ROCK HILL, SC – Seeking its ninth straight victory and to continue its unblemished start to the conference season, the Winthrop volleyball team will host the Presbyterian College Blue Hose Friday at 7 p.m. at the Winthrop Coliseum.

The Eagles enter Friday with a 12-6 record overall and a 2-0 mark in the Big South.  The eight-match winning streak for the Eagles is the team's longest since it won 18 consecutive matches in 2006.  Winthrop has not started a conference schedule 3-0 since 2011.

Junior Rachel Lenz earned the team's first Big South weekly award this week, earning the Defensive Player of the Week nod after her performance in the Eagles' first two conference matches.

In Winthrop's mid-week, non-conference victory over USC Upstate, the Eagles had a solid all-around performance, hitting .327 for the match and totaling 10 blocks, seven coming in the third set.

Lenz continues to lead the Big South in blocking, averaging 1.3 blocks per set overall and is also third in the conference in hitting percentage, with a .326 average.

Presbyterian enters Friday's contest with a 1-1 mark in the Big South and a 6-8 overall record.  The Blue Hose defeated Charleston Southern on the road before falling at Coastal Carolina last weekend.

Senior Rachel Hall leads the Blue Hose offensively with 171 kills and a .233 attack percentage.  Senior Ashton Frank is the team's primary setter, averaging just under 10 assists per set.  Defensively, Mary Trimpe leads the team with 246 digs while senior Kelly Berryman has 50 total blocks this season.

As a team, Presbyterian has struggled offensively as the Blue Hose are last in the conference in attack percentage, hitting only .147 this season while averaging less than 12 kills per set.

Winthrop will remain home after Friday as the Eagles are in the midst of a six-game home stand.  Winthrop will host UNC Asheville and Gardner-Webb next weekend.