Volleyball On The Road In Florida This Weekend

Friday, October 27

Tampa, Fla.

6 pm CT

University of Memphis

USF

Photo by: Brandon Dill

Oct 26, 2017 | Women's Volleyball

Memphis Season Statistics (Overall/Conference Combined)

Tigers to face USF Friday, UCF Sunday.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – For the University of Memphis volleyball squad, it's the "second time around" portion of the American Athletic Conference season, as the Tigers begin their second trek through the league.

This weekend, Memphis travels to the state of Florida to face USF and UCF for the second time in 2017. The Tigers hosted the Knights and Bulls Sept. 29 and Oct. 1, respectively, at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

The lone conference team Memphis has yet to play is its travel partner, Wichita State. The Tigers and Shockers close the regular season with back-to-back matches Nov. 22 (in Memphis) and 24 (in Wichita).

Memphis' American Athletic Conference Road Weekend

Date/Day	Opponent	Time (CT)
Oct. 27/Friday	at USF	6 p.m.
Oct. 29/Sunday	at UCF	11 a.m.

Memphis/Opponents Breakdown

	Memphis	USF	UCF
2017 Record	8-14, 1-9 AAC	8-12, 3-7 AAC	11-11, 4-6 AAC
Series		USF leads 19-10	UCF leads 20-13
Last Meeting/2017		USF 3-2 win (@Memphis)	UCF 3-2 win (@Memphis)
Kills Leader	Tai Bierria, 169	Clara Payne, 157	Kia Bright, 320
Assists Leader	Faith Myers, 516	Alex Mendoza, 701	Erin Olson, 506
Digs Leader	Alyssa Kronberg, 252	Maria McLamb, 271	Jordan Pingel, 366
Total Blocks Leader	Brianna Kadiku, 88	Clara Payne, 75	Taylor Wickey, 78

Head coach April Jauregui comments
"Last Friday night, we had some fatigue after playing the mid-week match, and ECU also was a hot team. But, in Sunday's match (vs. Cincinnati), I saw more of that energy and fight for each other. That's our goal right now. Obviously, we're not pleased where we're at, but we're trying to make progress daily. We have such a young team, and they're learning these lessons which are going to pay off in the future.

"We'll be a little more familiar with our conference opponents as we begin the second half of the schedule. In terms of scouting, we know what they did the first time, but we are re-evaluating them because of lineup changes and injuries. We have a 'tough-go' with seven of 10 on the road to close conference play. But, our team has traveled all season, so we are used to it.

"We look back at both of the previous matches versus the Florida schools and see we were only a few points away from being in the mix with five other teams in the conference. This conference is nuts. You might end up with six wins and finish in fifth place. Every night is a battle, and it's grueling. If we can keep getting better each match, we'll give ourselves some opportunities to get in that win column."

Tigers Tidbits

As head coach April Jauregui said in her comments, the Tigers close American Athletic Conference play with seven of their final 10 on the road. That stretch begins this weekend with matches at USF and UCF. Memphis is one of two programs in the league that plays seven of its final 10 conference matches on the road. The Tigers' travel partner, Wichita State, is the other team that also will have the same schedule to close the season.
In the last go-round vs. the Florida schools Sept. 29-Oct. 1, Brianna Kadiku and Kelsea Bivins logged solid performances. Kadiku had 22 kills, seven service aces and 10 total blocks in the two matches. Bivins recorded 22 kills, 25 digs and five total blocks, including a double-double outing (15 kills-15 digs) vs. UCF. The 15 digs were a season-best.
Tai Bierria has been on a tear in the Tigers' last seven matches. After missing the Sept. 29 UCF match, Bierria returned and averaged a double-double in those seven outings (10.4 kills/10.3 digs). She has three double-double performances in that stretch.
Freshman Hannah Flowers is traveling with the squad to Florida this weekend. She has missed the Tigers' last matches due to illness. Before having to sit out the last five matches, Flowers was the team leader in kills and second on the squad in blocks.
If any two opponents can battle Memphis for number of newcomers this season, they are UCF and USF. The Tigers have 10 newcomers (7 freshmen/2 transfers/1 redshirt freshman) on their roster. UCF has seven newcomers (5 freshmen/2 redshirt freshmen) and USF nine newcomers (5 freshmen/3 transfers/1 redshirt freshman) on their respective rosters.
This week, three Tigers rank in the top-10 in three statistical categories in The American, and they are: Brianna Kadiku in blocks (7th), Faith Myers in assists (9th) and Alyssa Kronberg in digs (9th).