Friday, October 16th at Binghamton (7pm)
West Gym; Vestal, N.Y.
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Sunday, October 18th at Albany (2pm)
University Gymnasium; Albany, N.Y.
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SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass Lowell enters Friday night's America East match at Binghamton with a 4-16 overall record and a 1-3 record in America East matches. The River Hawks own a 2-3 record in their last five matches, which includes their most recent outing, a 3-0 loss at New Hampshire last Sunday afternoon at Lundholm Gym in Durham, N.H. Lauren Bennett (Wilmington, Mass.) and Rachel Arnason (Kelowna, B.C) each posted a team-high four kills, while freshman libero Lindsey Visvardis (Homer Glen, Ill.) totaled a team-high 11 digs in the losing effort. Sophomore defensive specialist Malorie McIver (Austin, Texas) also had a solid match vs. the Wildcats with 10 digs on the afternoon. Freshman outside hitter Haley Shimon (Des Monies, Iowa) leads the team on the season with 155 kills and 2.25 kills per set. She has posted 10+ kills in seven of 20 matches this season for the River Hawks. Junior Alexa Toth (Portland, Ore.) leads the team with 290 assists, as she has split setting duties this season with freshman Delaney Mendez (257 assists). Visvardis ranks first on the team in digs (273) and digs per set (3.79). Bennett leads the team in total blocks with 69 (9s,60a) and 0.96 blocks per set. The River Hawks as a team rank second in America East with 1.89 total blocks per set.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS:
Binghamton - Binghamton owns a 4-15 overall record and a 1-4 mark in America East action this season. The Bearcats have lost their last three matches by a combined set score of 9-1. Binghamton owns a 1-2 record and home to go along with a 3-13 mark away from West Gym. The Bearcats are coming off a 3-1 loss at UMBC last Sunday afternoon. Freshman outside hitter  Gabby Alicea tied a career-high 16 kills, while Megan Burgess chipped in with 10 kills in the contest. Sophomore setter Michelle Ngo finished the day with a match-high 43 assists in the losing effort. Alicea overall leads the team with 163 kills, while Burgess is right behind with 134 kills. Ngo has totaled 624 assists in the season for the Bearcats and ranks fourth in the conference with 8.55 assists per set. Bailey Walker leads the team with 355 digs, which leads the America East Conference and Kristella Morina has amassed 66 total blocks for Binghamton and her 0.92 blocks per set in third best in America East, right behind Lauren Bennett. The Bearcats rank third in America East with 14.84 digs per set.

Albany - Albany enters the weekend with a 9-8 overall mark and a 4-1 record in America East Conference play. The Great Danes are 1-1 at home this season and 8-7 away from University Gym. Albany has won four of its last five matches, which includes the Great Danes most recent match, a 3-2 victory on Sunday at Stony Brook. Junior outside hitter Laini Leindecker posted a career-high 23 kills and 11 digs in the victory against the Seawolves, while Shannon Hurley recorded 13 kills. Mikala McCauley finished the night with 51 assists. Paula Pinto and Nicole Otero led the Great Danes' defense with 15  and 14 digs, respectively. Amanda Dolan recorded nine kills and eight total blocks in the Great Danes' most recent win. Albany leads America East as a team with 2.09 blocks per set and 16.0 digs per set. Leindecker leads the team with 233 kills and second in America East with 3.41 kills per set. McCauley has registered 605 assists to lead the Great Danes and her 8.87 assists per set in second best in the conference. Dolan has amassed 77 total blocks on the season and her 1.13 blocks per set leads America East. Otero's 306 digs leads the team and ranks second in the conference with 4.50 digs per set.

BENNETT TAKES THE NEXT STEP: Lauren Bennett has already set single season career-highs in kills (103) and blocks (69) with 13 matches remaining. She notched a career-high 18 kills in the 3-2 win vs. Quinnipiac on October 12th in the River Hawks first victory of the season. Bennett has also has notched 3+ blocks in 15 of 20 matches this season.

FRESHMAN IMPACT: The River Hawks' five-member freshman class (Shimon, Adeniyi, Cappellino, Mendez, Visvardis) have accounted for 339 of the River Hawks' 672 kills (50.4%) this season. Shimon (155) and Adeniyi (126) rank first and second on the team in kills to date.

AMERICA EAST LEADERS: Junior mibble blocker Lauren Bennett ranks first in America East with a .326 hitting percentage and her 0.96 blocks per set is second best among conference players. Freshman libero Lindsey Visvardis' 3.79 digs per set ranks fourth best among America East players. Freshman middle blocker Lade Adeniyi (Springfield, Ill.) ranks fifth in America East with 0.83 blocks per set. Toth ranks eighth with 4.68 assist per set, while Mendez ranks ninth at 4.15 helper per set. Shimon ranks 11th int the conference with 2.25 kills per set.