PREVIEW: Women's Volleyball prepares for Union University Classic

JACKSON, Tenn. – The Catawba College women's volleyball program is gearing up for its second weekend tournament of the year at the Union University Volleyball Classic on Sep. 13 and 14. The squad clashes with Southwest Baptist and Ouachita Baptist on Friday, then challenges Arkansas-Monticello before heading home on Saturday.

Last Time Out

- Catawba opened its 2024 slate last weekend at the Shaw Invitational, finishing 1-2 with a 3-0 victory in the first contest against Barton

- The blue and white fell in a hard-fought 3-2 match to Mount Olive, then surrendered a 3-0 decision of their own against Shaw the next day

- Kelcie Love smashed 24 kills in the event, followed by Jordan Danielson with 21

- Sydney McCutcheon and Haley Moffett shared time at setter with McCutcheon logging team highs in assists (38) and service aces (5), splitting the top digs mark of 17 with libero Riley Hill

Improved Hitting

- Through the season's first three matches, Catawba is hitting at a .182 clip compared to its .147 mark in 2023

- The Catawba Indians found paydirt early and often in the season opener against Barton, posting a .329 average which is the program's best single-game performance since 2021

- McCutcheon leads the pack with a .333 percentage as hitters Love (.263) and Danielson (.231) boast numbers north of .200

Pocketing Aces

- Catawba landed 15 service aces in the narrow loss to Mount Olive on opening day, the program's best mark in at least a dozen seasons

- Hill dropped in four unreturned serves to set a new career high as McCutcheon and Kary Hales each tacked on three

All-Time Series

- The Catawba Indians have never met either of their three opponents in the event

- Additionally, Catawba has not competed against any program from the Great Lakes Valley Conference (SBU) or the Great American Conference (Ouachita, UAM)

Scouting the Bearcats

- Southwest Baptist went 2-2 last weekend in the Gorilla Classic, defeating Western Colorado and Arkansas Tech before being swept by Oklahoma Christian and event host Pittsburg State

- Sophomore outside hitter Hannah Jackson, an Oral Roberts transfer, leads the offensive attack with 46 kills on a .241 hitting percentage through four matches

- In 2023, the Bearcats posted an 11-5 record in non-conference play with a perfect 9-0 clip in neutral-site tournament matches

Scouting the Tigers

- The Ouachita Tigers played host to its season-opening matches, going 3-1 with sweeps of Missouri S&T and Montevallo

- Riley Braziel and Kailey Thedford lead the Tigers in kills with 45 apiece. Setting duties have been delegated to Courtney Hanson who has 147 assists along with nine service aces as middle blockers Haley Fairchild and Leah Gardner have eight blocks apiece at the net

- Ouachita finished a tick above .500 last season at 19-17 overall including a 3-1 triumph over Division I foe Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Scouting the Cotton Blossoms

- Bearing one of the most unique nicknames Catawba will play against this season, Arkansas-Monticello steps into Fred DeLay Gymnasium with a 1-3 record. After suffering three losses to start the 2024 campaign, UAM toppled Newman, 3-2, to close the Hilltopper Classic at St. Edward's

- Key players for UAM include statistical leaders Natalie White (48 kills, 14 blocks, .330 hitting percentage), Mia Smalls (93 assists), and Jordan Wehr (33 digs)

- The Cotton Blossoms are coming off a 1-27 season in which they lost their first 11 matches in shutout fashion

Weekend Schedule

Friday, Sep. 13 vs. Southwest Baptist, 11 a.m.

Friday, Sep. 13 vs. Ouachita Baptist, 5 p.m.

Saturday, Sep. 14 vs. Arkansas-Monticello, 11 a.m.

Follow Along

All matches will be broadcast on FloSports ($) and live stats will be provided by Union University via Sidearm Live Stats. Links to each match's streams are available on CatawbaAthletics.com.