Volleyball on the Road at Holy Cross Friday, Visits Colgate Saturday

Setting the Scene, Part I
Who: Bucknell (12-8, 5-6 PL) at Holy Cross (2-20, 0-11 PL)
When: Friday, Oct. 28 at 6 p.m.
Where: Blaney Gymnasium – Worcester, Mass.
Live Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoHolyCross.com

Setting the Scene, Part II
Who: Bucknell (12-8, 5-6 PL) at Colgate (18-4, 10-1 PL)
When: Saturday, Oct. 29 at 3 p.m.
Where: Cotterell Court – Hamilton, N.Y.
Live Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: ColgateAthletics.com

About Bucknell

Bucknell plays its third and fourth consecutive road matches this weekend at Holy Cross and Colgate. The Bison will be facing the last-place team and the first-place team on back-to-back days.
Bucknell is currently fifth in the Patriot League standings, sitting a match above American and Lafayette and two matches behind Loyola. The top six teams qualify for the Patriot League tournament, which begins on Tuesday, Nov. 15.
The Bison are coming off a 1-1 weekend where they beat Lafayette 3-2 on Friday and fell 3-2 to Lehigh on Saturday. Bucknell has gone five sets five times in Patriot League matches and seven times overall this season.
Bucknell currently ranks second in the Patriot League in opponent hitting percentage (.157) and is top three in opponent kills, opponent blocks and opponent service aces.
The Bison rank second in the league in digs per set (17.04), bolstered by the outstanding play of sophomore libero Jordan Hardy. Hardy is fourth in the nation with 5.76 digs per set. She matched her season high of 35 digs in last weekend's win at Lafayette and has posted 20 or more digs 13 times this fall. Hardy is up to 836 digs in her career.
Freshman Bri Frazilus was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week for a fourth time on Tuesday after totaling 34 kills, 10 digs and three block assists over the weekend. Frazilus is fourth in the Patriot League with 3.35 kills per set this season.
Tied with Frazilus with 3.35 kills per set is junior Catherine Jamison, who was an honorable mention for Player of the Week after totaling 31 kills against the Leopards and the Mountain Hawks. Jamison is approaching 500 kills in her career.
Head coach Tyler Hagstrom earned the 20th win of his career with the Bison against Lafayette last Friday. He's in his third season with the program. He's joined by second-year assistant Jeremy Young. Hagstrom is looking to guide the Bison back to the Patriot League Tournament for the first time since 2010.

Scouting Holy Cross/Series History

Holy Cross is 2-20 (0-11 PL) after being picked ninth in the Patriot League preseason poll. The Crusaders have suffered four straight sweeps against league opponents.
Holy Cross' two wins this season were against St. Peter's and Merrimack.
Sophomore Abbie Lane leads the Crusaders with 2.38 kills per set. Senior libero Emma VanSeveren is seventh in the Patriot League with 3.77 digs per set.
Holy Cross head coach Kathleen Colpoys is 14-76 in her four seasons with the team.
Bucknell is 41-19 in the all-time series with the Crusaders, dating back to 1989. The Bison have won each of the last three meetings.
Bucknell defeated Holy Cross 3-0 at Davis Gym back on Sept. 24, hitting .250 or better in all three sets and registering nine service aces. Catherine Jamison led the way with 11 kills, and Bri Frazilus posted 10 kills while hitting .320. Bucknell led wire-to-wire in two of the three sets.
Holy Cross' last win in the series was a 3-0 decision in Worcester in 2019.

Scouting Colgate/Series History

The Raiders currently sit in first place in the Patriot League standings at 18-4 overall and 10-1 in league play. They've won five straight matches, and their only league loss was to Navy on Oct. 7.
Colgate was picked first in the Patriot League preseason poll. The Raiders won the league title last season and has reached the title match in each of the last two.
The Raiders sit atop the league in hitting percentage (.247), as seven players are currently hitting .250 or better. Leading the group is sophomore Abby Shadwick, who has been named Patriot League Player of the Week two times. Colgate junior middle blocker Sophie Thompson earned Player of the Week recognition this week after posting 16 kills with a .517 hitting percentage last weekend.
Graduate student Julia Kurowski was voted the Patriot League Preseason Setter of the Year and leads the team with 5.31 assists per set.
Head coach Ryan Baker is in his 17th season with the program and is 275-196 in his career. He's led the Raiders to two Patriot League Championship titles.
Bucknell is 23-47 in the all-time series with the Raiders. Colgate has captured each of the last eight wins. Bucknell last defeated the Raiders in 2017.
Colgate won 3-2 in a thrilling match at Davis Gym back on Sept. 25. The Bison battled back from a 2-0 deficit to force a fifth set and had set point at 14-13, but the Raiders rattled off the final three points in a row to win. Catherine Jamison posted a career-high 23 kills.

Up Next
Bucknell returns to Davis Gym for its final two home matches of the regular season. The Bison will host American on Friday, Nov. 4 and Loyola on Saturday, Nov. 5.