Austin Peay (2-0 | 2-0 OVC) at Tennessee State (0-2 | 0-2 OVC)
Sunday, February 14th at 6:00pm | Sunday, February 14th at 5:00pm
Nashville, TN | Kean Hall
Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) volleyball team makes its only trip to Nashville this spring when it faces Tennessee State in a two-match series at Kean Hall. Due to impending winter weather, the Govs and Tigers are scheduled to play both matches Sunday, at 11:00am and 4:00pm.
Stitt led the Govs in both matches against the Golden Eagles, scoring 15 kills in the opener followed by a 13-kill effort, Monday. Meanwhile, Moore notched a 13-kill, 16-dig double-double to open the season.
Though winless in its opening weekend, Tennessee State also looks to build on a strong finish to its opening weekend after it pushed Murray State to five sets in the series finale. Gina Rivera Ortiz finished the weekend with 52 digs, her 6.50 digs per set leading all OVC defenders.
First Swings
Last season, senior outside hitter Brooke Moore, a Preseason All-OVC selection, became the eighth Govs player to surpass both 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs during her career. She opened the spring with a 13-kill, 16-dig double-double and added 12 kills the next day against Tennessee Tech.
Senior outside hitter Chloe Stitt led APSU’s offense in both matches against Tennessee Tech, scoring 15 kills in the opener and 13 kills in the second match. Her 4.17 kills per set leads all OVC hitters after the opening weekend.
Junior outside hitter Aysha Hood opened her spring campaign with two kills and three blocks against Tennessee Tech, Sunday. She came off the bench Monday and added two kills in the third set.
Junior Karli Graham picked up where she left 2019, posting nine blocks and eight kills in the two-match series against Tennessee Tech. She is ranked second among the OVC’s defenders with 1.50 blocks per set.
Austin Peay State University returns both halves of its starting setter tandem in senior Caroline Waite and sophomore Kelsey Mead. The duo set an efficient tone in the opening weekend, as the Govs hit .212 as a team. Mead’s four service aces in the opening weekend were fourth-most among the OVC’s servers.
Sophomore right side Tegan Seyring notched her first double-digit kill performance of the season in Monday’s match against the Golden Eagles, scoring 10 kills and posting a .348 attack percentage. She hit .309 during the TTU series.
After three seasons as the APSU Govs understudy, senior Nina Korfhage took over as the lead libero this spring. In her first weekend at the helm, she averaged 3.67 digs per set and was charge with three reception errors on 47 attempts.
Joining Graham at middle blocker is freshman Maggie Keenan. In her debut weekend, she recorded back-to-back three-kill outings and notched two blocks in Monday’s match against TTU.
Keenan leads a group of five newcomers on Austin Peay State University’s 2020-21 roster. Setter Janvier Buggs, libero Morgan Rutledge and outside hitters Taylor McInerney and Kaylah Jackson were each 2019 signees.
Adding experience off the bench will be junior middle blocker Claire Darland, who saw action in 13 matches in 2019, and sophomore defensive specialist Erin Eisenhart, who had 111 digs (2.09/set) in 19 matches played.
Due to COVID-19 Coronavirus, APSU saw its 2020 schedule pushed into 2021, along with the bulk of college volleyball. The OVC elected to play a 16-match spring slate with teams playing a two-match series against eight league members at a single site.
