Bryant hosts Sacred Heart, FDU at Chace
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University volleyball team returns to the Chace Athletic Center for two of its four October home matches when the Bulldogs host Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson Friday and Saturday.
The Particulars
Opponents: Sacred Heart (Friday), Fairleigh Dickinson (Saturday)
Location: Chace Athletic Center (Smithfield, R.I.)
Match Times: Friday – 6 p.m.; Saturday – 5 p.m.
Friday Links: Live Stats | NEC Front Row
Saturday Links: Live Stats | NEC Front Row
Series History vs. Sacred Heart
The Bulldogs are 24-16 all-time against the Pioneers and 6-14 since Bryant's jump to Division I.
Bryant won a pair of five-set thrillers a year ago, coming back twice from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Sacred Heart. In the Oct. 7 meeting in Fairfield, Bryant trailed 24-19 in the third set before storming back to win the next six points, the set 32-30, and the match in five sets.
Series History vs. Fairleigh Dickinson
The Bulldogs are 14-8 all-time and 14-6 in the Division I era against the Knights, with Bryant having won the last eight matchups. Kirstyn Sperry tallied a season-high 12 kills in last year's sweep of the Knights in Smithfield.
Bulldog Notes and Notables
- Bryant is 13-8 on the year and 3-1 in the NEC after splitting a pair of matches in Brooklyn last weekend. The Bulldogs fell to LIU Brooklyn in four sets Friday before a sweep of St. Francis Brooklyn Saturday.
- Redshirt-senior Julia Flynn (Pembroke, Mass.) recorded a season-high 21 kills on a .474 hitting percentage as Bryant swept St. Francis Brooklyn Saturday in Brooklyn. Flynn enters the weekend eight kills shy of 1,000 for her collegiate career.
- Senior Kristin Kingi (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) recorded 20 or more digs three times in September, besting a previous career-high of 19 matched earlier this season. The senior is 201 total digs away from matching the Division I career record of 1,359 set by Debora Magalhaes in 2015.
- Senior Kirstyn Sperry (Phoenix, Ariz.) ranks third among active Division I players with 155 career service aces.
- Sperry was named Monday as a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award, one of 30 Division I volleyball players to earn the distinction. The Senior CLASS Award is given to a student-athlete who excels on the court, in the classroom and in the community.
- Bryant has received 20 performances of 10 or more kills from its freshman class this season with 16 of them coming from freshman Caroline Kennedy (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.).
- Head coach Theresa Garlacy won her 500th career match Sept. 8 against Coppin State. Garlacy has 507 career victories entering the weekend – all of them at Bryant.
A Bit About Sacred Heart
Sacred Heart enters the weekend at 9-5 and 2-1 in the NEC after a sweep of Fairleigh Dickinson Friday. The Pioneers have won five of their last six dating back to Sept. 14 and are 3-0 against mutual non-conference opponents with wins over Providence, Hartford and Quinnipiac.
Liisel Nelis leads the Pioneers with 3.57 kills per set, while freshman setter Sarah Ciszek has collected 9.20 assists per set. Kiley Ridgway leads the team with 1.04 blocks per set.
A Bit About Fairleigh Dickinson
FDU is 2-15 on the year following a five-set loss to Saint Peter's Wednesday night. The Knights are 0-3 in the NEC with three-set losses to LIU Brooklyn and Sacred Heart along with a four-set defeat at the hands of St. Francis Brooklyn.
Erika Sullivan has a team-leading 2.41 kills per set for an FDU squad hitting .129 on the year. Brooke Stevens leads the Knights with 0.98 blocks per set.
Up Next: Central Connecticut
Bryant will play just one match next weekend, as the Bulldogs travel to New Britain for a Friday night match against Central Connecticut. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
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