NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - The Christopher Newport Volleyball team will look to get back on the winning side as they face a trip of teams, including the 2018 national runner up, in the Messiah Invitational in Grantham, Pa. this weekend.

The Captains square off against Cabrini on Friday at 5 pm. On Saturday, they compete against #2 ranked and 2018 national-runner up Calvin College at 12 pm then follow with a 4 pm tilt vs. Messiah. Links to webcasts and live stats can be found at https://www.cnusports.com/schedule.aspx?path=wvball

The Captains started off the year on a high note, going 2-1 in their first three games with a win over #3 Juniata, but they went 0-4 at the Berry national Invitational with three losses coming against top 25-ranked teams.

Three players check in with 2.00+ kills per set, led by Katie Crofford's 2.50 followed closely by Katie Piper at 2.46 and 2.33 from Riley Garrison with Garrison leading the team in attack percentage at .246. Crofford additionally tops the team in service aces with 13 total while Piper is third at 10. Both also rank top four in digs at 2.46 and 2.58 respectively. Sammy Carroll has proven to be a formidable freshman, leading the team in assists at 7.54 per set, but she has also produced 2.38 digs, five blocks, and 12 aces, good for second on the team. Rebecca Frey has stepped in at libero and has excelled with 4.08 digs per set in addition to seven aces. Mackenze Wright paces the Captains in blocks with 0.81 per set while Garrison checks in at 0.71.

Cabrini is 4-3 on the season with their most recent result being a 3-0 loss to Stockton on Tuesday. They boast wins over Ursinus, Washington and Jefferson, St. Mary's (Md.), and Hunter. As a team, they sport a hitting percentage of .169 with 1.8 aces, 19.1 digs, and 1.5 blocks per set. Meanwhile, their opponents are hitting at just .146.

Offensively, the Cavaliers are headlined by Steph Judkins, who is averaging 5.34 points and 4.96 kills per set. Katrina Skelly checks in at 3.92 and 3.28 respectively. Shelly is also second on the team in aces at nine and digs at 3.24 per set while Judkins is third in digs with 3.12. Amelia Ballard and Melanie Cotes-Rivera are handing out 5.32 and 4.68 assists per set apiece, and Ballard has a team-high 16 aces. Gina Custer paces the team in digs at 6.40. Hannah Dalton is tops on the team in blocks with 19 while Shelley and Marie Hamilton have 13. Victoria Camacho checks in with 12 rejections.

A year after finishing 33-2, the Calvin Knights are playing jus as impressively. They are 6-0 with five straight three-set wins, and they have won 18 of their last 19 sets, dropping only their first set of the season, which came against current #21 Ohio Northern. They beat Wittenberg #14 3-0 and also took down Transylvania, Illinois Wesleyan, and DePauw 3-0, all three of which are receiving votes in the top 25.

The Knights have a .304 team hitting percentage to go with 3.47 aces, 13.05 digs, and 1.95 blocks per set. Their opponents have struggled, boasting a .131 hitting percentage to go with just 12 total aces for the season. 

Sara DeVries has a team-high 3.89 kills per set while Kelsey Smith checks in at 2.61 followed by Heidi Westra at 2.11. DeVries is also second on the squad in assists at 3.17. Anna Schreimer has contributed a team-best 6.32 assists. Aubrey Wrubel leads four players with at least 10+ aces at 16. Schreimer is second at 15 followed by Maria Bos with 13 and Grace Kellogg with 10. Wrubel also boasts a team-best 3.58 digs per set and Kellogg is second at 2.74. McKenna Covey has recorded 1.00 blocks per set while DeVries is second at 0.78.

Messiah, following a year in which they went 15-16, has started out the season tremendously, winning all seven f their matches while having dropped just one set, but this weekend will be their stiffest test of the year and will be the first time the Falcons will face a team that is either ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25. The Falcons are hitting .296 with 2.3 aces, 16.0 digs, and 1.3 blocks per set. Their opponents have converted on just 8.6% of their attack attempts.

The Falcons have a balanced attack with four players above 2.4 kills per set, highlighted by Mary Underman's 3.14 and Lanae Hunsberger's 2.55. Natalie Marsch and Payton Manwaring aren't far behind at 2.48. Underman also boasts a .517 hitting percentage. Kristan Seibert leads the squad in assists at 10.40 per set. Marsh and Hailey Miller are atop the team leaderboard in services aces with 10 apiece. Amanda Dahlman collects 5.05 digs per set. Underman additionally leads the team in blocks with 15.0 while Manwaring has 12.0.