Friday, Oct. 26
6 p.m. – Kennesaw State (19-4, 10-0) at North Florida (9-18, 4-7)
Location: Jacksonville, Fla. | UNF Arena

Saturday, Oct. 27
6 p.m. – Kennesaw State (19-4, 10-0) at Stetson (12-9, 4-5)
Location: DeLand, Fla. | Edmunds Center

Match 1 – Live Stats | ESPN+
Match 2 – Live Stats | ESPN+
Match Notes

Match Preview
The Kennesaw State volleyball team heads to the Sunshine State for its next two matches, squaring off against North Florida Friday and Stetson Saturday.

The Owls have already clinched a spot in the ASUN conference tournament following their most recent victory over NJIT. KSU looks to extend their program-record 13-match winning streak and become just the sixth team in ASUN history to go undefeated in conference play.

UNF is coming off a sweep over Jacksonville this past Tuesday to improve to 9-18 on the year and 4-7 in league play. The Ospreys are still vying for a spot in the conference tournament, currently ranked sixth in the ASUN standings.

North Florida is led by junior middle blocker Taryn Griffey who is the only player in the conference with over 200 kills and 100 blocks (295 kills, 101 blocks). She is ranked second in the league for blocks and fifth for kills.

The Hatters welcome KSU to DeLand for the second match of the week. Stetson hosts Lipscomb Friday night before taking on the Owls. Stetson is currently 12-9 this season and 4-5 in the conference having lost its last three matches.

Stetson leads the league averaging 17.04 digs per set, led by Chelcie Spence who ranks third in the ASUN with a 4.64 digs per set average. The Hatters' Eva Deisa is one of five players in the conference, including KSU's Lauren Chastang, with over 200 kills and 200 digs this season (208 kills, 230 digs).

Last Time Out
The Owls capped off a busy week with home wins over North Alabama and NJIT. KSU dropped only one set over the two-match span.

The Owls grinded out a four-set victory over UNA despite hitting a season-low .161. The two teams traded points to open the match with KSU gaining some separation following a 3-0 run, 10-7. KSU built its lead to as high as 20-14 before closing out the set on a 4-0 run.

After falling into a 6-1 hole to open the second set, KSU responded with a 9-1 run to take the lead, 12-8. The Owls stayed in front the rest of the way to take a two set lead.

The Lions adjusted during the intermission to take a 10-6 lead in the third set behind two 3-0 runs. UNA managed to hold the Owls off, scoring six of the final eight points to dash KSU's hopes of a sweep and send the match to a fourth set.

KSU bounced back, opening the fourth set on a 5-0 run, and building its lead to 12-5 after a 7-1 run. UNA chipped away at KSU's lead late in the set, pulling to within four, 23-19, but KSU closed it out to win the match.

In the Owls second match of the weekend, KSU blew through NJIT in straight sets, recording a .373 hitting percentage. KSU held the Highlanders to a -.082 hitting percentage, a season-best mark for KSU.

The Owls held NJIT to 10 points in the first and second sets, closing out the frames on runs of 10-0 and 11-1, respectively.

NJIT traded points with the Owls to open the third set, but an 8-1 run put KSU ahead for good, 16-9. KSU ended the set on an 8-2 run to secure the sweep.

The Block Is Hot
Sophomore Quin Sutphin has exploded for a record performance at the net this season. The Fort Mill, S.C., native recently broke the all-time single-match record with 12 blocks at Lipscomb. She also became the first Owl in history to record a double-double with blocks and kills, logging 11 kills to go along with her 12 blocks against the Bison.

Over the last three matches Sutphin has recorded 31 kills and 21 blocks on her way to being named the ASUN Player and Defensive Player of the Week. The accolades marked the first time in program history an Owl was named the overall conference player and defensive player of the week in the same week. Only one other Owl, Sydni Shelton, garnered two weekly awards in the same week, earning player and freshman of the week accolades in 2015.

Sutphin has recorded 101 total blocks this season to become the second player in history to hit the century mark in a single-season. She needs only 12 more blocks to match the KSU record set by Callie Churchwell in 2009 (113).

She currently is tied for second in the ASUN for total blocks and ranks 31st in the NCAA. Sutphin is one of three players in the league to record 100 or more blocks on the year, with at least two matches in hand than the rest of the top-five.

Her current 1.31 blocks per set average ranks third in the conference and would break the single-season record of 1.14 set by Liesl Engelbrecht last season.

We're Going Streaking
The Owls' win over NJIT marked their 13th consecutive victory, a program record. KSU has won 12 straight matches twice, once in 2016 and again in 2017., 

The Owls' 10-0 start to ASUN play is the best mark in program history and secures at least 10 wins in league play for the third straight season.

Since the 2016 season, KSU is 35-3 in league matches, having won 22 consecutive matches against conference opponents dating back to Oct. 7 of last season, a span of 384 days as of Friday.

KSU's current 13-match winning streak is tied for the ninth-longest active streak in the NCAA. The Owls' current conference winning streak is tied for fifth in the NCAA with only five other teams in the nation recording 20 or more consecutive victories.

Among The Nation's Best
As a team, the Owls are ranked in the NCAA's top-20 in five different categories.

KSU ranks sixth in the country and second in the ASUN this year, holding opponents to a .148 hitting percentage. The Owls have held 17 teams below .200, including five below .100 and one under .000.

The Owls' 225 total blocks ranks second in the league and 16th in the NCAA. Only 17 teams in the country have logged over 220 blocks so far this season.

KSU broke 1,000 assists on the year at Lipscomb and are ranked 17th in the NCAA with 1,136. This is the 11th straight season KSU has recorded more than 1,000 assists.

The Owls have also broken the century mark in total kills, logging 1,210 on the year. That mark is good enough for 16th in the country.

KSU recorded five aces against NJIT to bring its season total to 138 which leads the conference and ranks 15th in the nation. 

Killing The Game
Sophomore Lauren Chastang recorded her 11th double-double of the season against North Alabama, recording 12 kills and 12 digs. She's had four double-doubles in the last six matches.

With her four digs against NJIT, Chastang became the fifth player in program history to record over 300 kills and 200 digs in a single-season. She is one of three players in the ASUN with at least 300 kills and 200 digs, and the only player to add over 40 blocks to her season production.

She is currently 10th on the KSU single-season record list with 312 kills.

Allow Me To Assist You
Junior Lexi Broadwater set a career-high with 58 assists at Lipscomb and continues to assist at a record pace this year.

The Fayetteville, Ga., native ranks sixth in the NCAA with 981 total assists this season. Only 14 players in the country have recorded over 950 assists. Only one other player in the ASUN has over 800 assists this year, North Florida's Madilyn McCarty (851) who has played in four more matches.

Broadwater is currently one assist shy of tying Kristi Piedimonte for fifth on the KSU single-season list. She also needs just 19 more assists to become the fifth Owl in history to reach the century mark in a single-season.

Broadwater's current clip of 10.90 assists per set ranks 33rd in the NCAA. That mark would also surpass the single-season record of 10.60 set by Piedimonte last season.  

Pocket Aces
The Owls have recorded five or more aces in four of the last five matches to bring their season total to 138. That mark leads the conference and ranks 15th in the NCAA.

KSU has logged five or more aces in 12 matches with 10 or more in four matches. The Owls' 138 aces ranks seventh on the KSU single-season record list.

Six Owls have recorded 10 or more aces led by Lexi Broadwater with 34. Broadwater leads the ASUN and ranks 29th in the NCAA for total aces, the fifth-highest ranked setter in the country. After logging five aces against North Alabama, Broadwater now ranks second on the KSU single-season record list.

Karlee Groover is one ace shy of cracking the single-season top-10 with 26 aces so far this year.

She Can Dig It
Sophomore Karlee Groover has been dynamite for the Owls in her first season as the team's libero. Groover has logged 10 or more digs in the last six matches, 20 or more in two of those matches, and 20 times total this season. Her 383 digs on the year ranks third in the ASUN. She is one of only five players in the league with over 300 digs.

Following her 15 digs against NJIT, Groover moved into ninth place on the KSU single-season digs list. She ranks among the top-100 players in the NCAA for digs (No. 66)

The Newnan, Ga., native is currently digging at a clip of 4.26 digs per set. That mark ranks fourth in the ASUN and would place her sixth all-time in a single-season.

Owls on ESPN+
This weekend's matches will air live on ESPN+. Fans can purchase the digital platform for $4.99 a month or $49.99 for a year's subscription that provides access to all events broadcast on the network.

Next Up
Following this weekend's matches, the Owls return for their final home matches of the regular season, hosting top-ASUN teams Liberty, FGCU and Lipscomb in a span of five days from Friday (Nov. 2) to Tuesday (Nov. 6).

Stat Leaders
Kills: 312, Lauren Chastang
Assists: 981, Lexi Broadwater
Digs: 383, Karlee Groover
Blocks: 101, Quin Sutphin
Aces: 34, Lexi Broadwater
Attack Percentage: .298, Sydni Shelton
 

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