By: By Joseph Feldman
NOTES | LIVE STATS
TALKING POINTS» The Owls will play in their last non-conference tournament this weekend as they head to Stony Brook to take on Western Michigan at 2 p.m. and Stony Brook at 7 p.m. on Friday and then finish the tournament by playing St. Francis (NY) on Saturday at 2 p.m.
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Anaiah Boyer won Atlantic Sun Freshman of the Week after her 37 kill and 36 dig performance at the Coastal Carolina Tournament. She led the team in kills and digs in two of the three matches while averaging over three kills and digs per set. This is the second week in a row that an Owl has won Freshman of the Week.
» The team will spend Thursday in New York City and see the 9/11 Memorial and also spend some time in Time Square.
THE COMPETITIONWestern Michigan Western Michigan (5-4) finished 2013 with a 17-14 record and finished fourth in the MAC with a 9-7 record. They return three starters plus the libero from last year's team. The Broncos are coached by Colleen Munson who is in her 10th season.
Stony Brook Stony Brook (4-7) was second in the American East last season with a 9-5 conference record. Stony Brook came to the 2013 Owls Invitational and lost to KSU in four sets. Head coach Coley Pawilkowski just started her second season.
Saint Francis (NY) Saint Francis (NY) (2-11) was 7-25 last season. Statistically they are led by Leah Zitting with 83 kills, Kelly O'Halloran with 284 assists and Ali Long with 121 digs. The Terriers are coached by Abra Rummel.
» NEWS AND NOTESLast Time Out KSU went 1-2 at the Coastal Carolina Tournament. The team lost to Tennessee and Coastal Carolina in four sets on Friday before beating Loyola Maryland in three sets on Saturday. The Owls never trailed in the match against Loyola.
Coach Schunzel After Beating Loyola Maryland» "I'm very proud of our team this morning for coming out with great focus and urgency to compete at a high level. We played steady, calm, executed well and kept pressure on our opponent the whole match. This morning was a nice step forward for our team to be able to come back after two tough losses yesterday. It showed a lot of maturity by our group to play the way we did today and take care of business."
KSU as a Team » The Owls spread the offense around totaling 39 kills with four players having at least six.
Chade Martin led the way with eight kills, while Boyer and
Megan McGuinness both had seven.
» Defensively, the team has had a strong start to the season. They have held their seven opponents to a .196 hitting percentage, which is tied for first in the Atlantic Sun.
KSU Individually » Boyer had her first career double-double against Coastal Carolina with 14 kills and 14 digs. She set new career highs in kills and digs in the two Friday matches against Tennessee and Coastal Carolina.
» Against Loyola, McGuinness finished the match with seven kills hitting .875 with two blocks. In the Owls two three set victories, McGuinness has totaled 16 kills while hitting .727 and .875.
» Setter
Kristi Piedimonte plays very aggressively as she already has 39 kills on the year. That's an average of almost four kills per match.
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Katarina Morton and Piedimonte are both leading the team with 14 aces each. At one point against Loyola Maryland, Piedimonte had three straight aces.
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Kelly Marcinek continues to be an offensive force for the team. She leads the team with 120 kills averaging 3.16 kills per set. Marcinek is also second on the team in blocks with 18.
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Toure Hopkins had her fourth game of the season with double-digit digs against Coastal Carolina. She has had two game with 11 digs and two games with 10 digs.
To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State volleyball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsVB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook. Fans are reminded that tickets to all 2014 home volleyball contests are free throughout the year. - #GoKSUOwls -
