Bucknell University Athletics
Volleyball Set to Host Bucknell Invitational on Friday and Saturday
9/16/2015 1:11:00 PM | Volleyball
**The first 75 students (with BU ID) at Friday's Bucknell match will receive a Bison Volleyball t-shirt**
LEWISBURG, Pa. – After eight matches and three straight weekends on the road at tournaments, the Bucknell volleyball team will host a four-team tournament of their own on Friday and Saturday. Joining the Bison at the Bucknell Invitational will be Colgate, Providence and Delaware State. Bucknell's first two matches will be shown free of charge on the Patriot League Network.
Bucknell is coming off a 1-2 record at Marist's Volley in the Valley, where Karen Campbell was named to the All-Tournament Team for the third consecutive event. The Bison opened with a 3-0 win over La Salle, but followed with a 3-0 defeat to Bryant and a 3-1 loss to the host Red Foxes. The loss to Bryant included two sets that had scores of 25-23.
The Bison enter the weekend as the third best team in the Patriot League in kills (12/48/set) and assists (11.55/set). Individually, Campbell ranks second in kills (3.34/set) and fifth in hitting percentage (.378). Meghan Wentzel is second in assists (9.66/set), and Hana Sawanobori is fourth in digs (3.69/set).
Bucknell is 2-3 at its home tournament in head coach Anna Allison's two seasons. They dropped matches to Connecticut and Cornell last year.
The three matches at the Bucknell Invitational are the beginning of a five-match homestand for the Bison. They will play home league matches against Navy (Sept. 25), American (Sept. 26) and Lehigh (Oct. 2) at Davis Gym.
vs. Colgate | Friday, 7:30 p.m. | Live Stats | Watch Live
The match between Bucknell and Colgate will count as an official Patriot League contest, the first of the season for both teams. The Raiders enter with a record of 0-9, including losses to Rutgers, Yale and Albany last weekend, but are one year removed from finishing in a tie for fourth place in the conference. Colgate leads the all-time series 34-23, including a season sweep last season, but Anna Allison is 2-2 against the Raiders thanks to a season sweep in 2013. The Raiders were picked to finish fifth in the Patriot League standings, while the Bison were voted seventh.
vs. Providence | Saturday, Noon | Live Stats | Watch Live
Providence enters with a record of 7-4, including a sweep over Lafayette in its most recent match. The Friars and Bison have three common opponents so far this season and finished with the same results, including wins over La Salle and Brown and a loss to Bryant. The Friars lead the all-time series 5-4, but the Bison won the most recent match 3-0 when the teams met at the 2012 Bucknell Invitational. Providence is second in the Big East in hitting percentage (.264), kills (14.14/set) and aces (1.95/set). Freshman Allison Impellizeri, the sister of former Bucknell women's basketball player Micki Impellizeri '15, is third in the league in hitting percentage (.364), while Abigail Dix is seventh (.310).
vs. Delaware State | Saturday, 5 p.m. | Live Stats
Delaware State is 2-8, including losses to two teams Bucknell beat this season in Fairfield and La Salle. Bucknell leads the all-time series 3-0, including a sweep in the most recent match when the teams met at the 2009 Bucknell Invitational. The Hornets rank fourth in the MEAC in hitting percentage (.217) and blocks (1.72/set). Individually, Jenessa Helu is sixth in blocks (0.83/set), while Alliyah McBean is fourth in digs (3.97/set).
