Volleyball Seeks Another League Win in Weekend of Action at Davis Gym

LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell volleyball team returns to Davis Gym for a weekend of Patriot League action on Friday, looking to gain conference victories against Army and Holy Cross in front of a Homecoming crowd. The Bison will square off against the Black Knights on Friday at 7 p.m., while Saturday's contest with the Crusaders is set to begin at 5 p.m. Friday's match will be video streamed live on the Patriot League network, and live stats will be available for both games.

Bucknell enters the weekend with an 8-11 overall record and a 1-8 mark in Patriot League play, after dropping two decisions to the Colgate Raiders in the past week, falling 3-0 in Lewisburg last Friday before suffering a 3-0 defeat in Hamilton on Tuesday. The Bison recently earned their first conference win of the season, a 3-1 triumph over Loyola, and have consistently brought every set that they play down to the wire.

Senior Morgan Mientus leads the Bucknell's offense with 131 kills and is one of six Bison to surpass the 100 kill mark, while sophomore Karen Campbell, one of the squad's most powerful hitters, is attacking with a .302 hitting percentage. Freshman Keane Brazda has turned into one of Bucknell's top setters with 4.25 assists per set, while sophomore Katie Price anchors the defense with 274 digs. Freshman Erika Eastley is a double-sided threat to the squad's opponents, hitting .282 with a 125 kills and leading the Patriot League with 92 blocks.

Army has proven to be a formidable foe in the early part of the Patriot League season and enters the weekend with an 11-8 overall mark and an 8-1 record in conference play. The Black Knights' only league loss came at the hands of the Colgate Raiders, and they most recently won two matches with Holy Cross in straight sets. Army leads the all-time series with Bucknell 29-13, having earned a win in each of the last 13 meetings between the two squads.

Margaux Jarka leads the Black Knights with 220 kills, while Olivia Fairfield's 214 kills on a .364 hitting percentage is a testament to her accuracy. Two different setters run the team's offense, with Vanessa Edwards putting up 400 assists and Mary Vaccaro contributing 397. Defensively, D.J Phee has gathered 334 digs and Fairfield has made 58 total blocks.

Holy Cross will play at Lehigh on Friday before traveling to Lewisburg on Saturday, but the Crusaders enter the weekend with a 7-14 overall record and a 2-7 mark in Patriot League action. The squad most recently fell twice to Army in straight sets. Bucknell owns a 31-13 advantage in the all-time series between the two teams, but Holy Cross was the victor when they met earlier this season.

Natalie Welsch anchors the Holy Cross offense with 198 kills and a .256 hitting percentage, and is one of just two Crusaders to surpass 100 kills this season. Katie McKernan is the team's primary setter with 520 assists, while Hannah Grace Stokes is strong from the serving line, dishing out 32 aces. Defensively, Emily Popp has picked up 321 digs and Kamele Shizuru has made 44 blocks.

After this weekend, Bucknell will hit the road for its longest stretch away from Davis Gym since tournament season. The Bison will kick off the three-game road series with a 7 p.m. game at American on Friday, Nov. 1 before heading to Navy for a 4 p.m. contest on Saturday, Nov. 2.