There's no place like home. These words resonate with the Lady Eagles who finally return to the friendly confines of Tine Davis Gymnasium Friday and Saturday after four weeks away to face Loyola and William Carey. Faulkner looks to use that home court advantage to snap a four-game skid to conclude the five-match road trip.
LOYOLA RETURNS TO MONTGOMERY
The last time these two teams met on the floor in Montgomery, Loyola ended Faulkner's season in the loser's bracket final of the SSAC tournament in four sets. The match came just eight days after the Lady Eagles rallied from 2-0 down at home to win in five. The Wolf Pack returns the trip Friday after Faulkner traveled to NOLA in a 3-0 loss just 14 days before this match. While the competition has been fierce between these two, the match will be under a special backdrop for both teams.
The two rivals have a special bond formed in hardship. As Hurricane Ida threatened--and eventually devastated--the Louisiana coast, Loyola evacuated to Montgomery where conference rivals started sharing the facilities that Faulkner calls home. The Wolf Pack practiced, ate, and waited on the return home call for a week at Faulkner while the campus repaired the storm damage for a safe return home.
The hardships failed to slow down the top-team in the SSAC, though. Loyola enters the contest receiving votes in the Top 25 poll released Wednesday morning with a 12-7 record and two top 25 wins and are tied for first in the SSAC with a 6-1 record as every team has faced each other once now, with Blue Mountain holding the tiebreak. Akin Faulkner, who is 3-4 in league play, Loyola will also play five of its final seven league matches at home after a front-loaded road schedule.
Loyola is led by three big guns in Emily Sheperis, Brittany Cooper and Simone Tyson on the attack. Sheperis leads the league with a .308 attack percentage with Tyson and Cooper in sixth and tenth with .245 and .223 percentages. Cooper and Sheperis both placed First Team All-SSAC in the spring season while Tyson is making an immediate impact upon transferring from Fairfield University (Conn.) placing second in the SSAC in kills per set with 3.07.
Faulkner narrowly trails the all-time series with Loyola 21-24, but has the edge in conference matches 12-8. The series has been extremely streaky after starting 4-3 in favor of Faulkner. Loyola won 18 of the next 20 matches before the Lady Eagles took the next 14. The Wolf Pack have won three of the last four meetings.
WILLIAM CAREY SEEKING TOURNAMENT REVENGE
The last two matchups in Montgomery against William Carey have been really good results for the locals. After claiming the regular season title last season, William Carey opened the SSAC tournament against Faulkner, who had just survived a thriller against Blue Mountain the day before. Faulkner sent the top seed into the loser's bracket with a 3-1 win despite dropping the second set 25-8. The Crusaders also fell 3-1 a few weeks prior in Tine Davis Gymnasium. So on the back of a 3-1 win 14 days before Saturday's meeting, William Carey will be hungry for a win.
Last season's Setter of the Year Gillian Tripp runs "2020" Coach of the Year Kelsea Weldon's offense with the second-best assists per set in the conference with 8.76. Mia Hague, 2019's Freshman of the Year and a 2020 First Team All-SSAC outside hitter, racks up the most kills for her team with 2.81 kills per set--good for fifth in the league. Elizabeth Hardouin averages an SSAC 10th best 2.38 kills per set while Baylee Fairbanks places third in the conference with a .261 attack percentage. Hardouin also poses a threat on the service line with the third best aces per set average (.46) in the league in her freshman campaign.
However, it may be the block that determines the winner Saturday. The two schools top the SSAC blocks per set category with William Carey leading by .03 over Faulkner's 1.80. A trio of Crusaders sit in seventh through ninth place in individual blocks per set and
Julia Rice stands in second with .94.
Rice sits fourth with a .257 attack percentage.
Hannah Bryan is in ninth with a .224 clip while hitting a sixth-best 2.73 kills per set to lead the Faulkner attack.
Alyssa Stagner is third in the SSAC with 8.46 assists per set and
Alysa Vinson is digging 3.65 attacks per set.
SSAC STANDINGS AS OF THURSDAY AFTERNOON
| Blue Mountain |
6-1 |
| Loyola |
6-1 |
| Mobile |
6-2 |
| William Carey |
5-3 |
| Faulkner |
3-4 |
| Talladega |
2-5 |
| Middle Georgia |
1-6 |
| Brewton-Parker |
0-7 |
COVERAGE
The matches will be broadcast live on the
Faulkner Sports Network. Live stats will be available for both the
Loyola and
William Carey matches.
Tickets are available now.
