MONROE, La. – With only five remaining matches in the season, the ULM volleyball team will take a much-needed break from Sun Belt play on Tuesday (Oct. 30) and travel down I-20 to Jackson, Mississippi to face Jackson State in a mid-week non-conference match up. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m.
The Warhawks and Tigers met earlier this season in Monroe, where ULM swept JSU in three sets (25-18, 25-12, 25-22). ULM was able to capitalize off 22 errors while recording 34 kills and nine blocks.
ULM (9-16, 2-10) will be looking for its tenth win of the season on Tuesday, after dropping back-to-back matches to East Division foes Texas State and UT-Arlington.
In Friday's loss at UTA, freshman
Kate Blasingame earned her third consecutive double-doubles (12 kills, 11 digs) after earning Sun Belt Freshman of the Week honors for her performances against Georgia State and Georgia Southern just the week before.
Jackson State (11-19, 9-5) is currently third in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, but hosts ULM after a two-game losing streak, dropping 0-3 decisions to Southern University and Jacksonville State.
Among conference opponents, Jackson State is fourth in hitting percentage (.140), third in kills (10.92 per set), and first in opponent hitting percentage (.182).
The Warhawks aren't wavered by the Tigers defense, in fact, ULM currently ranks third in the Sun Belt in blocks, averaging 2.38 per set. Against non-conference opponents, the Warhawks average 10.5 kills per set. ULM has also won its last five non-conference match ups, including its five-set win over Louisiana Tech on Sept. 25.
Leading ULM is redshirt-junior
Catherine Griffith. The North Carolina native has started in all 25 matches for the Warhawks this season, and is headed into the final weeks of play averaging 2.24 kills per set with 190 total kills. Following Griffith are outside hitters Blasingame and
Mikaela Worley, who are also earning two-plus kills per set this season.
Junior defensive specialists
Katie McKay and
Albany Schaffer are each contributing to the ULM defense with 2.96 and 2.84 digs per set respectively. Blasingame too plays a key role in the dig-game, with 2.82 digs per set for herself.
After Tuesday, ULM will play on the road once more in Lafayette, La. (Nov. 2) before returning home to host the Ragin' Cajuns on Nov. 4 at 2 p.m.
Follow the Warhawks on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @ULM_VB to stay up to date on team happenings, schedule changes, live in-game updates, and much more.
