ROCK HILL, S.C. – Winthrop volleyball will compete at home for the first time this season as it hosts the Winthrop Tournament, Sept. 9-10 inside the Winthrop Coliseum. The Eagles will take on Delaware at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9 in their home opener.
| Game Information - |
| Opponent/Date/Time/Location |
vs. Delaware (1-4) | Friday, Sept. 9 | 4:30 p.m. | Rock Hill, S.C. (Winthrop Coliseum)
vs. Wyoming (1-5) | Saturday, Sept. 10 | 11 a.m. | Rock Hill, S.C. (Winthrop Coliseum)
vs. Davidson (4-2) | Saturday, Sept. 10 | 6 p.m. | Rock Hill, S.C. (Winthrop Coliseum) |
| Live Stream (ESPN+) |
Delaware | Wyoming | Davidson |
| Live Stats |
Delaware | Wyoming | Davidson |
| Social Media |
Twitter - @WinthropVolley / @WUEagles | Instagram - winthropvolleyball | #ROCKtheHILL | #EverStand |
| Tickets |
Click Here |
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS DELAWARE
This marks just the second meeting all-time between the two programs. The only meeting took place over 30 years ago in Fairfax, Va. The Eagles earned a 3-1 win over Delaware on Sept. 16, 1988 at the George Mason Invitational. Winthrop dropped the first set before rallying for the win.
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS WYOMING
This is the first meeting between Winthrop and Wyoming.
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS DAVIDSON
Eagles and Wildcats meet for the 34
th time and first time since 2019. Eagles have won two straight in the series, but the last six meetings are even at 3-3. Over the last 20 meetings the Eagles are 15-5 against Davidson. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 18-15.
GLANCE AT THE EAGLES
- Eagles went 2-1 at the Liberty Tournament as Brookelynn Thomas was named the tournament's Best Attacker
- Winthrop rallied for a 3-1 win over Murray State to give Heather Gearhart her first career victory
- Thomas averaged 3.09 kills per set with a .342 attack percentage and also averaged 4.32 points per set
- Senior Alayna Jansky leads the Eagles offensively with 3.37 kills per set and 3.89 points per set
- Jansky's 3.37 kills per set ranks 3rd in the Big South and points per set (3.89)
- Thomas is second on the team with 2.50 kills per set and blocks per set (1.09)
- Freshman Avery Jolley is third on the team with 2.18 kills per set and leads the team in hitting percentage (.302)
- Jolley ranks 6th in the Big South in hitting percentage
- Graduate senior Alicia Roberts is second in the Big South at 1.14 blocks per set while Thomas is third at 1.09
- As a team the Eagles lead the conference in blocks per set at 2.45
- Sophomore Isabella Murray leads the Big South in assists per set at 9.64
- Murray along with Jansky, Thomas, and Jolley lead the team with five service aces
- Senior Leah Metzger surpassed 800 career digs at the Liberty Tournament and now has 816 in her career
- This year's team has 12 returnees and six newcomers
- This will be the Eagles have played 1,752 matches all-time as the program holds a mark of 1,044-708
GEARHART GETS GOING
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.
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.
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).
FOLLOW US!
For all the up-to-date information on Winthrop Volleyball, follow along on Twitter at @winthropvolley and Instagram at winthropvolleyball.
WINTHROP TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 9, 2022 (Winthrop Coliseum)
11:00 a.m., Wyoming vs. Delaware
4:30 p.m., Delaware at Winthrop
6:30 p.m., Wyoming vs. Davidson
Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022 (Winthrop Coliseum)
11:00 a.m., Wyoming at Winthrop
1:00 p.m., Delaware vs. Davidson
6:00 p.m., Davidson at Winthrop
