CONWAY, S.C. – The Coastal Carolina volleyball team will return to the road for another in-season tournament this weekend, as the Chanticleers will travel to University Park, Pa., to compete in the Penn State Classic on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 16-17.
In the opening match against Howard, the Chants and Bison will meet for the fifth time with Coastal holding a 3-1 all-time series advantage, including a 3-0 sweep in September of 2016.
CCU's second matchup will pit the Chanticleers against the UAlbany Great Danes for just the second meeting between the two squads with the Chants gaining a 3-1 victory on September 13, 2019.
Coastal will close out the tournament against host and nationally-ranked No. 11 Penn State. It will be the first-ever meeting between the Nittany Lions and the Chanticleers.
COASTAL'S WEEKEND SCHEDULE
- Coastal vs. Howard 11 AM ET (B1G+ $)
- Coastal vs. UAlbany 4 PM ET (B1G+ $)
- Coastal at Penn State 7 PM ET (B1G+ $)
ABOUT COASTAL
The Chanticleers are 7-3 on the season, having won three-straight matches after winning the final two contests of the College of Charleston Invitational and a home match against the Cougars this past Tuesday night.
Super senior
Paulina Perez Rosas and senior
Brigitta Petrenko were named to the CofC Invitational All-Tournament team for their play last weekend. Perez Rosas finished with 39 kills, five assists, and four service aces over the weekend, while Petrenko tallied 14 kills, 108 assists, and three service aces.
Defensive specialist
Lina Perugini was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week for her play at the College of Charleston Invitational last weekend. The senior libero tallied a league-best 65 digs (5.42 digs per set) over the weekend, including a season-high 33 digs in the weekend's opening match against the Wofford Terriers.
The Chants offense is led by Perez Rosas with 92 kills on the year while
Agata Lesiak has added 89 spikes. Petrenko is the team's assist and service ace leader, as the Eger, Hungary native, has 309 assists and 17 service aces in the first 10 matches this year. Petrenko's 17 service aces this season are just 20 shy from setting a new program record for career aces.
Defensively, Coastal Carolina totaled 85 blocks as a team, highlighted by
Christina Nance with a total of 29 blocks,
Rebeka Fucka with 22 blocks, and
Nyla Shepherd and Perez Rosas with 19 blocks apiece. Perugini has picked up 167 digs in the 10 matches giving the Bethlehem, Pa., native 1,345 career digs. Perugini surpassed Sarah Bennett (2000-03) for eighth on the all-time list and is 11 shy of Katherine Jensen-Spencer (2003-05) for sixth all-time.
ABOUT HOWARD
Howard will enter play this weekend with a 4-5 record with two of those wins coming in the Fairfield Invitational last weekend. The Bison have picked up wins over George Mason, Georgetown, Fairleigh Dickinson, and Fairfield, while the losses have come by way of Tulane, Ohio, Kansas City, Washington State, and High Point.
The Bison are led by Jennifer Bolden and Dami Awojobi with 82 and 77 kills, respectively, while Kayla Diaz has tallied 340 assists, followed by Essence Bell with 29 assists.
Defensively, Howard has made 53 blocks as a team with Cimone Woodard totaling 23 blocks, while Bolden and Maya Gerlach have added 13 and 12, respectively. Seniors Bell and Diaz have 130 and 70 digs apiece.
ABOUT UALBANY
The Great Danes will enter the Penn State Classic with a 3-7 overall record having won three of their last four matches, their last defeat coming against Colgate.
UAlbany's offense is led by Alexa Harris (127), Anna Myhal (97), and Sadie Brown (73), as the trio are the only players with 70-plus kills on the young season. Setter Malea Stanton has 235 assists with fellow setter Zosia Szczotkiewicz adding 148 assists. Kaleigh Fitzgerald and Myhal have combined for 30 service aces overall to lead the team.
Defensively, Charlotte Macken leads the team in digs with 155, while Brown (25), Harris (24), and Naliah Grannell (21) have 70 of the team's 74 blocks.
ABOUT PENN STATE
The Penn State Nittany Lions enter play with a perfect 8-0 record on the year with victories coming against nationally-ranked then-No. 11 Stanford and No. 18 Oregon in the Big 10/PAC 12 Challenge last weekend.
Anjelina Starck (84), Kashauna Williams (84), and Lexi Zoe Weatherington (83) lead the PSU offensive attack with 80 or more kills each. Maddy Bilinovic, Seleisa Elisaia, and Gillian Grimes have combined for 29 of the teams 46 service aces, while Elisaia has aided on 312 points.
On the defensive side, Taylor Trammell and Allie Holland each have 43 and 36 blocks, respectively, as Bilinovic (123), Elisaia (67), and Grimes (61) have more than 60 digs apiece.
For complete coverage of CCU women's volleyball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalVball (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUsports.com.
