WASHINGTON – After an impressive match in its last outing, American University volleyball will look to keep that momentum going against Loyola Maryland. The Eagles (2-1, 2-1) will host the Greyhounds (0-2, 0-2) on Friday, March 19 at 7 p.m. in Bender Arena.
QUICK INFO
- Date/Time: At AU: Friday, March 19, 7 p.m.
- Site: Washington, D.C. (Bender Arena)
- Series History: American leads, 32-1
- TV: ESPN+
- Talent: Dan Laing (pxp), Sam Danai (analyst)
PLEASE FOLLOW US ONLINE ONLY; NO FANS OR SPECTATORS PERMITTED ON CAMPUS.
- Per Washington, D.C. and American University guidelines, and for the health and safety of our coaches, student-athletes and campus community, no spectators are permitted at athletics events in 2020-21.
- This policy is a stipulation of our approval to host athletic events from D.C. Department of Health and D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
- We do not anticipate a change in these guidelines this semester. Violators will be asked to leave the site and will jeopardize our ability to host athletic events for our student-athletes.
- All American University athletic events played on campus this spring will be streamed on ESPN+ (FAQ HERE) and can also be watched through the Patriot League's International Video Stream.
- Schedules and game updates can be found at www.AUeagles.com and our Twitter account @AUeagles.
- All scheduled events and start times are subject to change.
- Please support the AU Volleyball program through our virtual ticket campaign to sell-out all AU Athletics facilities this season. Click HERE to purchase your virtual tickets.
INSIDE THE SERIES
- Last season saw two tight matches between the Eagles and the Greyhounds, with both going to five sets before American prevailed.
- All-time, AU leads Loyola 32-1 and has won 28 straight matches.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT AMERICAN
- Senior Helena Elbaek, who leads all players in NCAA Division I with 6.08 kills per set, is the reigning Patriot League Player of the Week.
- Elbaek posted 24 kills in a 3-0 sweep of Lafayette on March 12, getting the 1,000th kill of her career along the way.
- AU started with a win in its season opener, but suffered a tough loss in five sets to Bucknell two days later. It was the first Patriot League loss for the Eagles in 537 days (Sept. 17, 2019 at Colgate).
- With 13.33 kills per set, American leads all teams in the Patriot League. The Eagles' 2.25 blocks per set currently rank second. Junior Carlie Fikse leads the way with 12 blocks, followed by Elbaek and freshman Allie Burke with 10 blocks each.
- AU looks to defend its 2019 Patriot League Championship, a season that saw the Eagles go 24-8 overall and 15-1 in league play.
- Elbaek (two-time PL First Team) and sophomore Zeynep Uzen (2019 PL Rookie of the Year) were both named to the Preseason All-Patriot League Team.
- Hall of Fame Head Coach Barry Goldberg is in his 32nd season with a record of 776-279. He has the 6th-most wins of any active Division I coach.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT LOYOLA (MD.)
- Loyola began its 2020-21 season with two narrow losses to Navy, both in five sets, but the Greyhounds have been sidelined since then due to COVID protocols both on their own team and with opponents.
- In 2019, Loyola went 13-18 overall and 6-10 in the Patriot League.
- Loyola was picked to finish sixth in a preseason poll of Patriot League coaches and staff, while sophomore libero Katie Forsythe earned a nod to the Preseason All-Patriot League Team.
- Katie Forsythe was named the Patriot League Libero of the Year for the second time in as many seasons in 2019, becoming the first player in conference history to win the award as both a freshman and sophomore.
ELBAEK SMASHES THROUGH MILESTONE
- With an incredible performance and a milestone reached in AU's one match last week, senior Helena Elbaek was named the Patriot League's Player of the Week.
- Elbaek passed the 1,000 career kills mark in AU's sweep of Lafayette on March 12, becoming the 14th player in program history to do so.
- She hit an incredible .595 in the match (24 kills, 2 errors, 37 attempts), and her 24 kills in the 3-set win were the most in three sets for a Patriot League player since 2015.
- Coming into the match, Elbaek needed 15 kills to hit 1,000, which she did during a 10-kill second set and kept going from there.
- Currently, Elbaek's 6.08 kills per set lead all players in NCAA Division I.
- It'll be a shortened season in which to set records, but exactly 100 more kills would put Elbaek (with 1,009 kills currently) at 10th place all-time.
VIRTUALLY "PHIL BENDER" ARENA PRESENTED BY GEICO
- American University Athletics has announced a new virtual ticket campaign in an effort to sell out Bender Arena this season.
- This new initiative, presented by "TEAM AU" partner GEICO, challenges Eagles fans and alumni to sell out each seat in Bender Arena for the 2020-21 year.
- The "AU Founder" ticket price of $18.93 commemorates the year AU was founded. Click HERE to support AU Athletics and AU Volleyball by buying virtual tickets.
HOW TO WATCH ESPN+
- A subscription to ESPN+ is available for purchase via ESPN.com, ESPNPlus.com, or the ESPN App. Fans can access ESPN+ content only after they have subscribed. To subscribe, click here. It costs $5.99/month or $59.99/year.
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