CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- The University of Delaware volleyball team will
be looking to enter the win column this weekend as the young Blue Hens
travel to the Holiday Inn Jefferson Cup Tournament hosted by the
University of Virginia.
Although still in the early going of the season, Delaware is looking to
bounce back after opening the season with a pair of difficult 3-0 losses
to San Diego State and No. 17 ranked California at the Aztec
Invitational hosted by SDSU last weekend. The Hens had five freshmen see
action during the two-day event.
Delaware (0-2), the two-time defending Colonial Athletic Association
champions, will play three times this weekend at Virginia, facing Lehigh
in the opener Friday at 4:30 p.m. and taking on Western Kentucky
Saturday at 11 a.m. and the host Cavaliers Saturday at 7 p.m.
Western Kentucky stands at 2-2 so far this season after back-to-back
wins against Morehead State and Austin Peay last weekend. The
Hilltoppers look to build on last season's success after a Sun Belt
Conference win and an NCAA tournament appearance.
Lehigh enters the weekend after earning its first win against Rider by a
3-1 score. The Mountain Hawks are looking for an even better 2012
campaign after going 19-10 overall and 10-4 during Patriot League play
in 2011.
Host Virginia is currently 1-2 this season and hoping to improve upon a
10-20 record a year ago.
Delaware, which has advanced to the NCAA Tournament four times in the
last five seasons for head coach Bonnie Kenny, dropped a pair of
decisions by 3-0 scores last week in San Diego. San Diego State used a
53-28 advantage in kills and a 9-5 edge in blocks to post the victory.
In the loss to the nationally-ranked California Bears, senior Alissa
Alker surpassed the 1,000-kill mark for her career.
The Blue Hens will return home next weekend as Delaware hosts the annual
Delaware Invitational in its new home, the 5,000-seat Bob Carpenter
Center. The action gets underway on the brand new court with four games
on Friday, Sept. 7 and two games on Saturday, Sept. 8. Delaware will
welcome Texas A&M, Xavier, and Columbia to the four-team event.
Great seats are still available by calling 302-831-2257 or going online
to www.bluehens.com/tickets/.
