Oct. 27, 2011

Stony Brook, N.Y. - Winners of four straight and five of its last six, the Stony Brook University volleyball team hits the road this weekend for a pair of key conference matches. SBU will take on Binghamton on Friday at 7 p.m. before facing off against first-place Albany on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Last time out
Senior Alicia Nelson(Apple Valley, Minn.) had 25 kills and 19 digs as the Stony Brook University volleyball team outlasted the UMBC Retrievers 3-2 (22-25, 25-23, 22-25, 25-21, 15-13) on Saturday at Pritchard Gymnasium.

It was the 11th double-double of the season for Nelson, who finished with 26.5 points. Sophomore Hailee Herc (Eden, N.Y.) had 10 digs and five aces while sophomore Evann Slaughter (Clinton, Md.) chipped in with 10 kills and a career-high nine block assists.

Seawolves News & Notes
Stony Brook (12-9, 5-2 AE) is in third place in the America East ... SBU is just one game behind Albany and New Hampshire, who are tied for first in conference at 6-1 ... the top four teams qualify for the America East tournament ... Nelson earned her third America East Player of the Week honor on Monday, the most of any player in the America East ... Nelson leads the conference in kills per set (4.32) and points per set (4.82) ... the 5-2 record in conference play is the Seawolves best after seven matches since going 6-1 in 2007.

Scouting Binghamton
The Bearcats (10-15, 2-5 AE) are coming off a three-set loss to Albany last weekend. It was their second straight loss since handing first-place New Hampshire its only loss of the season.

Stony Brook knocked off the Bearcats in five sets in the first meeting between the teams. Nelson tied a career-high with 26 kills in the match and Slaughter had 13 kills on a .357 hitting percentage.

Binghamton is last in the America East in hitting percentage (.164) during conference play. Grace Vickers is fourth in the America East with a .279 hitting percentage.

Scouting Albany
The Great Danes (13-8, 7-1) have won nine of their last 10 matches, with the only loss coming against New Hampshire. Albany will face UMBC on Friday, before facing the Seawolves on Sunday.

Albany is led by setter Brooke Stanley, who has been named America East setter of the week five times this season. Stanley is averaging a conference-best 11.03 assists per set for the Great Danes, who lead the America East with a .232 hitting percentage.

This will be the first match-up between the teams at Albany since SBU dropped a five-setter to the Great Danes in the America East semifinals last season.