Pitt Opens NCAA Tournament Friday Against Dayton

Dec. 1, 2016

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PITTSBURGH -- The University of Pittsburgh volleyball team [24-8, 15-5 ACC] is set to face Dayton [30-1, 14-0 A-10] Friday, Dec. 2 at 5 p.m. in the opening round of the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Tournament. The Panthers' match will take place in Rec Hall on Penn State's campus in University Park, Pa.

MATCH DAY INFORMATION

- On match day, Friday, Dec. 2, Rec Hall will open at 4 p.m. to the public.

- Fans can purchase tickets at the door prior to the match or online.

- Penn State's bag policy will be in effect on the day of the match. No book bags or duffel bags will be allowed in Rec Hall.

- Parking for all fans will be available in the Red A lot.

THE SERIES

- Pitt will take on Dayton for the seventh time in program history, with the Flyers holding the all-time series lead 4-2.

- The Panthers and Dayton last met on August 30, 2014 at the Hampton Inn Invitational in Bowling Green, Ohio. Pitt came away with a 3-0 win over the Flyers.

- The Panthers and Dayton first met in 1977 in Pittsburgh. Pitt dropped the match 2-1.

LAST TIME OUT

- The Panthers won their final two regular season contests, defeating Virginia Tech in straight sets on senior night prior to traveling to Virginia and defeating the Cavaliers 3-1.

- During Wednesday's match against the Hokies, redshirt freshman Stephanie Williams recorded her 23^rd match with double-digit kills tallying 15, while finishing with a .444 hitting percentage. Senior Jenna Potts led the Panthers with a .462 hitting percentage and four blocks. Sophomore setter Kamalani Akeo tallied 35 assists on the evening and was the lone Panther to record a double-double.

- On Saturday against the Cavaliers, the Panthers closed the regular season with their 15^th conference victory. Williams, freshman Nika Markovic, and junior Mariah Bell each recorded a double-double in Pitt's four set victory. Williams led the way with 15 kills and 11 digs. Markovic served up four aces and Potts led the Panthers' defense with four blocks.

PANTHERS EARN ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS

- Six Pitt players earned all-conference honors, including Akeo who was named ACC Setter of the Year.

- Joining Akeo are Potts and Williams who were named as first team All-ACC honorees, while Akeo and Bell were tabbed second team All-ACC. Freshmen Markovic and Layne Van Buskirk were the Panthers final awardees, earning ACC All-Freshman honors. The Panthers' six All-ACC honorees are second-most among ACC programs, trailing only North Carolina.

PITT IN THE RPI

- Pitt concluded the regular season inside the NCAA RPI top 40, clocking in at No. 39.

ON A ROLL

- The Panthers head into the NCAA tournament winning 10 of their last 11 matches, including victories over No. 8 North Carolina and RPI Top 50 Georgia Tech. During that stretch of games Pitt surrendered only 10 sets and recorded five sweeps. The Panthers were a perfect 5-0 on the road during the late-season hot streak.

SCOUTING DAYTON

- The Flyers enter postseason play having lost only one match during the regular season, leading to a 30-1 overall record and an unblemished 15-0 mark in A-10 play. Dayton's lone defeat came by way of sweep to Loyola Marymount.

- The Flyers currently rank 23^rd in the AVCA Coaches Poll and clock in at 28 in the official NCAA RPI.

- Dayton is no stranger to the NCAA tournament, as they will be making their 12^th appearance and will play its First Round match at Penn State for the third consecutive time. The Flyers have advanced past the first round each of the last two seasons.

- Junior setter Jane Emmenecker, most recently named the A-10 setter of the year for the third-consecutive season, will look to lead Dayton during another tournament run.

- Offensively the Flyers will rely on sophomore Kendyll Brown who ranks third in the nation with a .438 hitting percentage and junior Jessica Sloan who leads Dayton with 408 kills.

OH, THE POSSIBILITIES...

LOOKING AT PENN STATE

- In the case of a win by both the Panthers and Nittany Lions Friday, the two teams will meet Saturday for the 51^st time in program history and for the first time since 2011. Pitt trails in the all-time series 31-19 and has lost the last 14 matches against the Panthers' in-state foe. Pitt's last win against Penn State came in 1987.

- While in State College, the Panthers will potentially will go head-to-head a familiar face in the Nittany Lions' assistant coach Craig Dyer. Dyer spent the last three seasons with Pitt under head coach Dan Fisher as an associate head coach before taking the position with PSU.

- Penn State [22-9, 14-6 B1G] was one of eight teams from the Big Ten conference to be selected for the NCAA tournament. Finishing fourth in their conference, the No. 13 Nittany Lions will enter the tournament on a three-game winning streak.

- The Panthers and Nittany Lions faced four common opponents this season (UNC, Syracuse, Clemson and Michigan). Both teams defeated the Orange and Tigers, while PSU lost to the Tar Heels and split the season-series with the Wolverines, both of who Pitt defeated.

- Penn State is one of two teams to compete in all 36 NCAA postseason tournaments since 1981, owning a 92-28 all-time record. Since 2007, the Nittany Lions have made more appearances in the NCAA national semifinals than any other program and have participated in seven of the last nine final fours.

- The Nittany Lions are led offensively by standout junior outside hitter Simone Lee, who's 455 season kills rank fifth during the 25-point rally scoring era. Returning all-Americans Ali Frantti and Haleigh Washington play key roles for PSU, as Frantti approaches 1,000 career kills and Washington remains one of the country's most efficient hitters.

LOOKING AT LIU BROOKLYN

- In the case of a Panthers win and Penn State upset, Pitt and LIU Brooklyn will meet for the second time in program history. The Panthers were victorious in the only previous match, winning 3-1 on Sept. 25, 2014.

- LIU Brooklyn [16-14, 10-4 NEC] earned one of 32 automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament finishing Northeast Conference Champions. The Blackbirds defeated the No. 1 seed Sacred Heart, 3-2, in the NEC Championship.

- LIU freshman Amanda Hubbard led the NEC with 928 total assists and an average of 9.37 assists per game. Senior Alex Larsen led the Blackbirds offense with 306 kills on the season.

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