BLACKSBURG – Heading into Homecoming, Alumni Weekend and Senior Day, the Virginia Tech volleyball team will play host to Syracuse and Boston College at Carilion Clinic Court at Cassell Coliseum this weekend.
The Hokies (13-11, 4-8 ACC) will play Syracuse (14-7, 10-3 ACC) on Friday at 6 p.m. ET and will face Boston College (13-12, 3-10 ACC) on Sunday at 1 p.m. Both matches will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
On Wednesday, the Orange and Eagles played in Syracuse, New York, and saw 'Cuse come out on top, 3-1, for the lone midweek tilt in league play. Tech owns the all-time series advantage against both schools, leading 'Cuse 7-3 and BC 17-7.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Fri. | 6 p.m. ET vs. Syracuse | Stats | Broadcast
Sun. | 1 p.m. ET vs. Boston College | Stats | Broadcast
Playing on the road for the third time in October, the Hokies fell on the road to both Miami (Fla.) and Florida State in straight sets.
Against the Hurricanes, senior Jaila Tolbert was the lone Hokie to have double-digit kills, owning exactly 10. Freshman Angel Robinson turned in a career-high six kills on a .333 hitting percentage.
Sophomore Kaity Smith (13) and Tolbert (12) each had double-digit kills to pace Tech versus the Seminoles. Tolbert's 12 kills marked her fourth consecutive match of owning 10 or more.
Redshirt senior Rhegan Mitchell dished out 35 assists, marking her third-most assists in a three-set match, and scooped up eight digs, missing the near double-double.
The Hokies are No. 3 in the ACC for service aces per set with 1.43 and are No. 4 in opponent kills with a 12.13 mark. Sophomore Kaity Smith owns the 10th-best average for kills per set (3.50) in the league, as well as the seventh-best aces per set mark (0.29).
SENIOR DAY
Mitchell and Tolbert will be honored on Sunday following the match against Boston College on Carilion Clinic Court. The two will be escorted by their families, with videos on each being displayed on the videoboard.
FAN INFO
Friday against the Orange is "Fan Appreciation" with various giveaways. Sunday afternoon versus the Eagles is "Favorite Faculty/Staff", "Support Women's Sports", Zeta Tau Alpha Sorority Breast Cancer Awareness" and "Hokie All-Stars Day".
The team will also be signing autographs from 12-12:45 p.m. ET at HokeVillage on Saturday before Tech's battle with Boston College in football.
Virginia Tech Athletics is implementing a clear-bag policy at all of its games this academic year. The policy will allow for a better and quicker experience at gates and is also a public safety measure that is being successfully implemented at other large venues including fellow ACC venues. For more info, click here.
SENIOR PROJECT
The two seniors on Tech's team, Mitchell and Tolbert, have partnered with the Women's Resource Center of the New River Valley for their senior project. The project entails fans coming to home volleyball matches and bringing items to help support these families who are going through domestic violence at the marketing table. For more info on the project and what items to bring, click here.
SCOUTING SYRACUSE
• Syracuse (14-7, 10-3 ACC) is coming off a 3-1 home win over Boston College (13-12, 3-10 ACC) on Wednesday, jumping up to fourth place in the conference standings. Last weekend on the road, the Orange defeated No. 24 Louisville (17-6, 10-2 ACC) in a five-set thriller, after falling to Notre Dame (14-8, 8-4 ACC) in straight sets.
• 'Cuse's past victory over No. 24 Louisville gave the Orange their first ranked win on the year, after previously being 0-4 against AVCA Top 25 opponents by suffering losses to No. 1 BYU (22-0, 12-0 WCC), No. 15 USC (16-7, 8-4 PAC) and No. 19 Marquette (20-5, 10-2 Big East) in nonconference action, alongside a road loss to No. 10 Pitt (23-1, 11-1 ACC) in conference play on Oct. 5.
• Head Coach Leonid Yelin enters his seventh year in Syracuse and owns an overall record of 103-107 (.490) with the Orange, while ranking 26th nationally in victories among Division I coaches throughout his career. Yelin led the Orange to their first postseason appearance in program history last fall, advancing to the quarterfinals of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship and concluding a with 22-14 (.611) record.
• All-ACC senior Santita Ebangwese is tied for second in the conference with a .400 hitting percentage, while also ranking fifth in the league in average blocks per set with 1.33. Freshman Polina Shemanova also tops the conference, leading competitors in average kills per set with a mark of 4.35, while also leading in average points per game with 4.75.
SCOUTING BOSTON COLLEGE
• Boston College (13-12, 3-10 ACC) is entering this weekend's matchup after losing on the road to Syracuse (14-7, 10-3 ACC) 3-1 on Wednesday. Last weekend, the Eagles fell twice on the road to conference opponents in No. 24 Louisville and Notre Dame, losing by a final score of 3-1 in both contests.
• After starting the year off with a perfect 9-0 record, the Eagles have lost their luster, losing 10 of their last 11 matches. Heading into Blacksburg, Boston College is 2-9 in road matches this year, having yet to record a road win against a conference opponent.
• Head Coach Jason Kennedy enters his first season in Chestnut Hill after spending three seasons in Los Angeles with USC, two of which as associate head coach. Kennedy helped lead the Trojans to three consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament, as they went 75-25 (.750) collectively during his term.
• Junior Makenzie Morrison ranks eighth amongst conference foes in average digs per set, owning a tally of 3.66. Junior Jane DeJarld runs the offense and is the lone Eagle to start every match this season (25), dishing out 6.08 assists per set.
