Nov. 1, 2007

KENNESAW, Ga.--For the final time this season, the Kennesaw State volleyball team will hit the road, traveling to East Tennessee State for a Friday night match before heading to USC Upstate for a showdown on Saturday afternoon.

"We want to do all we can to close the season on a high note," said KSU head coach Valerie Jones. "We've had to battle through a lot of adversity and injuries this season, but we've shown a lot of improvement as the year has gone on. I really want the team to be able to end the season with a positive result."

KSU is coming off a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Stetson last Saturday afternoon at the KSU Convocation Center. Four Owls earned double-doubles in the loss, as the Black and Gold set numerous program records in the loss.

Middle hitter Lindsey Plotner will close out her collegiate career this weekend. The senior had a career-high 19 kills, tying Jenny Black's school record for kills in a match set during the 2006 season. Plotner is currently KSU's career record in kills with 327, one ahead of Black's 326.

Tara Dillon will close out the season at setter for the Owls. Dillon tallied 63 assists last Saturday, setting a school record. The sophomore has an average of 6.61 assists per game for the season, second on the team behind Ginny Frederick's 7.70 assists per game.

Plotner recorded her 200th kill of the season against Stetson, but could soon be joined at that plateau by a pair of her teammates. Sabrita Gulley has 193 kills, while Black has 185. Black needs an additional 25 digs to finish the year with 200 for the season.

The Owls will take on an ETSU squad fighting for a share of the Atlantic Sun Conference regular season championship. The Lady Buccaneers (17-12, 7-2 A-Sun) can tie for the title if they win out and if Florida Gulf Coast loses to North Florida.

Desiree Dyck paces the attack for the Lady Bucs with 3.42 kills per game average. Senior Kaena Apana has been one of the best defensive specialists in the country this season, averaging 6.29 digs per game for the year.

Saturday's contest with USC Upstate features a pair of schools who were rivals in the Peach Belt Conference, but who never met on the volleyball court. The Spartans (9-15, 1-8 A-Sun) defeated Savannah State on Tuesday night in three games.

The Spartans are led by Jesicah Ambrisco's 3.77 points per game, ranking the sophomore in a tie for eighth in the conference in points per game. Katie Downey leads Upstate's front-row defense with 1.01 blocks per game.

Both of this weekend's matches will be available via ASun.TV.