Volleyball Arrives in the Steel City

After departing Spokane before sunrise, the GU women's volleyball team has arrived in Pittsburgh for the University of Pittsburgh Tournament. This will be the longest road trip of the season for the team, and they will be hoping to carry their recent form of play into the tournament. They are coming off a dramatic victory over the University of Idaho last night, as the Bulldogs came out with a 3-2 win.

The tournament will get started tomorrow morning, as the ladies will take the court at 10:00 AM pacific time. The University of Pittsburgh will be their first opponent, and it is a match that the Zags can certainly win. The Panthers come into the game with a 3-7 record that has seen them drop their past five matches. Last weekend, the Panthers participated in the Loyola Marymount Tournament and came away winless. Pittsburgh is led by Kelly Campbell, who is averaging 2.80 kills per set. This will be the first matchup between the two teams, and a win could set the tone for a terrific tournament.

It will be a short break for the team, as they return to the court at 2:00 PM on Friday. Their opponent for this match will be the VCU Rams. The Rams enter the match with a 5-4 record, and are currently on a two-match winning streak. They recently participated in the UVA tournament, where they defeated Appalachian St. and Binghamton. Ariel Newman and Elisa Kuehnel lead the Rams, as both average over 2.40 kills per set. If the ladies can pull out victory in this match, they will likely be playing for the tournament championship on Saturday.

Playing on the East Coast should be an interesting experience for the Zags. It is important that they build on their recent solid play, which has seen the team win 3 of their last 4 matches. After this tournament, the Bulldogs will be entering WCC play, so it is vital that they get some momentum heading into conference play.