Sept. 12, 2013

Tournament Central

Kennesaw, Ga. - The Stony Brook volleyball team will look to snap a three-match skid this weekend at the Kennesaw State Owl Classic. The Seawolves open play against Samford Friday at 2:30 p.m. and Kennesaw State at 7:30 p.m. before taking on Tennessee Tech and Coastal Carolina Saturday at 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. 

Last Time Out

Sophomore Melissa Rigo posted a balanced effort with seven digs, seven kills, three assists and one block, but Stony Brook (3-5) fell to St. John's in three Tuesday evening at Carnesecca Arena. Sophomore Lo Hathaway and junior Hannah Dolan led the Seawolves in digs and sets, respectively, with 11 and 18. 

Get Lo

Hathaway enters the weekend third in the conference in digs per set at 4.10. The captain, who has led the Seawolves in digs in every match this season, posted a career-high 27 digs in the upset of Syracuse last weekend.

Dolan Out

Dolan has dazzled as the Seawolves' primary setter, leading the squad and sitting sixth in the conference in assists per set with 8.07. Equally fantastic on the serve, the junior is tied for first in the America East and is sixth nationally in aces per set with .59, helping SB rank 11th in the country in the category as a team (2.07). Dolan has twice recorded six aces in a match (Sacred Heart, 8/30, Rutgers, 9/7). 

Powering Through

The win over Syracuse marked Stony Brook's first win over a power-conference team since it defeated Baylor, 3-2, in 2007. It was also the first time the Seawolves defeated the Orange after two previous tries.

Meet the New Boss

A rising star in the collegiate volleyball coaching ranks, Pawlikowski was hired in January after spending a year as the top assistant at the University of Wisconsin and is a three-time recipient of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Thirty Under 30 Award. 

A tenacious recruiter, Pawlikowski assisted in the continued recruitment and commitment of the No. 1 recruit in the nation as ranked by PrepVolleyball.com for the Badgers' 2013 season. She was also responsible for seeking out and signing a 2013 Under Armour High School All-American, one of three high school All-Americans UW added for 2013. Pawlikowski served as the defensive position coach at Wisconsin, helping the Badgers lead the Big Ten in digs per set as a team and boast the individual digs champion. 

Pawlikowski previously worked as the top assistant coach for her alma mater, Northern Illinois, from 2009-12, where she helped guide the Huskies to a 2011 Mid-American Conference regular season title and an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Scouting the Bulldogs  

Samford, a member of the Southern Conference, is 5-3 after beating South Alabama and Jacksonville State but losing to Lipscomb at the Lipscomb Invitational last weekend. 2012 First-team All-SoCon selection and junior outside hitter Michaela Reesor leads the Bulldogs with 3.79 kills per set, while classmate Chelsi Carter is averaging a team-best 4.08 digs per set average.  

Scouting the Owls

Host-school Kennesaw State (1-5) has lost four-straight, including an 0-3 effort at the Magnolia Invitational hosted by the University of Mississippi last weekend. Mississippi, Arkansas State and Georgia Southern swept the Owls, who earned All-Tournament honors for notching 58 digs and a 5.27 digs per set average over the three-match span.

Scouting the Golden Eagles  

Tennessee Tech salvaged the final of three matches of the Akron Invitational to move to 3-3 overall, taking down Niagara in three sets. Ashleigh Hancock and Sharon Anderson have shared setting duties and average 9.80 assists per set and 7.50 assists per set, respectively.

Scouting the Chants

Coastal Carolina arrives in Georgia with a 2-4 overall record after most recently going 1-2 at the College of Charleston Invitational. The Chants dropped the first two matches of the tournament to the hosts and Indiana but swept South Carolina State. Kindra Bailey is leading the offense with a 2.50 kills per set average and a .447 attack percentage. 

Series History vs. Opponents

This marks the first time Stony Brook has squared off with Samford, Kennesaw State, Tennessee Tech and Coastal Carolina. 

Up Next

The Seawolves have a week off to prepare for the Bryant Invitational, where they will face St. John's Friday, Sept. 20 at 6 p.m. and Bryant and Princeton Saturday, Sept. 14 at 12 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.