Rock Hill, S.C. – Winthrop looks to keep the victory chain going as it travels to Radford University Thursday evening and hosts UNC Asheville two days later.
| Game Information ( Winthrop 10-9, 6-2 Big South) |
| Opponent/Date/Time/Location |
vs. Radford University (7-13, 3-5 Big South) | Thursday, Oct. 20 | 6 p.m. | Radford, VA/Dedmon Center
vs. UNC Asheville (3-15, 0-8 Big South) | Saturday, Oct. 22 | 2 p.m. | Rock Hill, S.C/Winthrop Coliseum |
| Live Stats |
Radford | UNC Asheville |
| Live Stream (ESPN+) |
Radford | UNC Asheville |
| Social Media |
Twitter - @WinthropVolley / @WUEagles | Instagram - winthropvolleyball | #ROCKtheHILL | #EverStand |
| Promotions |
vs. UNC Asheville (Canned Food Night)
|
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS RADFORD UNIVERSITY
This is the 74th meeting all-time between Winthrop and Radford. The Eagles have won four straight meetings but trail the all-time series 36-37. The last meeting resulted in the Eagles winning in straight sets, 3-0 in Rock Hill.
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS UNC ASHEVILLE
Winthrop and UNC Asheville meet for the 80
th time. The Eagles trail the all-time series 39-40 but have won the last three meetings and 5 of the last 7. The last meeting took place in Asheville, NC, with the Eagles winning in straight sets, 3-0.
GLANCE AT THE EAGLES
- Eagles have won four straight and six of the last eight contests
- Off to a 6-0 home mark in conference play and 6-2 home record for the season
- Have not dropped a set in conference play at home
- Eagles at 6-2 in the league are sitting in third place, a game behind High Point and two behind Campbell
- 2nd in the Big South in assists per set (11.64), opponent hitting percentage (.162), digs per set (15.49) and blocks per set (2.27) and 3rd in kills per set at 12.58
- Senior Alayna Jansky leads the team with 3.67 kills per set, ranking 2nd in the Big South and 2nd in points per set (4.13)
- Jansky had her 15th match with 10 or more kills on the season
- Sophomore Isabella Murray leads the Big South in assists per set (10.46) and is the only player in the league average 10 or more per set
- Murray recorded her eighth double-double this season.
- Murray's 53 assists in the win over Wyoming are the third most by any player in the league this season but the most for a four-set match
- Brookelynn Thomas is 2nd on the team with 2.47 kills per set
- Thomas has 19 service aces on the year, a career-high for a single-season
- Freshman Avery Jolley is third on the team with 2.42 kills per set and is second on the team in hitting percentage (.246)
- Graduate senior Alicia Roberts is ranked 2nd at 1.12 blocks per set
- In the win over Harvard the Eagles had 12 service aces, the most in a contest since Nov. 8, 2019 when the Eagles had 12 against USC Upstate
- It was the most against a non-conference opponent since Sept. 8, 2018 when the Eagles had 12 against Delaware State (3 sets)
- This year's team has 12 returnees and six newcomers
- The Eagles have played 1,765 matches all-time as the program holds a mark of 1,052-713
INTERIM HEAD COACH HEATHER GEARHART
Heather Gearhart was promoted to interim head volleyball coach in July after previous head coach
Chuck Rey became the full-time athletic director. Gearhart served as the assistant coach for the Eagles in 2021, helping Winthrop to 18 wins and an appearance in the conference tournament semifinals.
Gearhart joined four other coaches in Winthrop volleyball history to begin 2-0 in conference play. That list includes
Chuck Rey, Julie Torbett, Sally Polhamus and Joel McCartney.
After playing collegiately at North Carolina from 2012-15 and making four NCAA Tournament appearances, she played professionally overseas before embarking on her collegiate coaching career. Gearhart worked at Tennessee during the 2018 season and moved to Akron in 2019, and both programs saw good success. The Vols reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament and the Zips qualified for the MAC tournament for the first time in seven years.
2022 SEASON HONORS
Alayna Jansky- Big South Co-Player of the Week
- Helped the Eagles win over Presbyterian last Thursday with 11 kills, a .323 percentage, eight digs, three blocks and 15.0 points
- Posted .353 with 15 kills, eight digs, four blocks and 17.0 points in Friday's triumph over Charleston Southern
Avery Jolley – Big South Freshman of the Week (Sept. 26)
- Helped the team open league play with two straight wins as she averaged 3.0 kills per set
- Combined for a .417 hitting percentage in the two games (at UNC-Asheville, vs. Radford)
- Posted 13 kills in the win at Asheville, a personal-best for kills in a three-set match
Alayna Jansky – All-Tournament Team (Winthrop Tournament)
- Averaged 4.09 kills per set and totaled 48 points (4.36 per set)
- Had four service aces, 5 blocks and 41 digs (3.73 per set)
- Posted a career-high 20 kills vs. Wyoming and also had 20 digs for her first 20-20 game
Brookelynn Thomas – Liberty Tournament Best Attacker
- Averaged 3.09 kills per set with a .342 hitting percentage
- Totaled four service aces and 7 digs
- Totaled 47.5 points (4.32 per set)
- Had 15 total blocks (4 solo, 11 assisted) for an average of 1.36 per set
BIG SOUTH PRESEASON POLL
Winthrop was voted to finish third in the Big South Conference preseason poll. High Point is the preseason favorite with 81 points (nine first-place votes) while Campbell was second with 72 points. The Eagles had 61 points and are followed by USC Upstate (52), Presbyterian (43), Charleston Southern (32), Gardner-Webb and UNC Asheville (23), and Radford (18).
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