Georgia State volleyball to host Western Carolina in home opener

Release from Georgia State Communications:

ATLANTA – Georgia State volleyball returns home to host Western Carolina at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in the GSU Sports Arena. The Panthers went 1-2 in the opening weekend while the Catamounts come in with a 0-3 record.

Sally Polhamus, who is in her first year as head coach of the Panthers, learned a lot about her team at the UAB/Samford Challenge last weekend.

“We saw the areas we need to improve which have been our main focus in practice leading up to the Western Carolina match. We are excited to play at home for the first time this season so we expect to come out with a purpose,” Polhamus said.

NOTING THE PANTHERS…

• Three newcomers made their GSU debuts last weekend. Freshmen Kaylyn Torain led the team in hitting against UAB in her first appearance with six kills on nine attempts for a .667 percentage. Junior Brianna Jones played all three matches and hit .273 with four kills. Freshman Sydney Mauer is second on the team with 50 assists in her first three matches as a Panther.

• Georgia State trails Western Carolina in the all-time series four matches to nine. The last win for the Panthers came in 2001.

• GSU will play 11 of its first 12 matches on the road to start the season. The team will go 23 days in between home contests.

• This year marks three decades that the Panthers have played collegiate volleyball and the second year of playing in the Sun Belt Conference.

WEEKEND REVIEW…

The Panthers were swept 3-0 by host Samford before defeating Jacksonville State, 3-1, on Friday. After taking the first set against UAB on Saturday, Georgia State fell 3-1.

Junior Eliza Zachary picked up right where she left off. Zachary posted 10 blocks, 25 kills, and hit .400 in the team’s first three matches. Fellow junior Deidra Bohannon’s 34 kills leads the team while junior Natalia Nieto and Mauer combined for 105 assists. Junior Gabby Serafin played well at Libero and leads the team in digs with 35.