UCF volleyball will be heading to Dallas, Texas this Friday for American Athletic Conference play.
Up first, the Knights (7-5, 0-0, AAC) will take on the SMU Mustangs (11-1, 0-0, AAC) Friday, Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET. It won’t be an easy task for the Knights, as SMU is coming into this matchup with only one loss on the season. UCF will then go on to play Tulsa (8-3, 0-0, AAC) early Sunday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. ET in Oklahoma.
UCF has been attacking opponents left and right this season, but tough competition to No. 7 Florida this past Sunday concluded the Knights’ record with a loss.
UCF went toe-to-toe with the Gators last weekend, taking a 15-11 lead on a 4-1 run against the Gators early on in the set. With multiple errors late in the game, the Gators evened up the score and the Knights could not recover. Although the Knights lost to Florida in a 3-1 match up (28-30, 25-16, 25-21, 25-17), UCF players will need to attack early on in order to take on the Mustangs and earn a win.
UCF will have to give it their all this weekend to take the title from SMU, but the Knights still pose a threat with great players leading the team. It’s senior libero Jade Hayes who ranks 12th in the AAC with 5.50 digs per set and 26th in the AAC with 121 total digs this season. She has posted a career first for four consecutive double-digit dig matches at the Radisson UCF Invitational in late August and served up a season-best two aces against FIU.
Middle Blocker DeLaina Sarden comes in to her senior year with more than 14 career accolades under her belt. In her 2014 season, she’s recorded a season-high 15 kills while hitting .609 and denying two shots in the season opener against Eastern Kentucky in late August. Sarden recorded a season-best six digs against Western Carolina and brings out true power to the teams momentum in pulling out victories.
Outside hitter Jale Hervey poses a huge threat to opponents this weekend as the sophomore leads the team with 3.78 kills per set, scoring 155 on the season. She holds a career-high five aces against FIU and slammed 17 kills with five digs and one ace in her UCF debut against Eastern Kentucky. She has gone seven of the first 12 matches without an attack error and has recorded a total of 60 kills in just the past four matches. Junior Setter Dana Faught also brings the heat for the Knights with 41 assists and 10 digs against Western Carolina and Eastern Kentucky late August.
The Knights plan on playing to their fullest potential and talent for this weekends match-up in the AAC opener. As volleyball goes, it’s a game of momentum, and for the Knights, hope in serving up the competition is what they’re after.
