BOSTON -- The Northeastern volleyball team hits the road this weekend for a CAA matchup at UNCW, facing the Seahawks on Friday and Saturday in Wilmington, North Carolina at Trask Coliseum.
The Huskies will take on the Seahawks on Friday, Oct. 2 at 6 p.m. before closing out the weekend on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 1 p.m. Friday's match will stream on FloCollege.
THREE THINGS TO KNOW
1. LAST TIME OUT: Northeastern enters the weekend riding a two-match winning streak after sweeping North Carolina A&T in a CAA series at Cabot Center last weekend. The Huskies opened the weekend with a 3-1 victory on Friday before completing the sweep with a 3-2 win on Saturday. Valentina Meirelles and Cayenne Ceman each recorded 17 kills in Friday's victory, while Emma Rowell added 11 kills and three service aces. Ceman led Northeastern with 17 kills again on Saturday, while Meirelles added 12 and Iris Canko recorded 19 digs. The Huskies' second victory marked their first five-set win of the season after dropping each of their previous five matches that went the distance. Northeastern enters the weekend with a 4-8 overall record and a 2-2 mark in CAA play.
2. SCOUTING THE HAWKS: UNCW enters the weekend at 6-8 overall and 1-1 in CAA play after splitting its opening conference series at Campbell last weekend. The Seahawks dropped Friday's opener, 3-1, before responding with a 3-1 victory on Saturday behind career-high performances from Nadia Wasilewski and Elaina Murphy, who recorded 16 and 14 kills, respectively. Gaby Zovko added 37 assists and six blocks in the victory. UNCW has played a challenging non-conference schedule, including matches against No. 19 North Carolina and Harvard, and enters the weekend ranked fifth in the CAA with a .199 team hitting percentage. Courtney Graham leads the Seahawks with a .333 hitting percentage and 1.25 blocks per set, while Zovko ranks fourth in the conference with 7.67 assists per set.
3. ONES TO WATCH: Northeastern enters the weekend with several Huskies among the CAA's statistical leaders. Emma Rowell leads the team with 3.36 kills per set, ranking sixth in the conference, while Beatrice Gennari ranks second in the league with a .414 hitting percentage. Arina Sosinovica continues to direct the Huskies' offense, leading the team with 5.90 assists per set and ranking eighth in the CAA. Gennari also ranks seventh in the conference with 1.08 blocks per set, while Iris Canko ranks ninth with 2.67 digs per set. As a team, Northeastern ranks third in the CAA with 14.44 digs per set. Alongside those Huskies is Cayenne Ceman, who was awarded CAA Rookie of the Week honors for her performance in the NC A&T series.
