VOLLEYBALL GAMEDAY: Eckerd Starts Four-Match Road Swing This Weekend

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - After a three-match home stand that featured contests against two ranked teams, the Eckerd Triton volleyball squad prepares for a four-match road swing beginning this weekend with trips to Florida Tech and No. 19 Florida Southern.

COVERAGE: Live Stats (FIT | FSC) | Live Video (FSC)

SETTING THE STAGE
The Tritons (13-11, 4-7) played strong volleyball during their recent home stand, nearly upsetting No. 14 Palm Beach Atlantic before almost extending a match with No. 5 Tampa to five sets. The next two weeks will be highly important for Eckerd as the team looks to climb up the SSC standings and in the regional rankings. On Friday, EC will visit Florida Tech (11-13, 2-10) before heading to Lakeland for rematch with Florida Southern (19-6, 6-5). The FIT match will take place at Palm Bay Magnet HS.

LAST TIME THEY MET
After dropping the first set, Eckerd took the next three on its way to a 3-1 upset of then-No. 6 Florida Southern on October 2, 2015, in the McArthur Center. Tjasa Kotnik led the attack with 20 kills while Katie Arnette added 15. The Tritons hit .270 in the match including .359 in the fourth set.

EC followed with a four-set win over Florida Tech on the following day. Kotnik again paced the attack with 16 kills. JaQuayla Baker added 15 and Arnette put away 14 as the Tritons hit .308 on the afternoon.

INSIDE THE SERIES
vs. Florida Southern: Florida Southern leads the all-time series over Eckerd, 59-9. The Tritons have won three of the last five contests between the schools including a pair of straight-sets wins in 2013.

vs. Florida Tech: Eckerd leads the all-time series, 43-26. The Tritons have won nine of the last 10 matches between the two schools.

ABOUT THE PANTHERS
- Florida Tech enters Friday's match having lost nine straight conference contests. They did go a perfect 3-0 at the South Region Crossover in October and bested provisional conference member Embry-Riddle (Fla.) in straight sets on October 27.
- The Panthers boast an incredibly balanced attack with five players who average over two kills per set. Alea Hamm leads the team with 2.47 kills per set followed by Olivia Hersey (2.29), Kim Juriga (2.27), Jenna Schaffer (2.09) and Marilyn Dick (2.07). Hersey led the team with 13 kills in its last match, a 3-1 loss to Saint Leo, and has posted 10 or more kills in four of her last five outings.
- Despite its record, FIT has been a solid defensive team this season ranking third in the conference in opponent hitting percentage (.172) and third in blocks per set (2.17). The Panthers do, however, allow the most services aces to opponents with 136 while only serving 84 aces.

ABOUT THE MOCS
- Florida Southern opened the year with 12 straight wins and climbed to No. 6 in the AVCA Coaches Poll before Eckerd handed the team its first loss. After winning their first 12 matches, the Mocs are 7-6 in their last 13. On Friday, FSC will host Saint Leo before taking on Eckerd on Saturday.
- The Mocs have proven to be very tough at home, entering the weekend with a record of 9-1 in the Jenkins Field House. Their only loss came against then-No. 2 Tampa, and that match extended to five sets.
- Anna Tovo leads a potent attack averaging 3.28 kills per set. Kendall Marotti (2.69), Kayshia Brady (2.36) and Nicole Mattson (2.31) all average over two kills per set for a Mocs team that ranks second in the conference in hitting percentage at .225. The Mocs also hold opponents to the lowest hitting percentage in conference (.125).

ABOUT THE TRITONS
- As Eckerd enters an important four-match swing, it will look to improve on its road performance this season. The Tritons are 7-5 at home and 5-1 at a neutral site, but just 1-5 on the road.
- Tjasa Kotnik has been on fire as of late, averaging 4.2 kills per set during Eckerd's three-match home stand. She has also posted double-doubles in three straight matches and four of her last five, bringing her total to 11 for the season. The senior looks to surpass 900 career kills this weekend, entering the two matches with 881 in her three years at EC.
- Before finishing with eight kills on Tuesday against Tampa, Lauryn Nelson had been the hot hand with five straight matches of 10 or more kills. The sophomore is averaging 3.52 kills per set over her last six outings.
- Sophomore libero Kaitlyn Sibson finished her freshman year with the second-most digs in a season in program history with 468. This year, she has a chance to surpass that total as she enters with weekend with 415 on the season. She's just over 100 digs away from becoming the 10th player in Eckerd history to hit the century mark for digs in a career.
- The Tritons enter the weekend ranking fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.216) and second in service aces (157).