The Rock has two volleyball games this weekend, one Saturday and one Sunday, amid their push to return to .500. Sitting just two conference wins shy of current five-seed University of Pitt-Johnstown, SRU has a chance to jump the ratings.
Currently at 8-9 overall, a weekend sweep could vault the White and Green back to one game above .500, where they sat after their win over California University (Pa.) on Oct. 5.
Reaching an even record in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) play will be a tougher ask. The victory over California (Pa.) is currently The Rock’s only in-conference win through five conference games, meaning they would need to win three in a row to reach that bar as quickly as possible.
Three straight conference wins is not the only way to attain a .500 conference record though, as SRU is not even halfway through their PSAC schedule. While the path back up would be harder without the streak, a losing record in PSAC play is far from a forgone conclusion without it.
Last year the final seed finished at 9-7 in the conference. The Rock will most likely need to go on a winning streak at some point before wrapping up the season, should they hope to capture a PSAC Tournament berth.
The Slippery Rock women’s volleyball team takes on Edinboro University at McComb Fieldhouse this Saturday. In the PSAC, both teams are tied with in the standings at 1-4.
Slippery Rock will look to Erica Selfridge and Kate Lachendro-Biery to continue their strong play from the past three games.
Selfridge has three straight games with double-digit kill and double-digit dig performances, including 21 kills against Clarion last Friday.
Lachendro-Biery recorded over 30 digs in each of the past three games, her highest being 35 against Indiana University (Pa.) last Saturday. The last time the defensive specialist played against Edinboro, she tallied 16 digs.
In the same Oct. 27, 2023 tilt, Selfridge had 12 kills and 14 digs to her name.
SRU and Edinboro are tied for sixth place in the PSAC West Division so far with Pitt-Johnstown sitting above them with a 3-3 conference record and Clarion at 3-2. The White and Green will likely need to win their next three games in hopes of making a jump in their standings before the final stretch.
It will be a tight fight at the net with The Fighting Scots having 76 more kills than SRU. Slippery Rock’s front row will need to be just slightly more active, averaging around 40 blocks per set, one block shy of Edinboro’s average of 41 blocks per set.
SRU will need to contend with Edinboro’s outside hitter Makayla Neelands, who has 276 kills under her belt for the season, good for third in the PSAC. Neelands is also second in the conference in points with 321.
With nine games left in the conference season, Slippery Rock will have multiple opportunities to leapfrog teams in the standings. The White and Green will have to go 6-3 the rest of the way to match their win total from last season, though that would produce a better winning percentage with less total games this year.
Gannon’s libero, Emma Hall, recorded 384 digs this season so far. The number places Hall second in the PSAC, just above SRU’s Lachendro-Biery with 328.
The Rock will look for continued strong play from the back line against the Golden Knights, having 40 more digs than Gannon on the year. The White and Green are averaging 17.78 digs per set, which is good for first in the conference.
After SRU takes on the Fighting Scots, they go on to face Gannon University at the Highmark Events Center in Erie, Pa. on Sunday.
