HICKORY, N.C. — The Catawba College women's volleyball team breaks open its 2025 schedule on Friday and Saturday, facing three opponents at the Lenoir-Rhyne Invitational hosted at Shuford Arena.
Weekend Schedule
Friday, Sep. 5
Catawba vs. Lees-McRae, 1 p.m.
Florida Tech vs. Mount Olive, 3 p.m.
Lees-McRae vs. Lenoir-Rhyne, 5 p.m.
Catawba vs. Florida Tech, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Sep. 6
Lenoir-Rhyne vs. Mount Olive, 10 a.m.
Florida Tech vs. Lees-McRae, noon
Florida Tech vs. Lenoir-Rhyne, 2 p.m.
Catawba vs. Mount Olive, 4 p.m.
Underdog Mentality
- Catawba was voted 10th in the 12-team South Atlantic Conference preseason coaches' poll released on Aug. 25
- The squad trails Newberry by just one point while leading Coker and Emory & Henry
- At the top, defending SAC champion Wingate was a near-unanimous No. 1 pick with 10 first-place votes
- Lenoir-Rhyne and Anderson also earned favorite nods while rounding out the top three
- The Catawba Indians fell short of a playoff spot in 2024 with a 4-21 overall record including a 2-16 in-conference ledger
Players to Watch
- Martina Foster, Riley Hill and Katrina Misra were named players to watch in the preseason SAC release
- Foster, a senior middle blocker, was a Third Team All-SAC honoree at Tusculum last season. She led the Pioneers with 31 aces and 73 blocks in addition to 245 kills (2.33 per set) in 2024
- At libero, Hill will be a third-year starter with 817 digs and 35 service aces entering her junior year. She was a Second Team All-SAC and All-Freshman selection in 2023 and earned a Defensive Player of the Week honor last year
- Junior outside hitter Misra comes off a sophomore campaign marred by injury. She has averaged 2.53 kills per set in 26 matches as a Catawba Indian, landing 159 total kills as a freshman in 2023
Scouting the Bobcats
- Lees-McRae went 10-18 during the 2024 campaign, going perfect through the first four matches including a 3-0 record at the season-opening Cavalier Classic hosted by UVA Wise
- Head coach Lauren Havill begins her third season at the helm; the 'Cats had a 15-11 ledger in her first campaign
- Lees-McRae was one of the better serving teams in Division II last year, ranking 44th with 1.98 aces per set
- Sydney Sigler will be a name to monitor in Hickory as she led LMC with 266 kills, 234 digs and 46 aces a season ago
Scouting the Panthers
- Florida Tech is coming off their first-ever NCAA Tournament bid with 20 wins in 2024
- The Panthers were ranked No. 25 in the AVCA poll on Nov. 4, 2024 and received votes in four additional weeks
- In his second year at the helm, Jordan Willis led the program to its first winning season since 2012
- The Panthers boast a mixture of powerful returners and newcomers, led by AVCA First Team All-American Cordelia Kearns and Northwest Missouri State transfer Hadley Waldren, a AVCA Honorable Mention All-American
Scouting the Trojans
- Mount Olive also hit the 20-victory mark last season, tearing apart its Conference Carolinas slate with a 16-2 record to capture the East Division title
- The Trojans suffered an unforeseen 3-0 loss in the conference tournament semifinals, spoiling UMO's run to the NCAA Tournament
- Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year Olivia Melvin, who had 196 kills in 2024, returns alongside Caroline Sheaffer, who blasted 42 aces for the Trojans
- Catawba squared off with UMO in a similar situation last season – on the second day of a season-opening tournament – at Shaw when the Trojans escaped with a 3-2 triumph
Follow Along
- All three matches at Shuford Arena will be streamed live on FloCollege
- Live stats will be available at lrbears.com
