WASHINGTON (September 14, 2017) – After building momentum from last week's second-place finish at Virginia, the Howard Women's Volleyball team returns home for the D.C. Classic. The two-day tourney will take place on the campuses of HU and American (AU).
Friday night (Sept. 15), the Bison meet Power Five foe Iowa inside Burr Gymnasium. Match time is 7 p.m.
The next day (Sept. 16), HU competes on American's campus where they face Princeton and the host team Eagles. Howard faces the Tigers at noon, followed by a date with AU at 7 p.m.
LAST TIMEOUT
Last weekend (Sept. 8-9), HU took second overall at the Jefferson Cup where
Kira Porter and
Tamia Dockery were selected to the All-Tournament Team.
On Sept. 8, Howard opened the tourney with a 3-1 loss against Ohio (19-25, 25-17, 21-25, 23-25). Senior
Khaila Donaldson had a match-best 18 kills and nine digs.
The next day (Sept. 9), HU took down the Virginia Cavaliers in four sets (26-24, 16-25, 25-19, 25-12) and snapped its five-match skid.
Jessica Young recorded a match-best 14 kills in the victory.
Later that night, the squad rallied from a 2-0 deficit and forced a deciding set; however, were unable to seal the deal as they lost to Virginia Commonwealth (23-25, 27-29, 25-23, 25-20, 11-15). Donaldson had a team-best 19 kills and eight digs.
MATCHUP PREVIEW
After consecutive home tournaments, Iowa (8-2) enters streaking with their only losses coming against ranked opponents: No. 2 Ohio State and No. 22 Iowa State. Before the season, the Hawkeyes were projected to finish 10
th in the tough Big Ten conference.
Coming off its second-straight Ivy title and its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2007, Princeton (6-1) is the odds-on favorite to claim its League-best 17th Ivy crown. Entering the tournament, the Tigers have won five straight.
With ten matches in the books, American has went .500 (5-5). After starting the season 1-3, AU reeled off four consecutive victories; however, currently, riding a two-game skid. The club is led by 2016 Patriot League Player of the Year Aleksandra Kazala.
With the conference opener two weeks away, HU (2-8) looks to build momentum and turn the corner. In the league, Howard is second in hitting percentage (.192). Dockery leads the conference in assists-per-set (9.92). Last week, Donaldson built on her legacy by reaching the 1,000 dig milestone.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
On Sept. 19, the Bison travels north to Baltimore where UMBC awaits. Match time is 7 p.m.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at
www.HUBison.com.
