SPORTS

 

DAVIDSON, N.C. — The Davidson volleyball team will open up Atlantic 10 play in accelerated fashion this weekend, hosting three-straight conference matches from inside Belk Arena. The ‘Cats will start things off with a 7 p.m. tilt against Saint Louis on Friday, before taking on Fordham on Saturday at 6 and then closing out the homestand with a 1 p.m. match up against Rhode Island on Sunday.

WILDCAT SCRATCHES

• Davidson enters Atlantic 10 play at 4-6 overall, picking up non-conference wins against UNC Asheville, Western Carolina, Georgia State and Campbell.
• Across the league, the ‘Cats rank second in assists per set (11.49), first in digs per set (16.71) and second in kills per set (12.66).
• The Wildcats are attacking the nets at a .185 clip so far this season and have totaled 74.5 blocks, good for third among the Atlantic 10.
• Individually, Bella Brady leads the league with 5.29 digs per set and has 217 total digs this season. The sophomore ranks among the top liberos nationally as well, as her digs per set average is 13th in the nation and her total digs ranks 32nd.
• For her efforts, Brady has already earned three Defensive Player of the Week honors from the A-10 this season and bumped her career total to five weekly honors.
• Senior attacker Hattie Rodriguez was named the league’s Player of the Week after week one, while rookie outside hitter Isabel Decker earned the A-10’s Rookie of the Week honor in week two.
• As a duo, Rodriguez and Decker have combined for 232 of the team’s 519 kills and total a combined 7.16 points per set this year.
• Sola Omonije is the Wildcats’ unsung hero at the net, checking in at third on the team with 61 kills, swinging a .229 attacking percentage. The sophomore leads the team with 34 total blocks, while fellow middle blocker Anela Davis is right behind Omonije with 33 blocks.

ABOUT THE BILLIKENS

• Saint Louis has played a dense non-conference schedule this fall, starting off the year 7-6, while picking up notable wins against Missouri, Murray State and Bradley.
• The Billikens’ offense swings a conference-best .216 attack percentage, and averages 13.18 kills per set.
• SLU is also atop the conference standings in aces per set (2.02) and assists per set (12.24).
• Saint Louis holds a 13-2 advantage in the all-time series against the ‘Cats, while Davidson last defeated the Billikens in 2017 from inside Belk Arena in a 3-2 battle.

ALL-TIME VS. FORDHAM

• Davidson leads the all-time series against Fordham, dating back to just 2014, at a 6-3 clip.
• Due to last season’s COVID-19 protocols, the Wildcats and Rams were in separate divisions and never met on the courts.
• Fordham took the last meeting against Davidson, in a 3-2 win from the Bronx, while the ‘Cats have won three of their last five meetings with the Rams.
• The Wildcats have never dropped a contest to Fordham while inside Belk Arena, as the ‘Cats are also 2-0 from home so far this year.

SCOUTING RHODE ISLAND

• The Rhode Island Rams enter this weekend having won three straight at the UNH/Merrimack Tournament, dropping just one set across three matches.
• Rhody is led by graduate transfer Jamie Smith, who averages 2.33 kills per set, and senior Gabrielle Shilling who has attacked the nets at a .397 attacking percentage this season.
• Since the Wildcats joined the A-10 in 2014-15, Rhode Island has hung onto the all-time series at a 5-4 advantage.
• Davidson has won three of its last four meetings with the Rams however, while the two teams did not meet last season due to the Atlantic 10’s North and South Divisional breakdown.