DURHAM, N.C. – The North Carolina Central University women's volleyball team is currently in the fourth and final playoff spot in the Southern Division and the Lady Eagles can help increase their chances of qualifying for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Tournament with road wins against the two teams below them in the standings this upcoming weekend.
 
NCCU is just a 1/2 game ahead of South Carolina State University and will visit the Lady Bulldogs in Orangeburg, South Carolina, for a key matchup on Friday at 6 PM (updated time). The Lady Eagles will conclude the weekend trip in Savannah, Georgia, against the last-place Lady Tigers on Sunday at 1 PM.
 
MATCH INFO
 
Friday, Oct. 30 at 6:00 p.m.
N.C. Central at S.C. State
Dukes Gymnasium – Orangeburg, S.C.
No Multimedia
 
SERIES: S.C. State leveled the all-time, modern-era record (DI) against NCCU at eight wins apiece with a 3-0 (25-11, 25-16, 29-27) triumph over the Lady Eagles in Durham on Oct. 2. NCCU will be trying to split its regular season series against the Lady Bulldogs for a fifth consecutive season since joining the MEAC in 2011.
 
Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1:00 p.m.
N.C. Central at Savannah State
Willcox Wiley Gymnasium – Savannah, Ga.
LIVE STATS
 
SERIES: NCCU holds a commanding 10-1 series advantage against Savannah State after defeating the Lady Tigers at home on Oct. 4 in straight sets (25-21, 25-21, 27-25). The Lady Eagles have won three straight matches against SSU.
 
North Carolina Central University Volleyball
 
The Lady Eagles are 0-5 since defeating Savannah State four weekends ago. NCCU (3-21 Overall, 2-4 MEAC) is coming off a 3-1 road loss at MEAC rival North Carolina A&T State University last Friday.
 
Junior outside hitter Kelsey Murphy is in a tight battle with Coppin State's Cindy Okpegbue as the league top attacker. Currently, Okpegbue leads the MEAC with 3.54 kills per set with Murphy hot on her heels just one hundredth of a point behind her at 3.53. Murphy, who has five double-doubles on the season, averages 2.16 digs per set.
 
Middle blocker Kelly Rossip has had a strong senior season, trailing only Murphy on the team with her 2.23 kills per set. Rossip has been the squad's leader in hitting percentage (.205) and blocks per set (0.65) the whole season.
 
A trio of freshmen average over one kill per set for NCCU, including Sydney Sumner (1.95), Kierra Shipman (1.46) and Whitney White (1.05).
 
Junior setter Casey Curran orchestrates the Lady Eagles attack with 7.54 assists per set, which is good for seventh best in the MEAC. Curran adds 1.55 digs per set, joining Murphy, senior Marilyn Sherbondy (2.65 digs/set), Sumner (2.05), sophomore Paige Phillips (1.88) and freshman Bree Simmons (1.02) with at least one scoop up per set.
 
Simmons serves up a team-high 0.31 aces per set.
 
Against SCSU, Murphy just missed a double-double with 13 kills and nine digs. Sherbondy added a team-high 12 digs and Curran posted 21 assists.
 
Murphy (12 kills) and Rossip (7 kills) combined for 19 kills in the Lady Eagles straight-set triumph over SSU as NCCU had one of its better hitting matches of the season with a .149 attack percentage. Curran supplied 28 assists and Phillips tallied 10 digs.
 
South Carolina State University Volleyball
 
The Lady Bulldogs have lost six straight matches, but four of those contests have gone four sets including 3-1 road setbacks at Florida A&M and Bethune Cookman last weekend. S.C. State (2-17 Overall, 2-5 MEAC) can move ahead of NCCU in the league standings and own the head-to-head tiebreaker with a win Friday.
 
SCSU ranks in the top third of the conference with 1.88 blocks per set. Sophomore middle blocker Kirby Anderson highlights the Lady Bulldogs front row defense with 1.02 blocks per set, which ranks second in the MEAC.
 
Anderson is one of three S.C. State players averaging over two kills per set at 2.28. Freshman 6-foot-1 Brianna Dafney leads the Lady Bulldogs with 2.56 kills per set. Senior Marissa Lawrence is the third part of the trio with 2.23 kills per set.
 
Senior setter Melanie Williams ranks third in the league with 8.66 assists per set.
 
Defensively, seven of SCSU's eight players that have participated in matches this season are averaging at least one dig per set.
 
Williams had a double-double of 30 assists and 11 digs in the Lady Bulldogs road win at NCCU. Lawrence led the attack with 13 kills.
 
Savannah State University Volleyball
 
The Lady Tigers remained winless on the season with road losses at Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M last weekend. Savannah State (0-28, 0-7) – winners of just one set out of 85 this season – will host North Carolina A&T State on Friday before entertaining the Lady Eagles on Sunday.
 
As of the last NCAA statistics report, SSU sits last in the league in nearly all major statistical categories including assists per set, blocks per set, digs per set, kills per set and hitting percentage.
 
Junior setter Caitlynn Masoe continues to be the Lady Tigers most consistent player to watch out for with averages of 1.20 kills per set, 4.27 assists per set, 1.66 digs per set, 0.23 aces per set and a .105 hitting percentage.  
 
Freshman Makayla Tam (1.49 kills/set, 0.25 aces/set), junior Gabrielle Nathaniel (1.47 kills/set, 0.39 blocks/set), Christian Lyle (1.30 kills/set, 0.41 blocks/set) and Chinenye Ofodile (1.21 kills/set) are the Lady Tigers other top point producers.
 
Junior libero Alexis Washington tops Savannah State's back row with over three digs per set.
 
SSU's last win against a fellow NCAA Division I program was actually against NCCU in its 2013 season finale (Nov. 13).
 
Nathaniel notched eight kills and four block assists to pace the Lady Tigers in their first meeting against NCCU this season. Masoe finished with 23 assists and Washington made 13 digs.