Rock Hill, S.C. – Winthrop volleyball (13-12, 12-2 Big South) is set to face third-seeded Gardner-Webb (14-12, 8-6) in the semifinals of the Big South tournament on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 5:00 p.m. The match will be held on High Point's campus inside the Millis Athletic Center, the site of all 2023 tournament contests. With a win, the Eagles will face the winner of first-seeded High Point (21-6, 14-0 Big South) or fourth-seeded Presbyterian (9-16, 7-7 Big South) on Sunday, Nov. 19. Each match of the championship will be carried on ESPN+. The winner of the tournament will receive the Big South Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 

Winthrop Volleyball Game Information
vs. Gardner-Webb	Saturday, Nov. 18 | 5 p.m. (EST) | Watch | Live Stats
Location	High Point, N.C. | Millis Athletic Center
Social	Twitter - @WinthropVolley / @WUEagles | Instagram - winthropvolleyball | #ROCKtheHILL | #EverStand

 
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS GARDNER-WEBB
This will be the 47th meeting between the programs, with Winthrop leading the series 40-6 and have won the last 13 matches vs. Gardner-Webb. Winthrop's last loss to GW was 3-0 on Sep. 30, 2017. The first meeting was in 1980 with the Eagles winning 2-0. Winthrop defeated the Runnin' Bulldogs in both matches in the regular-season.
 
BIG SOUTH WEEKLY HONORS

• Isabella Murray-Big South Player of the Week (Nov. 13)

• Totaled 41 assists (10.25 per set), seven digs, six kills and four blocks in Winthrop's 3-1 victory over Gardner-Webb.
• Recorded her seventh 40-assist match of the season, posted season-highs in kills and blocks
• Had a hitting percentage of .375 vs. the Runnin' Bulldogs (6-0-16)

• Madison Gorniak-Co-Libero of the Week (Nov. 13)

• Tallied 18 digs (4.50 per set) in addition to three service aces and two assists in Winthrop's 3-1 win over Gardner-Webb.
• Led the Eagles in digs and aces on the afternoon.

 LAST TIME OUT

• Winthrop ended the regular-season on Senior Day/Homecoming by beating Gardner-Webb 3-1.
• The Eagles finish the regular-season with a winning record at 13-12 and enter the conference tournament having won their final three matches.
• Winthrop finishes 7-2 in the friendly confines of the Winthrop Coliseum.
• The Eagles are currently second in the conference at 12-2.
• From an individual standpoint, Winthrop led in points, kills, aces and assists; in addition, the two teams were deadlocked in blocks, 9-9.
• From an individual standpoint, Avery Jolley led the Eagles in kills with 19; Madison Gorniak led the Eagles in aces with three and digs with 18; Isabella Murray led the Eagles in assists with 41; Brookelynn Thomas, Murray and Lexie Vick all had four blocks.
• Murray was tabbed the Big South Conference Player of the Week while Gorniak picked up Co-Libero of the Week honors for matches played Nov. 6-12, announced by the league office Monday afternoon.
• Murray totaled 41 assists (10.25 per set), seven digs, six kills and four blocks in Winthrop's 3-1 victory over Gardner-Webb. She recorded her seventh 40-assist match of the season, posted season-highs in kills and blocks, in addition to a .375 hitting percentage (6-0-16) against the Runnin' Bulldogs.
• Gorniak tallied 18 digs (4.50 per set) in addition to three service aces and two assists in Winthrop's 3-1 win over Gardner-Webb. She led the Eagles in digs and aces on the afternoon.
• Murray is Winthrop's 68th all-time Big South Player of the Week recipient and is the third time this season an Eagle has taken home the Player of the Week honor, with the most recent winner being Thomas on Oct. 9. This is also the first time in her career Murray has won the award.
• Gorniak is Winthrop's 12th all-time Big South Libero of the Week recipient and is the first time this season an Eagle has taken home the Libero of the Week honor, with the most recent winner being Gorniak on Oct. 31 last season. This is Gorniak's second career Big South Libero of the Week award.

BIG SOUTH TOURNAMENT HISTORY

• The Eagles have won the Big South tournament crown six times, most recently in 2019 when they also won the regular season championship.
• Winthrop has also appeared in the championship match on four other occasions, finishing as the runners-up.
• Winthrop is 34-28 all-time in the Big South Tournament.
• This is the first time the Eagles will face Gardner-Webb in the tournament.
• Winthrop lost to defending champion High Point in the semifinals last season, 3-1 and has lost their last two tournament matches.
• Winthrop's last tournament victory was in 2021, a 3-1 victory over Presbyterian.

ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
Winthrop volleyball had six players named to the 2023 Big South All-Conference teams, the league announced Wednesday afternoon. Sophomore outside hitter Avery Jolley, redshirt sophomore setter Isabella Murray, senior outside hitter Riley Oglevie, junior outside hitter Karli Shepherd, senior middle blocker Brookelynn Thomas, and freshman middle blocker Teagan Sychterz were honored after helping the Eagles to a 13-12 overall record and 12-2 conference record and a 2nd place league finish.
 
Thomas was named first team all-conference after an outstanding season in which she finished second in the conference in points with 317.5 and fourth in the conference in hitting percentage with .293. Thomas had 15 matches in double figures in kills and led the team in blocks with 91. She was also second on the team in kills with 240 and aces with 19. Thomas was named the Big South Player of the Week on Oct. 9. Against Rutgers on Aug. 31, she had a conference high .769 in attack percentage. Her best match of the season came against Gardner-Webb at home last week, posting a season-high 15 kills, two aces and six blocks. Thomas finishes the regular-season with 240 kills, three assists, 19 aces, 61 digs and 91 blocks.
 
Jolley was named second team all-conference in a season in which she had 14 matches in double figures in kills, nine matches in double figures in digs, seven matches with double-doubles in kills and digs and eight matches with more than five blocks. Her best match of the season came at USC Upstate on Nov. 4, posting a season-high three aces and 15 digs. Jolley leads the team in kills with 253, which is good for fourth in the conference. Jolley is also third on the team in aces with 16, fourth on the team in digs with 185 and fifth on the team in assists with 17 and blocks with 29. She was named to the Gator Invitational All-Tournament Team on Sep. 9. Jolley finishes the regular-season with 253 kills, 17 assists, 16 aces, 185 digs and 29 blocks.
 
Murray was also named second team all-conference for the second straight year. This season Murray had double figures in assists in every match, including two matches with more than 50 assists and seven matches with more than 40 assists. Murray also had nine matches in double figures in digs. Her best match of the season came at Presbyterian on Oct. 7, in which she had a season-high five aces and 52 assists. Murray leads the team in assists with 801, which is good for third in the conference. She also leads the team in aces with 20. Murray is second on the team in blocks with 40, third on the team in digs with 193 and fifth on the team in kills with 54. She won the Big South Player of the Week Award on Nov. 13 and finishes the regular-season with 54 kills, 801 assists, 20 aces, 193 digs and 40 blocks.
 
Oglevie took home honorable mention all-conference honors after finishing the regular-season fifth in the conference in hitting percentage with .239. Oglevie had two matches in double figures in kills. She is also fourth on the team in kills with 121 and blocks with 32. Oglevie finishes the regular-season with 121 kills, 52 digs and 32 blocks.
 
Sychterz earned a spot on the all-freshman team. She had her best match of the season at Presbyterian on Oct. 7, notching 11 kills and two digs. Sychterz finishes the regular-season with 54 kills, an assist and an ace, seven digs and 22 blocks.
 
Junior outside hitter Karli Shepherd was named to the all-academic team for the first time in her career. She had eight matches in double figures in kills, two matches in double figures in digs and in double doubles in kills and digs. Shepherd was at her best vs. South Carolina at home on Sep. 16, posting a season-high 16 kills and 16 digs. Shepherd is third on the team in kills with 182. She was named to the Winthrop Invitational All-Tournament Team on Sep. 17 and was also named the Big South Co-Player of the Week on Sep. 18. Shepherd finishes the regular-season with 182 digs, 13 aces, 95 digs and 21 blocks.
 
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