The Kentucky volleyball team looks to extend its winning streak to six matches on Tuesday, Sept. 4, when it hosts Eastern Kentucky in Memorial Coliseum. Opening serve is set for 7 p.m. and live statistics will be available at www.ukathletics.com.
The Wildcats (6-1) captured the annual Kentucky Classic title this past weekend with sweeps of Georgetown, Austin Peay and Cleveland State. Senior middle blocker Nicole Britenriker (Cincinnati, Ohio) was named the Most Valuable Player of the Classic after tallying 39 kills, 26 digs and 10 blocks on .532 hitting over the three-match span. Junior libero Alisa Pierce (Louisville, Ky.), Queen Nzenwa (Baltimore, Md.), Lauren Rapp (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Sarah Rumely (New Palestine, Ind.) also were named to the All-Tournament Team.
Britenriker is leading the Wildcats with 4.04 kills per game on a squad-best .368 hitting percentage with a team-high 1.58 blocks per game. Nzenwa adds 2.75 kills per game to complement 1.54 blocks per contest. Rumely is dishing out 11.62 assists per game, while Pierce leads the defensive effort with 4.33 digs per game. Rapp has served up a squad-best 11 aces this season.
Kentucky and EKU meet for the 27th time in program history with the Wildcats holding a 21-5 advantage in the all-time series. The Cats have won 10 consecutive meetings with the Colonels dating back to the 1985 season. The two teams last met on Sept. 1, 2004 in the season opener for both teams that Kentucky won 3-0.
Eastern Kentucky enters Tuesday?s match with a 1-4 record. The Colonels went 1-2 this past weekend at the Clarion Classic, hosted by Western Michigan. EKU picked up its first win of the season in its last outing by defeating Chicago State 3-0 on Saturday night.
Junior middle blocker Amanda Wilson leads the Colonels, averaging 4.06 kills per game on .248 hitting, while freshman libero Abby O?Connor heads the defensive effort with 3.06 digs per game. Eastern Kentucky, which is recording just 0.94 blocks per game, will have to content with a strong Wildcat blocking corps that is averaging 3.50 blocks per game and has recorded double-digit team blocks in four of their last five matches.
Kentucky and EKU, whose campuses are approximately 30 miles apart, have more in common than just their proximity. The Colonels? sophomore middle blocker Kirby Barnhart is the daughter of UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart.
Volleyball season tickets can now be purchased at the UK ticket office, located in the Joe Craft Center. All tickets are general admission and can be purchased for $20 by calling the ticket office at 1-800-928-2287. Tickets are also sold at the Joe Craft Center prior to each home match.
Single match tickets are $5 for adults, $2 for Seniors and Youth. Group tickets for 20 or more persons are available by calling the ticket office in advance of the event. Anyone wishing to purchase tickets can do so by visiting the UK ticket office, by phone, at (859) 257-1818, or online at www.ukathletics.com.
