Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
UT Martin
Racers Open OVC Tournament Against UT Martin
11/13/2018 10:29:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Dates:Â Nov. 15, 2018
Match Time:Â 1:30 p.m.
Opponents:Â UT Martin
Site (Venue):Â Clarksville, Tenn. (Winfield Dunn Center)
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Live Stats
Tournament Homepage
Murray State Record (Streak):Â 19-9, 13-3 OVC (W13)
UT Martin Record (Streak):Â 14-16, 7-9 OVC (W2)
All-Time Series vs. UT Martin (Streak):Â 46-21 (W1)
Thursday
The Racers will begin their quest for their third OVC Tournament title in five years as they take on UT Martin at 1:30 in the first round. Murray State earned the two seed while the Skyhawks are the seventh seed. The entire tournament will be hosted by Austin Peay in Clarksville, Tenn.
Previous Match
After dropping the first set to SIU Edwardsville, Saturday afternoon, the Murray State volleyball team came back to win the next three to down the Cougars in the regular-season finale for their 13th straight victory. Dacia Brown led the offense again as she compiled 14 kills. Rachel Giustino was just behind her with 13 kills while finishing with a team-high 18 digs. Rachel Holthaus added nine kills of her own while hitting a match-high .429. Ashley McBee dished out 44 assists and Becca Fernandez had 16 digs. Holthaus and Katirah Johnson each had four blocks to lead the team.
OVC Recognition
For the third time this season, Becca Fernandez earned OVC Defensive Player of the Week. In two wins, she had 54 digs for an average of 7.71 per set. In the win over Eastern Illinois, Fernandez racked up 38 digs in just three sets, setting a new school record in the rally-scoring era (since 2001) for most digs in a three-set match.
Leading the Pack
After her strong weekend, Fernandez also climbed to the top of the OVC leaderboard with 5.89 digs per set during conference play. Overall, she is averaging 5.06 digs per set.
OVC Tournament
Murray State is looking for its sixth OVC Tournament championship in program history, having previously won in 2016, 2014, 2003, 1992, and 1989.
Scouting UT Martin
The Skyhawks earned a spot in the OVC Tournament with a four-set win over Tennessee Tech, Saturday. Megan Fair led the team with 14 kills and 12 digs in the win while Kenzie Hinshaw had 34 assists and 13 digs. Brooke Gyori led the back line defense with 12 digs. Fair currently leads the team with 2.54 kills per set followed by Hannah Phillips with 2.42 per set. Justine Walker averages exactly one block per set for a total of 120 blocks this season. This will be the first appearance in the OVC Tournament for UT Martin since 2012.
