WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The William & Mary volleyball team opens up Colonial Athletic Association play with a three-match homestead after spending the last two weekends on the road. The Tribe hosts Delaware in a mid-week tilt on Thursday (7 PM), before welcoming in-state rival James Madison on Saturday (7 PM) and then Towson the following day (1 PM).
TribeAthletics.com caught up with head coach
Melissa Ferris and junior captain
Heather Pippus to discuss the trip to Tucson, Ariz., and look ahead to this week's action. The video feature is available through the above link or by clicking
here.
American Heart Association
Saturday's tilt against JMU will be dedicated to the American Heart Association and raising awareness to cardiovascular disease and women with the illness. AHA is the nation's oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. Founded by six cardiologists in 1924, the organization now includes more than 22.5 million volunteers and supporters. AHA funds innovative research, fight for stronger public health policies, and provide critical tools and information to save and improve lives.
Scouting the Tribe
W&M (2-11) concluded its tournament schedule against three of top defensive teams in the country last weekend. The Tribe was led by senior
Sydney Biniak and sophomore
Autumn Brenner during the Wildcat Classic (Sept. 15-16). Biniak tallied 16 kills against Pac-12 foe Arizona and led all players with 12 in the weekend finale vs. New Mexico State. The Elkridge, Md., native collected her fourth consecutive All-Tournament honor, finishing the event with 4.00 kills per set. Furthermore, Biniak's season average of 4.22 kills per set ranks 36
th in nation. Brenner turned in her best weekend of the young season as she averaged 9.70 assists per set. The Mclean, Va., native recorded her first double-double of 2017 against the Wildcats, posting season-highs in both assists (40) and digs (10). She finished out the tournament with a match-high 33 assists against the Aggies.
Scouting the Blue Hens
Delaware earned a pair of wins in the George Washington Tournament last weekend to enter CAA action with a 2-8 record. The Blue Hens are paced by sophomore Maria Bellinger and junior Abby Skryd. Bellinger is one of the top hitters in conference, ranking third-best behind 4.11kills per set. She also stands second on the team with 89 total digs. Skryd slots fifth in the league courtesy of 7.08 assists per set.
Scouting the Dukes
James Madison heads into the first week of conference action with an unblemished record at 9-0. The Dukes are coming off a bye-week after the Miami/FIU Invitational was cancelled due to Hurricane Irma. JMU owns the second-best opponent hitting percentage (.102) in Division I, while ranking top two in the CAA in three other statistical categories. The Dukes top the conference in hitting percentage (.267), blocks (2.61 per set) and aces (1.84 per set). Individually, sophomore M'Kaela White paces the league with 1.32 blocks per set and classmate Sarah Martin owns a CAA-best 0.57 aces per set.
Scouting the Tigers
Towson, another unbeaten opponent, owns the CAA's highest win total (14-0) as of Sept. 20. The Tigers have dominated their non-conference opponents by claiming seven victories in straight sets. TU ties JMU with a .102 opponent hitting percentage, but leads the country because the Tigers have competed in more matches. Additionally, Towson is top five in the nation in kills (14.78 per set), assists (14.02 per set) and digs (18.80 per set). The team's major contributors include Anna Holehouse (5.52 digs per set) and Marrisa Wonders (7.34 assists per set).
Series History
- W&M and Delaware will square off for the 38
th time in series history on Thursday evening. The Blue Hens lead the all-time series with a 23-14 margin. The Green and Gold was edged in five sets at home during the previous meeting. Biniak registered 15 kills and Brenner dished out 59 assists.
- The Tribe meets the Dukes for the 90
th time in series history on Saturday night. James Madison holds a slime advantage in the all-time series, 45-44. However, W&M is 18-12 against JMU when the programs meet in Kaplan Arena.
- W&M takes on Towson in just the 37
th meeting in series history on Sunday afternoon. The Tigers edge the Tribe in all-time series history, 19-17. Towson claimed the all-time series lead by winning the last seven matches between the programs.
Keeping the Streak Alive
Biniak has been the model of consistency for the Tribe in 2017. The offensive stud has produced 10-plus kills in nine consecutive matches and exceeded 15 in five of them. Biniak has also placed her name high in the program record books during the stretch. She tied eighth in school history with 28 kills against USC Upstate (9/9) and her .591 attack percentage vs. Savannah State stands 13
th-best in the individual match record books.
Quality Competition
The Tribe didn't shy away from stiff competition to best prepare for the rigors of its conference slate. During the tournament portion of its schedule, W&M faced off against seven programs that currently own a winning record. In addition, three of the Tribe's non-conference opponents were representatives of the Power 5 Conferences. The Green and Gold fell to Rutgers in straight sets during opening weekend, but showed great promise after claiming a game each against Wake Forest and Arizona.
Tidbits
- In her first start this season, junior
Heather Pippus tallied a double-double with 10 kills and 13 digs against NMSU
- Freshman
Julia Brown earned a season-high nine kills in 18 attempts with just two errors (.389 attack percentage) against the Aggies.
- Rookie
Kate Dedrick reached 10-plus kills for the second time in her young career vs. Arizona. The Piano, Texas, native made the most of her 31 attempts with 13 kills and just two errors, which resulted in a .355 hitting efficiency.
- Biniak is just five blocks away from improving to sixth-best in program history in the 25-point scoring format.
- Delaware head coach Sara Matthews is in her first year at the helm of the program. Matthews served the last two seasons as an assistant coach at TCU and has also previously served on the staffs at USC and West Virginia.
- Towson's Jocelyn Kuilan was tabbed CAA Preseason Player of the Year.
- James Madison and Delaware also had a player receive preseason recognition. JMU's defensive specialist Taylor Austin was tabbed to the All-CAA Preseason Team and Maria Bellinger, of Delaware, earned honorable mention citations.
