HIGHLANDERS RETURN TO COURT AT UNC ASHEVILLE

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SETTING THE STAGE

Following a well-deserved break in the schedule with a Friday night bye, the first-place Radford volleyball team gets back on the court Saturday as it plays a 4 p.m. match at UNC Asheville.
After playing their first four conference matches in an eight-day span, the matchup with the Bulldogs is the Highlanders' only contest over a stretch of nine days.
Live Stats

HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Records: 13-3, 4-0 Big South
With Tuesday night's hard-fought victory over Liberty, Radford kept its record perfect when winning the first set (12-0), while also improving to 3-0 in five-setters this season.
Radford limited Liberty to .123 hitting in the victory, including .000 in the deciding set, and is holding Big South opponents to a league-low .129 percentage.
For the season, RU ranks 16th nationally with a .146 opponent percentage.
Kelby Jackson recorded double-digit digs in each of the last seven matches and 12 of the last 13. She needs 28 more to pass Rachel Wiechecki for second place in program rally scoring history.
Amaya Rousseau is leading the team in conference play with a .329 hitting percentage. She has 37 kills in the four matches, to go along with 12 blocks, second on the squad to Mallory's McKnight's 15.
Sydney Tekstra also has 37 kills in the league matches, including a career-high 13 against the Flames.
McKnight is second on the team for the season in kills per set, while leading the way with a .269 hitting percentage.
Maddie Palmer has 10 service aces in the last four matches and is now tied for 13th in the NCAA in aces per set. She has 26 total, two more than Haley Kleespies.
Kleespies' 607 assists this season rank 23rd in the nation.

SCOUTING UNC ASHEVILLE

Records: 6-7, 0-2 Big South
UNC Asheville was swept in road matches at Campbell and High Point during the first week of conference play.
The Bulldogs, who were picked sixth in the preseason poll, take a 5-0 home record into Friday night's match against Liberty.
UNCA stands third in the conference in hitting percentage (.194), but tied for last in opponent's hitting percentage (.214).
Sophomore outside hitter Cara Guthrie is the Big South's leader in aces per set, while ranking third with 3.14 kills per set (138 total).
Senior outside hitter Shelby Erickson has added 102 kills and senior middle blocker Madison Vaughn has 94.
Vaughn was a Preseason All-Conference selection after ranking second in the league in blocks per set last year. This season, she has a team-high 32 (0.73 per set). She is also fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.284).
Sophomore Madisen Zyburt anchors the backline defense with 4.00 digs per set.

SERIES HISTORY

The all-time series is tied at 27-27 after UNC Asheville took both meetings last season in sweeps.
Radford had won seven straight against the Bulldogs before that.

UP NEXT

Radford returns home for a pair of matches at the Dedmon Center next weekend. Winthrop visits Friday night, followed by a Saturday matinee against Gardner-Webb.

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