Lehigh University Athletics
Friday, September 7
Philadelphia, Pa.
12 p.m.
Lehigh University
vs
Saint Francis (Pa.)
Mountain Hawks gear up for Valley Forge Sports Invitational this weekend
9/6/2018 2:22:00 PM | Volleyball
PHILADELPHIA — One week removed from the conclusion of the Crosstown Invitational, Lehigh volleyball gears up for the Valley Forge Sports Invitational this weekend.
Lehigh takes on Saint Francis on Friday at noon before facing Radford and host Penn at 1 and 5 p.m. respectively on Saturday.
The Mountain Hawks have had an eventful past week when they swept last weekend by taking down Rutgers, Rider, Manhattan and Coppin State in Bethlehem. They traveled to Newark, N.J. on Tuesday and left with a 3-0 sweep of NJIT to extend their winning streak to seven games and start the season with a 7-0 record.
To begin the season, Lehigh has been solid on the attack and also defensively, which has been a big key to its early success. Juniors Emily Poole and Lauren Bright are currently leading the way in hitting percentage with marks of .423 and .416. The two players are ranked second and third in the Patriot League in that category.
Sophomore Sabrina Lancaster has been a force on the attack, leading all Mountain Hawks in kills per set with 3.40.
Defensively through the first seven games, it's Poole and Bright again who are accumulating most of the blocks statistically. Poole heads into the weekend as the team leader in blocks with 23 and Bright trails by just one with 22. Lancaster is third on the team with eight.
Leading her teammates on the floor, senior Emily Develle continues to impress at libero with her 3.67 digs per set average.
In the first matchup of the weekend, the Mountain Hawks face Saint Francis. The Red Flash come into The Palestra with an 0-8 record. They most recently fell to Duquesne on Tuesday in a tightly contested five-set defeat. Saint Francis is paced offensively by Shannon Thomas with a .333 hitting mark and Madi Tyus holds the team-lead in kills per set with 3.47. Tyus also leads the way with 10 service aces. Defensively, Jess Barrett is the team leader in digs with 113, while Cecilia Esposito leads in blocks with 15. Saint Francis is hitting .135 as a team, while allowing a .261 percentage for their opponents. Lehigh is 11-3 all-time against the Red Flash. The Mountain Hawks won last season's matchup 3-0.
Radford enters the upcoming weekend at 5-1 after two straight three-set victories over Southeast Missouri and ULM in the Redhawks Invitational. Jordan Coomes leads the Highlanders with a .429 hitting percentage. Valerie Gonzalez and Mallory McKnight lead the team in kills per set with 2.50. Haley Kleespies is Radford's leading assist-getter with 8.68 assists per game. The Highlanders are hitting .225 overall as a team, while opponents are hitting at a .164 mark. The Mountain Hawks are 1-1 against Radford all-time, falling 3-0 when the two teams met last year.
In the final match of the weekend, Lehigh faces host Penn for the ninth team in program history. Historically, the Quakers have gotten the best of the Mountain Hawks taking seven of the eight meetings. It's been 18 years since Lehigh last took on Penn, with the Quakers coming out on top, 3-0. This year so far, Penn enters the weekend with a 2-2 overall mark and fell to UNC-Wilmington in straight sets its last time out. Taylor Cooper's .426 hitting percentage leads all Quaker players. Raven Sulaimon leads Penn with 3.08 kills per set and Margaret Planek and Caroline Furrer both have four service aces. As a team, the Quakers are hitting .242 and opponents are hitting .226 against them.
Like Lehigh Volleyball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Lehigh takes on Saint Francis on Friday at noon before facing Radford and host Penn at 1 and 5 p.m. respectively on Saturday.
The Mountain Hawks have had an eventful past week when they swept last weekend by taking down Rutgers, Rider, Manhattan and Coppin State in Bethlehem. They traveled to Newark, N.J. on Tuesday and left with a 3-0 sweep of NJIT to extend their winning streak to seven games and start the season with a 7-0 record.
To begin the season, Lehigh has been solid on the attack and also defensively, which has been a big key to its early success. Juniors Emily Poole and Lauren Bright are currently leading the way in hitting percentage with marks of .423 and .416. The two players are ranked second and third in the Patriot League in that category.
Sophomore Sabrina Lancaster has been a force on the attack, leading all Mountain Hawks in kills per set with 3.40.
Defensively through the first seven games, it's Poole and Bright again who are accumulating most of the blocks statistically. Poole heads into the weekend as the team leader in blocks with 23 and Bright trails by just one with 22. Lancaster is third on the team with eight.
Leading her teammates on the floor, senior Emily Develle continues to impress at libero with her 3.67 digs per set average.
In the first matchup of the weekend, the Mountain Hawks face Saint Francis. The Red Flash come into The Palestra with an 0-8 record. They most recently fell to Duquesne on Tuesday in a tightly contested five-set defeat. Saint Francis is paced offensively by Shannon Thomas with a .333 hitting mark and Madi Tyus holds the team-lead in kills per set with 3.47. Tyus also leads the way with 10 service aces. Defensively, Jess Barrett is the team leader in digs with 113, while Cecilia Esposito leads in blocks with 15. Saint Francis is hitting .135 as a team, while allowing a .261 percentage for their opponents. Lehigh is 11-3 all-time against the Red Flash. The Mountain Hawks won last season's matchup 3-0.
Radford enters the upcoming weekend at 5-1 after two straight three-set victories over Southeast Missouri and ULM in the Redhawks Invitational. Jordan Coomes leads the Highlanders with a .429 hitting percentage. Valerie Gonzalez and Mallory McKnight lead the team in kills per set with 2.50. Haley Kleespies is Radford's leading assist-getter with 8.68 assists per game. The Highlanders are hitting .225 overall as a team, while opponents are hitting at a .164 mark. The Mountain Hawks are 1-1 against Radford all-time, falling 3-0 when the two teams met last year.
In the final match of the weekend, Lehigh faces host Penn for the ninth team in program history. Historically, the Quakers have gotten the best of the Mountain Hawks taking seven of the eight meetings. It's been 18 years since Lehigh last took on Penn, with the Quakers coming out on top, 3-0. This year so far, Penn enters the weekend with a 2-2 overall mark and fell to UNC-Wilmington in straight sets its last time out. Taylor Cooper's .426 hitting percentage leads all Quaker players. Raven Sulaimon leads Penn with 3.08 kills per set and Margaret Planek and Caroline Furrer both have four service aces. As a team, the Quakers are hitting .242 and opponents are hitting .226 against them.
Like Lehigh Volleyball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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