Regional Tournament Page // Live Stats // Web Stream
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Back in the NCAA Tournament for the eighth straight season, the ninth-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team will open up the postseason on Friday at 8 p.m. with a first-round battle against Gallaudet in the Newport News Regional at the Freeman Center.
The Captains, who will serve as Regional hosts for the fourth time in program history, punched their ticket to the postseason after capturing the Capital Athletic Conference championship. Overall, CNU sits at 31-3 entering the Tournament. On the other side of the net, Gallaudet boasts a 22-13 record after claiming the North Eastern Athletic Conference title for the fifth straight season.
Prior to the CNU - Gallaudet showdown at 8 p.m., three other Regional matches will take place at the Freeman Center. SUNY New Paltz and Haverford will battle at 12:30 p.m., Eastern will face Salem at 3 p.m., and Stevenson will square off with Richard Stockton at 5:30 p.m.
Single-session tickets for the Regional are $7 for adults and $5 for students and children. All-session passes covering the entire weekend are $12 for adults and $10 for students and children. Additionally, all of the action will be available through live stats and a web stream at CNUsports.com. Direct links to both features can be found at the top of this release and on the CNU schedule page.
Facing off for the first time in four years, the Captains and Bison have only met 10 times in history. Gallaudet leads the all-time series, 6-4, but Christopher Newport has won the last three match-ups, including a 3-0 victory during the first round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament.
So far this season, CNU ranks among the national leaders in a bevy of statistical categories. At the forefront, the Captains have boasted one of the most efficient and economical attacks in the country, standing fifth in the NCAA with a .267 hitting percentage. The squad has also served the ball well throughout the year, punching 291 aces, which ranks 24th overall.
On an individual level, CAC Player of the Year
Rachel Conway ranks among the top-30 with a 10.11 assists-per-set average, while
Hannah Miller is 16th with a .359 hitting percentage and 23rd with 120 total blocks. Fellow All-Conference honorees
Eliza Fisher and
Briana Sutton have also added a potent punch along the net. Sutton ranks second on the team with 296 kills, while Fisher has 237 to go along with a .268 hitting percentage.
Maddie McCann has chipped in with 277 blasts as well.
Leading the way at the service line,
Abby McIntyre has peppered 54 aces, while Fisher has 46.
Ashley Rock has also contributed 42 winners, and
Brooke Moore has 41 to go along with a team-best 3.65 digs-per-set average. McIntyre,
Rachel Close, and
Jessie Kolden have also contributed at least 1.5 digs-per-set during the year to help anchor the back-row defense.
Similar to the Captains, Gallaudet ranks among the national leaders in hitting percentage and aces. The Bison are 13th with a .248 hitting percentage and 30th with 287 aces. On an individual level, Julia Wolff ranks sixth in the NCAA with a .393 hitting percentage, while Traciann Hoglind is 20th with a 10.46 assists-per-set average. Kali Frowick has been the big hitter up front, ranking 36th in the country with a 3.79 kills-per-set mark. Overall this season, Frowick has 383 kills, while Molly Perkins sits second with 284.
The winner of Friday's first-round tilt will take on the survivor of the Stevenson - Richard Stockton battle on Saturday at 6 p.m. The Regional Championship will take place on Sunday at 4 p.m.
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