Akron Volleyball Kicks Off Home Slate With Akron Invitational

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THIS WEEK

The Zips kick off their home slate this weekend as they host the 25th annual Akron Invitational, Sept. 13-Sept. 14. All matches will be played at the James A. Rhodes Arena.

On Friday, the tournament opens up with a match between Eastern Kentucky and Seton Hall at 4 p.m, followed by Akron's first match of the tournament, taking on St. Francis (PA) at 7 p.m.

On Saturday, the action continues when St. Francis (PA) and Seton Hall face off at 10 a.m. Akron will take on Eastern Kentucky at 12:30 p.m., followed by Eastern Kentucky vs. St. Francis at 4:30 p.m. The Zips close out day two of the Akron Invite against Seton Hall at 7 p.m.

FULL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, Aug. 31
4:00 PM – Eastern Kentucky vs. Seton Hall (Live Stats)
7:00 PM – Akron vs. St. Francis (PA) (Live Feed) (Live Stats)
Saturday, Sept. 1
10:00 AM – St. Francis (PA) vs. Seton Hall (Live Stats)
12:30 PM – Akron vs. Eastern Kentucky (Live Feed)(Live Stats)
4:30 PM – Eastern Kentucky vs. St. Francis (PA) (Live Stats)
7:00 PM – Akron vs. Seton Hall (Live Feed) (Live Stats)
-home teams for each match are in bold

SENIOR STANDOUT

Middle Hitter Ashley Richardson (Doylestown, Ohio) led the Zips last weekend with 32 kills to just 5 errors, averaging a .381 hitting percentage throughout the weekend. She also played well on the defensive side of the ball, finishing with 14 blocks. Highlighting the senior's successful weekend was her performance in the Zips' comeback win against Xavier, where she totaled 15 kills and an astounding 9 blocks.

MEET THE ZIPS
Akron is under the direction of fifth-year head coach Tom Hanna.

After the second weekend of play, junior Alexis Adleta (West Chester, Ohio) leads the way for the Zips with 53 kills, while Richardson is just behind her with 52. Sophomore setter Emily Weigand (Burton, Ohio) is averaging 9.18 assists per set. Defensively, junior Taylor Sharrits (Concord, Ohio) has 91 digs, while Richardson leads the team in blocks with 21.

SCOUTING SETON HALL

The Pirates, under the direction of eighth-year head coach Allison Yaeger, stand 2-6 early this season. They recently hosted their annual Seton Hall Classic, Sept. 6 – Sept. 7, in which they went 1-3, losing to Northern Arizona and La Salle in three sets, before beating Binghamton and eventually losing to Iona (both in four sets).

SERIES VS. SETON HALL

The match between Akron and Seton Hall will be the first meeting between the two teams.

SCOUTING EASTERN KENTUCKY

The Colonels, under the direction of first-year head coach Johnna Fouch, are currently 3-4 on the season. They recently competed in the UNC-Asheville Tournament, where they went 2-1. They opened the tournament falling to UNC-Asheville before defeating Dartmouth and North Carolina A&T State on the final day of the tournament.

SERIES VS. EASTERN KENTUCKY

The match between Akron and Eastern Kentucky will be the 14^thmeeting between the two teams, with Akron being 1-12 all-time against the Colonels. On the most recent occasion, Akron fell to Eastern Kentucky 3-1 (25-23, 18-25, 25-21, 25-18).

SCOUTING ST. FRANCIS (PA)

The Red Flash, under the direction of fourth-year head coach Sara McMullen, are currently 0-6 to begin the season. They are coming off a rough stretch, having competed in the UMBC Tournament, having lost to UMBC, Delaware and George Mason.

SERIES VS. ST. FRANCIS (PA)

The Zips lead the all-time series over St. Francis (PA), 13-2. Most recently, the Zips fell to the Red Flash 3-1 (22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 25-23).

LAST WEEK

Last week the Zips went 1-2 at the Xavier Tournament. They dropped the first match to William & Mary 3-0 (25-16, 28-26, 25-22), before defeating host Xavier in a thrilling comeback five-set win (23-25, 15-25, 25-18, 27-25, 15-13), and then dropped the final match of the tournament to Wright State, 3-0 (25-18, 25-13, 25-19).

UP NEXT FOR AKRON

The Zips will travel to Grand Forks, N.D., to compete in the North Dakota Tournament, Sept. 20-21. Akron battles Eastern Washington on Friday, Sept. 20, at 10 a.m. to open up the tournament. The Zips will then take on North Dakota at 7:30 p.m., before playing its final match of the tournament on Saturday Sept. 21 at 11 a.m. against Lamar.

The University of Akron Athletics

Akron Volleyball Kicks Off Home Slate With Akron Invitational

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Alexis Adleta

Ashley Richardson

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Emily Weigand

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