DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Volleyball Gears Up for Another Home Weekend
10/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
CHICAGO - The DePaul volleyball team concludes its three-match home stand this weekend with a pair of matches against Louisville and Cincinnati. On Fri., Oct. 9, the Blue Demons tangle with the Cardinals in McGrath Arena at 7 p.m. (CST) before squaring off with the Bearcats on Sunday at 2 p.m. Both matches will be streamed live via Blue Tube, while Sunday's play-by-play and commentary can be caught on Radio DePaul.
Last weekend, the Blue Demons (6-11, 0-3) suffered a 0-3 loss to Villanova (12-5, 1-3) in Lincoln Park. Despite the defeat, Chandler Carney walked away with a new career-high attack percentage, .429, and Sammy Geiger concluded the evening with 30 assists.
Sarah Cullen has been the go-to outside hitter for DePaul all season, and currently ranks 10th in the BIG EAST Conference with 3.26 kills per game, and seventh in overall kills with 215.
Looking Out for Louisville
Friday's match against Louisville (9-7, 2-1) marks the 21st time in program history the two squads have met. The Cardinals, who were picked as the preseason favorite to win the BIG EAST Championship, hold an 18-2 series advantage over DePaul. Louisville is coming off a 1-3 week after suffering losses to Tennessee and Pittsburgh, and its lone victory coming after routing West Virginia 3-0. Leading the Cardinals is Lola Arslanbekova who has accumulated 247 kills this year, and Lecia Brown who leads the BIG EAST with .413 attack percentage.
3-0 No More
Before Cincinnati (12-7, 3-0) travels to McGrath Arena on Sunday, they must first make it past Notre Dame on Saturday in a battle of the only two teams left with a perfect league record. While the Bearcats have 12 wins compared to the Irish's nine, Notre Dame lays just outside the AVCA Top-25 rankings after receiving votes in the poll this week. Cincinnati and DePaul have faced each other 35 times and is one of the longest running series in the volleyball program. The Blue Demons have walked away with the win on 12 occasions.
Noting the Blue Demons
Sarah Cullen ranks 10th in the BIG EAST with 3.26 kills-per-game and seventh with an overall kill total of 215... Chandler Carney improved her career-best attack percentage to .429 (11-2-21) against Villanova... Louisville leads the all-time series against DePaul 18-2... Cullen has reached the double-digit kill plateau on ten occasions this season... she has also registered a double-double (kills-digs) in eight matches this season bringing her career total to 35... other Blue Demons to record a double-double inclued Christy Landschoot (Assists-Digs) and Sammy Geiger (kills-assists)... Cincinnati holds a 23-12 series advantage over the Blue Demons... Sarah Cullen has reached double figures in digs during 12 matches this season to lead the squad, while Chelsea Thurlby has reached the plateau 10 times... while Rachel Aumann tops the overall blocks total with 33, Chandler Carney has recorded an impressive seven solo blocks.
Next Time Out
The Blue Demons hit the road next weekend to face West Virginia and Pittsburgh before a four-match homestand stretching between Oct. 23 and Nov. 1. DePaul invites to you McGrath Arena on Oct. 23 for DiG Pink, an annual event to raise money and awarness for breast cancer. Pink jerseys, t-shirts, and volleyballs will be raffled off following the match, with the proceeds benefitting the American Cancer Society and the Side-Out Foundation.
