Friday, September 20
New Orleans, LA
11:00 a.m.
Louisiana Tech University
vs
Georgia State
Photo by: Kevin Albarez
Bulldogs Travel to Pelican Invitational
9/19/2024 10:21:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
RUSTON — Louisiana Tech will look to carry the momentum from the Battle for the Boot into the Pelican Invitational when they take on Georgia State, UC Riverside, and New Orleans on September 20-21.
The Bulldogs will take on the Panthers and Highlanders at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. CT on Friday at Fogelman Arena on the campus of Tulane, while the match against the Privateers will take place at the Human Performance Center at 3 p.m. CT on Saturday and will be streamed on ESPN+.
DATE/TIME: Friday-Saturday, September 20-21, 11 a.m. CT | 4 p.m. CT | 3 p.m.
LOCATION: New Orleans, La. (Fogelman Arena | Human Performance Center)
STATS: LATechSports.com/Stats
SERIES RECORD: LA Tech, 2-1 | First Meeting | UNO, 16-15
LAST MEETING: W, 3-0 (9/4/99, Ruston) | First Meeting | W, 3-2 (9/18/21, Ruston)
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (5-5)
After dropping the opening match, Louisiana Tech picked up two wins on the final day of the Battle for the Boot. The Bulldogs fell to Southeastern before beating Northwestern State and Southern, all by identical 3-1 scores.
Izabely Benjamin led the Bulldogs offensively with 29 kills and recorded her first two double-doubles of her career in the first two matches. She came close to securing the trifecta with nine kills and nine digs against Southern.
Giulia Bonifacio and Charlize Williams were second on the team with 24 kills each. Jailen Hurley (23) and Megan Cooley (21) also had great weekends on the attack.
Defensively, Williams and Hurley led the charge at the net. Williams finished with 10 blocks, while Hurley added eight. Riley Steubing, Benjamin, and Bonifacio all had over 40 digs on the weekend. Steubing had 54 for a 4.50 average per set, giving her 99 on the season and surpassing her total from her freshman campaign.
ABOUT GEORGIA STATE (7-2)
After dropping the first two matches of the season, Georgia State has won seven straight, only dropping three sets along the way.
The Panthers are led offensively by Keionna Mackey and Alessia Cappai, with 3.50 and 2.74 kills per set. Mackey has two double-doubles on the season, with a high of 23 kills and 13 digs in the four-set win over Florida A&M to kickstart the winning streak. Cappai has four matches with double-digit kills this season and has five matches hitting over .300.
On the defensive side of the net, Kaleigh Fitzgerald and Livy Kowalkowski average 4.04 and 3.12 digs per set, respectively, while Kayla Broom and Akira Burt have 27.0 and 20.0 total blocks, respectively.
ABOUT UC RIVERSIDE (2-7)
UC Riverside dropped the final two matches of the Riverside Classic after picking up their second win of the season against California Baptist to open the tournament.
The Highlanders have three players averaging over 2.00 kills per set. Trinity Sheridan leads the way with 2.91, followed by Sophia Ewaiefo at 2.29 and Carissa Wiles at 2.22. Sheridan has hit double-digit kills in every match except for one this season with two double-doubles.
Riverside has a well-rounded defense with six players with over 40 digs and three with over 15.0 blocks. Kailyn Jager leads the way with 78 digs, while Sydnee Rowe has 19.0 blocks. Sheridan ranks fourth in digs at 54 and second in blocks with 16.0 on the season.
ABOUT UNO (2-6)
New Orleans has played two common opponents as the Bulldogs this season. The Privateers fell to Southern 3-0 and beat Alcorn 3-2.
UNO is led by Chelsea Daffin, Jaedyn Newman, and Courtney Roundtree with over 2.00 kills per set. Daffin produces 2.28 kills per set, while Newman has a 2.18 average, and Roundtree is right behind at 2.14.
Daffin is UNO's main defensive player, with 95 digs on the season for a 3.28 average. Defne Eciroglu follows with 63, and Lani Alleman rounds out the top three with 57. Roundtree is the primary defender at the net, with 24 blocks during the season.
QUOTABLES
Head Coach Amber McCray
"This weekend brings our final tests before opening conference play, and I'm thankful to be going into it with some momentum while remaining eager to continue to gel as a team and build on it even more. These are opponents we are less familiar with in Georgia State, UC Riverside and UNO, which adds some excitement for our team to compete against new programs and players from different areas of the country. We did an excellent job to close out last weekend of bringing the balance back that has helped us succeed offensively and secure wins, so we know we will need that balance this weekend to make the most of these three matches and three new opportunities."
THE SERIES
The Bulldogs are 2-1 all-time against Georgia State, with the last meeting in 1999 in Ruston. Tech and New Orleans were members of the Sun Belt throughout the 90s, with the Privateers holding a 16-15 advantage. This will be the first meeting between LA Tech and UC Riverside.
SUPPORT LA TECH ATHLETICS
Championships require championship resources. Fans can make a direct impact on the success of LA Tech Athletics through LTAC, Aillet Society, T-Club, and Young Alumni program as well as the Bulldog Community Outreach which is the NIL collective that supports Bulldog and Lady Techster student-athletes. Visit BuildTheLegacy.com today.
BARK LOUDER
Our mission is to engage, develop, and advance the Louisiana Tech Athletics brand. You can do that by spending time consuming our content and by investing your talents. By barking louder with your time and talent, you can affect progress and brand advancement in a meaningful way. Visit LATechSports.com/BarkLouder today. You bark. We bark. Louder together.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For all the latest in Bulldog Volleyball, follow us on X (@LATechVB), Instagram (@LATechVB), and Facebook (LATechVolleyball).
The Bulldogs will take on the Panthers and Highlanders at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. CT on Friday at Fogelman Arena on the campus of Tulane, while the match against the Privateers will take place at the Human Performance Center at 3 p.m. CT on Saturday and will be streamed on ESPN+.
DATE/TIME: Friday-Saturday, September 20-21, 11 a.m. CT | 4 p.m. CT | 3 p.m.
LOCATION: New Orleans, La. (Fogelman Arena | Human Performance Center)
STATS: LATechSports.com/Stats
SERIES RECORD: LA Tech, 2-1 | First Meeting | UNO, 16-15
LAST MEETING: W, 3-0 (9/4/99, Ruston) | First Meeting | W, 3-2 (9/18/21, Ruston)
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (5-5)
After dropping the opening match, Louisiana Tech picked up two wins on the final day of the Battle for the Boot. The Bulldogs fell to Southeastern before beating Northwestern State and Southern, all by identical 3-1 scores.
Izabely Benjamin led the Bulldogs offensively with 29 kills and recorded her first two double-doubles of her career in the first two matches. She came close to securing the trifecta with nine kills and nine digs against Southern.
Giulia Bonifacio and Charlize Williams were second on the team with 24 kills each. Jailen Hurley (23) and Megan Cooley (21) also had great weekends on the attack.
Defensively, Williams and Hurley led the charge at the net. Williams finished with 10 blocks, while Hurley added eight. Riley Steubing, Benjamin, and Bonifacio all had over 40 digs on the weekend. Steubing had 54 for a 4.50 average per set, giving her 99 on the season and surpassing her total from her freshman campaign.
ABOUT GEORGIA STATE (7-2)
After dropping the first two matches of the season, Georgia State has won seven straight, only dropping three sets along the way.
The Panthers are led offensively by Keionna Mackey and Alessia Cappai, with 3.50 and 2.74 kills per set. Mackey has two double-doubles on the season, with a high of 23 kills and 13 digs in the four-set win over Florida A&M to kickstart the winning streak. Cappai has four matches with double-digit kills this season and has five matches hitting over .300.
On the defensive side of the net, Kaleigh Fitzgerald and Livy Kowalkowski average 4.04 and 3.12 digs per set, respectively, while Kayla Broom and Akira Burt have 27.0 and 20.0 total blocks, respectively.
ABOUT UC RIVERSIDE (2-7)
UC Riverside dropped the final two matches of the Riverside Classic after picking up their second win of the season against California Baptist to open the tournament.
The Highlanders have three players averaging over 2.00 kills per set. Trinity Sheridan leads the way with 2.91, followed by Sophia Ewaiefo at 2.29 and Carissa Wiles at 2.22. Sheridan has hit double-digit kills in every match except for one this season with two double-doubles.
Riverside has a well-rounded defense with six players with over 40 digs and three with over 15.0 blocks. Kailyn Jager leads the way with 78 digs, while Sydnee Rowe has 19.0 blocks. Sheridan ranks fourth in digs at 54 and second in blocks with 16.0 on the season.
ABOUT UNO (2-6)
New Orleans has played two common opponents as the Bulldogs this season. The Privateers fell to Southern 3-0 and beat Alcorn 3-2.
UNO is led by Chelsea Daffin, Jaedyn Newman, and Courtney Roundtree with over 2.00 kills per set. Daffin produces 2.28 kills per set, while Newman has a 2.18 average, and Roundtree is right behind at 2.14.
Daffin is UNO's main defensive player, with 95 digs on the season for a 3.28 average. Defne Eciroglu follows with 63, and Lani Alleman rounds out the top three with 57. Roundtree is the primary defender at the net, with 24 blocks during the season.
QUOTABLES
Head Coach Amber McCray
"This weekend brings our final tests before opening conference play, and I'm thankful to be going into it with some momentum while remaining eager to continue to gel as a team and build on it even more. These are opponents we are less familiar with in Georgia State, UC Riverside and UNO, which adds some excitement for our team to compete against new programs and players from different areas of the country. We did an excellent job to close out last weekend of bringing the balance back that has helped us succeed offensively and secure wins, so we know we will need that balance this weekend to make the most of these three matches and three new opportunities."
THE SERIES
The Bulldogs are 2-1 all-time against Georgia State, with the last meeting in 1999 in Ruston. Tech and New Orleans were members of the Sun Belt throughout the 90s, with the Privateers holding a 16-15 advantage. This will be the first meeting between LA Tech and UC Riverside.
SUPPORT LA TECH ATHLETICS
Championships require championship resources. Fans can make a direct impact on the success of LA Tech Athletics through LTAC, Aillet Society, T-Club, and Young Alumni program as well as the Bulldog Community Outreach which is the NIL collective that supports Bulldog and Lady Techster student-athletes. Visit BuildTheLegacy.com today.
BARK LOUDER
Our mission is to engage, develop, and advance the Louisiana Tech Athletics brand. You can do that by spending time consuming our content and by investing your talents. By barking louder with your time and talent, you can affect progress and brand advancement in a meaningful way. Visit LATechSports.com/BarkLouder today. You bark. We bark. Louder together.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For all the latest in Bulldog Volleyball, follow us on X (@LATechVB), Instagram (@LATechVB), and Facebook (LATechVolleyball).
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
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