Volleyball Preview: Radford

UNC Asheville travels to Radford tonight to take part in an early battle for Big South supremacy. The first-place Bulldogs (12-5, 1-0) will try to build on their victory in Tuesday’s conference opener against Gardner-Webb when they take on the second-place Highlanders (9-6, 0-0).

In matches against common opponents, the Bulldogs and Highlanders have had very similar results. Both teams defeated South Carolina State in three sets; both fell to UNC Wilmington in four. Both squads also came up short against Elon, with Asheville losing 3-1 and Radford falling 3-0. The teams split their two meetings last season, each winning 3-1 on its home court. The Highlanders are a young team, with only one senior on their roster, but have a number of standout players. Junior Kiley Kent leads the Big South in service aces, holding a slight edge over Asheville’s Raquel Miotto. Sophomore Carly Fleming is third in the conference in blocks, and sophomore Katelyn Meeks is fourth in digs. The lone senior, Lauren Clary, has posted 115 kills and 178 digs (eight in the Big South) on the season. In the Bulldogs’ loss at Radford one year ago, Kent (8 kills, .467 hitting, 42 sets, 10 digs) and Waddell (13 kills, 6 digs) led the way. Radford enters tonight’s match with a two game winning streak, having defeated Bucknell (4-8) and Delaware State (6-9) over the weekend at the Bucknell Tournament.

The Bulldogs resisted a strong comeback effort to defeat Gardner-Webb on Tuesday night. Their 12-5 record is the best start for the program since 2005. Tonight, Asheville will rely on the continued success of two seniors. Lauren Ficker, who ranks second in the conference in hitting percentage, has been the linchpin of the Bulldogs’ attack in the absence of injured outside hitter Kelsey Benorden. She boasts three appearances on all-tournament teams and MVP honors from the USC Upstate Invitational. Libero Raquel Miotto, the Big South’s all-time leader in career digs, is poised to enter the NCAA all-time top ten and leads the conference in that category. The match is certain to be a tough battle, and will speak volumes about two Big South championship contenders.

Go Bulldogs!!