CULLOWHEE, N.C. – After four straight home matches, the Western Carolina volleyball teams hit the road this weekend, traveling to Samford on Friday for an 8 p.m. Eastern contest followed by a 3 p.m. Saturday matinee at Mercer.
Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+ (
paid subscription required) with live stats available on CatamountSports.com.
Western Carolina, which will play four of its final six regular-season matches on the road, is 10-11 overall and 6-4 in Southern Conference play after splitting a pair last week. WCU defeated Chattanooga 3-1 on Oct. 21 before a 3-1 setback against ETSU on Oct. 22. Senior
Merry Gebel led WCU with double-doubles in both matches while sophomore libero
Destinee Dorsey surpassed the 20 dig mark against the Mocs.
The Catamounts enter the crucial week in third place in the SoCon standings just ahead of Wofford (6-5) and a tie between The Citadel (5-5) and ETSU (5-5). UNCG and Mercer are perched atop the standings with matching 8-2 league marks. All nine teams are eligible for the postseason tournament that is slated for Nov. 19-21 in Birmingham, Ala.
The league's preseason favorite, Samford enters Friday's match at 3-7 in league play and 4-17 overall on the season. The Bulldogs lead the league in service aces per set at 1.82 and have three players in the top 10 in that category, but as a team rank last in the conference in blocks and second-to-last in digs. Additionally, opponents are hitting a league-best .240 against the Bulldogs. WCU defeated Samford 3-1 in Cullowhee on Oct. 2 and looks for its first season sweep of the Bulldogs since they joined the SoCon before the 2008-09 school year.
Mercer is tied for first in the league at 8-2 and sports a 12-9 overall record. The Bears saw a six-match winning streak end at Wofford on Oct. 22 before defeating The Citadel the next day in three sets. Mercer knocked off WCU 3-1 in its home opener on Oct. 1 and enters the weekend with a 6-1 record at Hawkins Arena.
The Catamounts conclude their home schedule next weekend, hosting Wofford at 6 p.m. on Nov. 5 followed by a 7 p.m. match with Furman on Nov. 6.
Keep track of everything related to Catamount volleyball and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@wcu_catamounts, @catamountvb), and Twitter (@catamounts, @catamountvb).
