LUBBOCK, Texas (October 5, 2017) – After spending the past eight matches away from home, Lubbock Christian University is ready to return to Rip Griffin Center, where they host St. Edward's University Thursday at 7 p.m. for their first Heartland Conference home match of the season. LCU, 4-12 overall, enters the match 1-3 in Heartland Conference play. Saturday, they claimed their first conference win of the season, defeating Texas A&M International on the road 3-1. The Lady Chaps were unable to build off the win, falling 3-1 Tuesday at Eastern New Mexico.
St. Edward's (11-6, 2-2) | Thursday | 7 p.m.
Rip Griffin Center (Lubbock, Texas)
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• LCU has won 10 of the prior 11 meetings over SEU and has a 10-5 all-time advantage in the series, which dates back to the 1989 season. The teams met three times last season, each winning at home before LCU defeated SEU 3-1 on Nov. 18, 2016 at the Heartland Conference Tournament in Fort Smith, Ark.
• The Hilltoppers are preseason picked third in the Heartland Conference. They are 2-2 after home losses to Newman and Arkansas – Fort Smith.
• Mikayla Parker is a Heartland Conference Preseason Team member. The middle blocker ranks 18
th nationally in blocks (71) and 21
st in blocks per set (1.22).
• SEU ranks fourth nationally in attacks per set (41.1), sixth in digs (1,233) and seventh in digs per set (19.9). Individually, Morgan Beckham is sixth nationally indigs per set with an average of 6.3 per set.
GAME NOTES
• LCU enters Thursday's play riding a six-game conference home win streak dating back to last season. The Lady Chaps lost to Arkansas – Fort Smith in their Heartland Conference home opener before winning six straight to complete a 6-1 conference home record last season.
• The Lady Chaps rank 68
th nationally in digs (1,006) and 73
rd in digs per set (17.1), with
Kelsie French ranking 20
th individually with 5.8 digs per set. She is 20
th nationally in total digs with 341.
• Freshman
Jaiden Kennedy ranks fourth in the Heartland Conference in total blocks (54, which is 91
st nationally) and ranks fifth in blocks per set (0.93).
• Of LCU's 16 matches, they have only won the opening set twice. They are 2-0 this season when winning the opening set (2-12 when losing the opening set).
•
Lauren Zoller ranks fourth in the Heartland Conference in attacks per set with a pace of 9.48 per set. Zoller's top two performances in kill attempts this season have come against Eastern New Mexico. On Sept. 9, she posted 53 kill attempts, and Tuesday she attempted 49 kills. The two marks are the top two individual single game marks by a Lady Chap this season. Zoller completed Tuesday's match with 17 kills, coming two shy (19) of her career high at St. Edward's on Oct. 6, 2016.
•
Emily Hanaway produced double figures in kills Tuesday with 10, which marked the first time this season she has had at least 10 kills in consecutive matches (produced 12 Saturday at Texas A&M International).
