Volleyball Hosts Villanova on Saturday
11/7/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2014
VILLANOVA (12-16, 5-8) at SETON HALL (22-6, 10-3)
Walsh Gym - South Orange, N.J.
7:00 p.m. ET
BIG EAST Digital Network: CLICK HERE
Live Stats:
Radio: CLICK HERE
PREVIEW
Seton Hall brings its three-match win streak into its only match this week, a home tilt against Villanova on Saturday at Walsh Gym.
Seton Hall is coming off a pair of huge road wins last weekend, which further solidified its placement among the top four of the BIG EAST Conference. On Thursday, senior Stacey Manthorpe (Merion Station, Pa.) had a double-double as the Pirates defeated St. John's, 3-1 (25-23, 25-21, 23-25, 25-22). Manthorpe finished the match with a team-high 17 kills to go with 18 digs for her team-leading 17th double-double of the season. Shelbey Manthorpe (Merion Station, Pa.) had a team-high 44 assists to go with seven kills and six digs. Sophomore Tessa Fournier (Redondo Beach, Calif.) led the Pirates' defense with a team-best 23 digs. On Saturday, Fournier recorded a match-high 28 digs as Seton Hall held Providence to just a .023 attack percentage in a 3-0 (27-25, 25-10, 25-15) sweep. The victory was the Pirates' third straight and improves their impressive overall record to 22-6 and their BIG EAST mark to 10-3. It's the first time in program history that Seton Hall has reached double-figures in conference wins. Joining Fournier in the night's superlatives was Stacey Manthorpe, who notched her team-leading 18th double-double of the season with a match-high 14 kills to go along with 13 digs. Shelbey Manthorpe had a match-high 33 assists, eight digs, six kills and five blocks in a strong all-around match. Junior Molly Grammer (Center Valley, Pa.) was a stud offensively, recording 10 kills and just one attack error for a team-best .500 attack percentage.
The Pirates welcome in Villanova on Saturday in their only match this weekend. Seton Hall defeated the Wildcats earlier this season in four sets in Pennsylvania. Villanova enters Saturday's contest having lost three of their last four matches, including a three-set loss at St. John's on Saturday. All-time, the Wildcats have a 22-13 lead in their series with Seton Hall, but have dropped four of the last five meetings.
Saturday's match will be broadcast live via the BIG EAST Digital Network and will be available free of charge on the Fox Sports Go app.
TOP SETON HALL NOTES
BIG ROAD WINS
Seton Hall registered a pair of huge road wins last week to solidify its standing among the top four in the BIG EAST. On Oct. 30, the Pirates defeated St. John's in Queens in four sets to sweep the season series. On Nov. 1, The Hall swept Providence in Rhode Island to take that series. The Pirates now have a 10-3 record and are tied for second in the BIG EAST.
STACEY OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior Stacey Manthorpe was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week on Nov. 3. The outside hitter was instrumental in guiding the Pirates to a perfect 3-0 record last week. On Oct. 28 vs. LIU-Brooklyn, Manthorpe had a team-high 16 kills to go with eight digs and an impressive .419 attack percentage. On Oct. 30, she had a double-double with a team-high 17 kills to go along with 18 digs and three blocks at St. John's. On Nov. 1 at Providence, Manthorpe tallied 14 kills and 13 digs in only three sets.
FOURNIER DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sophomore Tessa Fournier was named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 3. Last week, the sophomore took another step towards establishing herself as the pre-eminent libero in the BIG EAST. Fournier recorded 20+ digs in all three matches. Against LIU on Oct. 28, she tallied a match-high 29 digs. On Oct. 30 at St. John's, Fournier had 23 digs, and on Nov. 1 at Providence, she had a match-high 28 digs and four assists. She averaged 7.27 digs per set in a strong defensive week. To date, Fournier leads the BIG EAST in digs and digs per set.
RETURN TO SENDER
Seton Hall has established itself as one of the marquee defensive teams in the country. The Pirates lead the nation in total blocks (308) and 11th in opponents' hitting percentage (.149). Ashani Rubin ranks second in the nation in total blocks. Tessa Fournier is 12th in the nation in total digs. Both Rubin and Fournier lead the BIG EAST Conference in those respective categories.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
The top four teams in the BIG EAST will advance to play for the conference title in Milwaukee, Wis., Nov. 28-29. Creighton is currently 11-1 and a 1.5 games ahead of both Seton Hall and Marquette, which are tied for second at 10-3. Butler is currently fourth at 9-4. Xavier is on the outside looking in at 8-5. The Pirates have a two game lead on the Musketeers for the final spot, but in reality it's a three-game lead because The Hall owns the head-to-head tie-breaker. Butler has the tie-breaker over Seton Hall. The Pirates still have matches against Creighton and Marquette, which will determine tie-breaker scenarios against those teams. Seton Hall defeated Creighton earlier this year, but lost to Marquette.
