Preseason All-PBC selection, Katie Poole is the leading offensive returner after collecting 354 kills and averaging 3.13 kills per set in 2013.
  • Sophomore outside hitter Erika Gelzinyte returns after finishing second on the team in kills (341) and kills per set (2.94).
  • Sophomore setter Ivana Kazic returns after averaging 4.16 assists per set and 3.82 digs per set.

 Series History vs. Columbus State

  • This will be the first meeting between Newberry and Columbus State dating back to 1996.

 Scouting the King Tornado

  • Morris Cephas is entering his first season as the head coach at King. He served as an assistant coach for the past three years.
  • King went 32-5 overall last year and 17-1 in the conference, splitting the Conference Carolinas regular season title with Belmont Abbey. The lost out to Belmont Abbey in the conference tournament championship game.
  • The Tornado return 15 letter winners and five starters.
  • Senior defensive specialist, and defending Defensive Player of the Year, Payton Tipton returns after recording 491 digs for an average of 4.09 digs per set. She also led Conference Carolinas in service aces (87) and service aces per set (0.69).
  • Senior outside hitter, and 2013 first team All-Conference selection, Summer Kremer returns after finishing second in the conference with 399 kills and 3.38 kills per set.
  • Junior setter, and 2013 First Team All-Conference selection, Olivia Underwood returns after dishing out 1,202 assists and leading the conference in 9.54 assists per set.
  • Junior middle blocker, and 2013 Second Team All-Conference selection, Grace Underwood after finishing second in the conference in hitting percentage (.350) and service aces per set (0.50).

 Series History vs. King

  • This will be only the second meeting between King and Newberry since 1996.
  • King won the only other match in the history, a 3-0 sweep in the 1998 season.

 Scouting the USC Aiken Pacers

  • The Pacers enter their seventh season under the reign of head coach Glenn Cox (98-91).
  • Last year the Pacers had an overall record of 19-13 and went 9-9 in the Peach Belt Conference, finishing sixth in the standings. They lost to the number one overall seeded Armstrong Atlantic in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament Championship.
  • They return 11 letter winners and six starters, including their libero.
  • Sophomore outside hitter Taylor Stratton is the leading offensive returner after leading last year’s team in kills (268) and kills per set (2.33).
  • Sophomore setter Amanda Bologna led the team with 6.03 assists per set.
  • Sophomore libero Katie Toman is the leading defensive returner with 325 digs.

 Series History vs. USC Aiken

  • This matchup is the twentieth time these two schools have played each other since 1996.
  • USC Aiken leads the all-time series 15-4.
  • The teams will meet again next week in the USC Aiken Invitational.

 Last Game vs. USC Aiken – Sept. 6, 2013

  • The Wolves pulled out a nail-biting win in the most recent matchup in four sets by the score of 25-20, 25-18, 26-28 and 25-22. Newberry was led by outside hitters Samantha Parrish and Logan Hayward who accounted for 64% of the Wolves’ total kills.

 Scouting the Wingate Bulldogs

  • The Bulldogs are led by head coach Shelton Collier, who is entering his 13th season. He has amassed an overall record of 337-61 (.847 winning percentage) in his tenure.
  • Last season Wingate finished the season with a 32-3 overall record and undefeated (22-0) in the South Atlantic Conference for the sixth time in seven seasons, winning the regular season title for the eighth straight year. The Bulldogs went on the win the SAC Tournament title for the eighth consecutive year and went on to win the Southeast Regional Title in the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four years.
  • Wingate returns 11 letter winners and six starters, including the libero.
  • 2013 AVCA second team All-American and 2014 Preseason All-SAC first team middle blocker Lexi Potter is the leading offensive returner. Potter was second on the team in kills (275), kills per set (2.46), and total blocks (111). She led the conference in hitting percentage, swinging at a .368 clip.
  • 2013 AVCA honorable mention All-American and 2014 Preseason All-SAC first team setter Alison Cooke dished out 928 assists for a 9.37 assists per set average.
  • 2014 Preseason All-SAC first team selection Susie Murach totaled 256 kills and a 2.33 kills per set average.
  • 2014 Preseason All-SAC second team selection Stephanie Tassone is the leading defensive returner. Tassone picked up 509 digs for a 4.43 digs per set average.

 Series History vs. Wingate

  • The Bulldogs have a perfect record against Newberry dating back to 1996, 43-0.
  • The last time Newberry and Wingate played was the first round of the 2013 SAC Tournament, Wingate won in four sets with scores of 25-23, 25-19, 19-25 and 25-22.
  • Newberry and Wingate will not play each other in this tournament due to SAC play.
  • Newberry will host Wingate on Sept. 27th at 2 p.m. and travel to Wingate on Oct. 25th at 5 p.m.
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