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Millersville

Volleyball vs. East Stroudsburg

Marauders host West Chester in critical PSAC East matchup

| By: Wes Champlin, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant
  • Series: 10-26
  • Series Streak: West Chester, 5
  • First Meeting: L, 0–3 (1990)
  • Last Meeting: L, 2-3 (2023)

ABOUT THE MATCH

  • This is the second time these two teams have met this season, as the Golden Rams captured the first bout 3-2 on September 20. Both are looking to bounce back after a disappointing past few weeks. West Chester has lost five of its last six matches while Millersville has dropped four of its last five. 
  • The Marauders have a 7-12 record and have gone 1-6 in conference matchups thus far. The Golden Rams enter with an 8-9 record overall and sit at 2-5 in PSAC East play. 

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS

  • Millersville comes in looking for their second conference victory of the season after sweeping Kutztown at home a few weeks ago. That victory keeps the team out of last place in the conference, as they now hold the tiebreaker over the Golden Bears.  
  • Emma Kerwin and Taylor Welter are the starting outside hitters for the Marauders and will lead the attack. Kerwin leads the team in total kills with 261 on the season, which also ranks 6th in the PSAC. Welter is second on the team with 159 after missing a few matches earlier this season. She ranks ninth in the conference in kills per set at 3.18.
  • Elizabeth Villegas, Madison Von Neida, Sam White and Madison Williams are key for their defense. Villegas and Von Neida have shared time at libero this season but it has been Villegas at that position for the past few matches. She leads the team in digs with 336. 
  • Williams, White and Caroline Halsey make up Millersville's net presence. Halsey and White are one and two on the team in total blocks with 34 and 23, respectively. Williams has been a revelation for Coach Brian Smith in her freshman season. She's been a consistent starter for the past few matches after starting the season on the bench and leads the team in blocks per set with .52. 
  • Emma Ludwig leads the team in assists with 708 and is coming off of a match in which she dished out 37. That number puts her at third in the PSAC. She's also made an impact defensively with 203 digs and 23 total blocks, which both rank second on the team.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN RAMS

  • The Golden Rams sport a record of 8-9 on the season and sit at 2-5 in conference play after losing in five sets to Shepherd last Saturday. That mark is good for sixth in the PSAC East.
  • West Chester features a balanced attack, as it has three players with more than 100 total kills on the season and six players with more than 75. Four players (Zoe Haines, Lexy Caltabiano, Nicole Dimiris and Hailey Lewis) finished in double-figures in kills against Shepherd. 
  • The net is where this team excels. Dimiris is their starting middle and has averaged 1.24 blocks per set this season, good for second in the PSAC. She recorded nine against Shepherd and 11 against Kutztown. Haines and Lewis have also stood out in this category, ranking second and third on the squad in total blocks with 44 and 39, respectively. Lewis was Second Team All-PSAC East last season.
  • Sydney Heffner has contributed on both ends of the floor for the Golden Rams this season, leading the team in digs (272) and service aces (28).
  • These teams have played multiple matches against common conference opponents. They were swept by Shippensburg while the Marauders lost that matchup in four sets. Both teams beat Kutztown but Millersville did so in three straight sets while it took the visitors five. 

THE LAST TIME OUT

  • Millersville: Millersville 1, Shippensburg 3 (Oct. 14, 2023) - The Marauders fell 3-1 to the Raiders last Saturday. They dropped the first two sets but rallied back in the third with an impressive effort to take the third game before losing a deceivingly close fourth set. Welter and Kerwin led the team in kills with 12 and 14, respectively. 
  • West Chester:  West Chester 2, Shepherd 3 (Oct. 14, 2023) - After losing the first two sets and going down early against Shepherd, the Golden Rams battled back to level the match at two. The fifth set didn't go their way, but they registered four players in double-digits in kills in the match despite a team hitting percentage of .120.

SERIES HISTORY

  • The Golden Rams hold the edge in this rivalry by a fair margin, at they've won 26 of the 36 matchups all-time. They hosted the Marauders earlier this season for a Wednesday conference bout and emerged with the 3-2 victory. 
  • Millersville hasn't beaten West Chester since 2019, having lost all five meetings since then. 
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