The William & Mary volleyball team gets the 2016 season underway this weekend with a trip down south to Clemson, S.C., and the Big Orange Bash.  The Tribe will play three teams during the tournament on Friday and Saturday, facing the host Tigers on Friday night at 7 p.m. before matches against Wofford (11 a.m.) and High Point (4 p.m.) on Saturday.  Live stats are available for all three contests, and the match against Clemson will also be broadcast live on the ACC Network (Extra), which is available for free to ESPN subscribers online at WatchESPN.com and the WatchESPN app.

Tournament Schedule
Fri., Aug. 26, 7 PM - W&M at Clemson
Sat., Aug. 27, 11 AM - W&M vs Wofford
Sat., Aug. 27, 4 PM - W&M vs High Point

Scouting the Tribe
William & Mary heads to the Palmetto state with eight proven starters on the roster, and new head coach Melissa Ferris on the sidelines for the first time.  The Tribe's leading returners from last year include junior Sara Zumbach (Franklin, Tenn.), who ranks third among the CAA's returnees with 3.93 digs per set from 2015, as well as senior Gabrielle Pe (Virginia Beach, Va.), who is the team's active leader in assists, aces, and digs.  At the net, W&M's leaders include juniors Sydney Biniak (Elkridge, Md.) and Paige Humphrey (Oak Hill, Va.).  Biniak averaged 2.22 kills per set last year on a .209 attack and also added 0.40 blocks per set, while Humphrey hit .230 with 0.75 blocks per set.

Scouting the Tigers
Clemson went 6-26 a year ago, and 1-19 in the ever-tough ACC.  The Tigers' top returner is preseason All-ACC pick Leah Perri, an outside hitter who averaged 3.68 kills per set and 0.46 blocks per set with six double-doubles.  Also back is blocker Megan McGinley, who averaged 0.77 blocks per set.

Scouting the Terriers
Wofford went 16-18 in 2015 and 7-9 in the Southern Conference, falling to UNCG in the first match of the conference tournament.  The Terriers were picked to finish fifth in their league this season, and return five starters but neither their setter nor libero, both of whom were all-time record holders.  Top returners include Bella Santoro, who average 2.87 kills per set with 13 double-doubles, and defender Colleen Reilly, who totaled 123 blocks (1.05 per set).

Scouting the Panthers
High Point returns five starters off last year's 21-10 squad that fell in the Big South quarterfinals, but has been picked as the pre-season favorites in that league for 2016.  Hayley Barnes is the pre-season Player of the Year after averaging 3.34 kills and 2.94 digs per set last season, and she was also joined on the pre-season team by Molly Livingston, who was named the 2015 Rookie of the Year with 0.77 blocks and 1.98 kills per set on a .354 attack. 

News and Notes
- Melissa Ferris is in her first season as W&M's head coach, after a very successful 18 years as an assistant coach in Division I.  Her most recent stop was at Rice, where she spent 12 years.  Ferris is the eighth head coach in school history.

- The combined experience of this weekend's four head coaches at their current schools is two years.  Both Ferris and High Point coach Tom Mendoza are in their first seasons, while Wofford's Lynze Roos and Clemson's Hugh Hernesman are both starting their second years.

- Last season, Zumbach was named the tournament MVP on the opening weekend at the Tribe Invitational.

- Sophomore Heather Pippus (Lake Oswego, Ore.) also earned all-tournament honors in 2015, being feted at the East Carolina Invitational.  Pippus went on to be chosen the CAA Rookie of the Week later in the season.

- W&M earned a perfect 1000 score in the APR last year, led by the classroom heroics of Pe and junior Maddie Sanford (Georgetown, Texas) who were both named to the W&M Provost's Award list (for having a GPA over 3.5).

- If Pe plays every scheduled match this season, she'll tie the Tribe's all-time record of 121 matches currently held by Jill Hannah '98.  She can hold the record outright if W&M makes the CAA Tournament for the fourth time in the last five seasons.

- W&M will begin the season at home on Sept. 9-10, hosting the Colonial Classic at Kaplan Arena.  W&M is 25-10 in home tournaments over the past decade, winning four championships including last season.