The UMBC volleyball team (14-10, 9-0 America East) hosts its annual Dig Pink match in support of funding for metastatic breast cancer when the Hartford Hawks (4-16, 2-5 AE) visit Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena on Friday, Oct. 29. The opening serve is set for 7:00 p.m. and the contest will be broadcast on the America East digital network.

The Retrievers ran their win streak to nine and clinched a spot in the four-team America East playoff with a four set victory over host Binghamton (25-14, 25-15, 21-25, 25-17) on Sunday afternoon. In addition, UMBC clinched at least a share of its second-straight America East regular season title. 

RETRIEVER REVIEW

• UMBC has won nine consecutive matches, all in America East competition, posting their longest winning streak since an 11-match surge in 2000.

·         The nine-match winning streak ties three other streaks (1996, 1995, 1977) for the fourth-longest in school history. The 2000 and 1996 teams each won 11 consecutive matches, while the 1998 squad captured 10 in a row.

·         UMBC has done it on defense in 2021. The Retrievers lead America East in digs (16.47) and opponent kills per set (11.83) and opponent hitting percentage (.159). They are second in blocks (2.24) and opponent services aces (1.33) per set.  

·         Sophomore Beste Ayhan (Istanbul, Turkey) sits in fourth place nationally in total blocks with 112. She is second in the America East Conference in hitting percentage at .336.

·         Freshman Mia Bilusic (Zagreb, Croatia) is second in the conference with 3.44 kills per set.

·         Graduate student Loren Teter (Redondo Beach, Calif.) is second in the league with 4.47 digs per set.  

·         Junior setter Andjelija Draskovic (Vrnjacka Banja, Serbia) has moved steadily up the charts and is now third in the league in assists per set (8.82).

HONORED

·         Graduate student outside hitter Grace Rigsbee (Suwanee, Ga.) became the last Retriever to earn America East Player of the Week honors, for matches ending Oct. 24. Rigsbee averaged 3.38 kills per set, 1.0 blocks per set in 2-0 week helping UMBC lock up a championship berth. She had sa match-high in kills in both contests, finishing with 16 at UAlbany and 11 at Binghamton, while also adding four blocks in each match.

·         Prior to last week, Draskovic earned America East Setter of the Week honors for three consecutive weeks.

·         Teter has earned Defensive Specialist of the Week on four occasions this season.

·         The league has honored Bilusic with three Rookie of the Week citations in her initial campaign.

A GLANCE AT THE HAWKS/ALL-TIME SERIES  

·         The two squads just met on Oct. 3 and the Retrievers pulled off a 3-0 victory in West Hartford. The Retrievers triumphed, 25-16, 25-22, 25-17 and hit a robust .276 for the match. Bilusic led the way with 15 kills and Draskovic amassed 35 assists in the three sets.

·         Hartford is 4-16 on the campaign and 2-5 in America East. However, the Hawks have split their last four matches, earning a four-set win at Binghamton on Oct. 10 and just sweeping, NJIT on Oct. 24 at home.

·         Freshman OH Camryn Luginbuhl put away an impressive 17 kills versus the Highlanders and sophomore setter Morgan Galligan dished out 34 assists.

·         Luginbuhl is the runaway leader in the conference in kills per set with 4.06, while Galligan is fourth in America East with 8.35 assists per set.

·         The UMBC victory earlier this month pushed their all-time series advantage over UH to 32-6. The Hawks did win both matches in a season versus UMBC as recently as 2019.  

UP NEXT

UMBC will play a non-conference match at Delaware on Thursday, Nov. 4 before returning home for a Sunday, Nov. 7 match versus UAlbany.