Volleyball Hosts Duquesne and La Salle this Weekend

Watch (Duquesne) | Watch (La Salle) | Live Stats
 
Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham volleyball team (8-6, 1-0 A-10) will look to carry its recent momentum, a three-match winning streak and wins in six of its last seven matches, into this weekend's two Atlantic 10 conference contests. The Rams will host Duquesne (5-9, 0-2 A-10) on Friday night at 7 p.m. and La Salle (8-7, 1-1 A-10) on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. inside the Rose Hill Gym.
 
Both matches will be streamed live on ESPN+. International ESPN+ viewers CLICK HERE and select the game or match you want to view. You'll be directed to a specific page for subscriptions.
 
Last Time Out
After four matches the week prior, the Rams had just one last week – defeating Rhode Island at home in comeback fashion to begin A-10 play. Elise Benjamin and the Fordham defense combined for a new program five-set record of 17.5 team blocks with the junior setting a new career-high of 11 blocks. You can read more about her match in the section below. For the ninth time this season, the Rams took the first set.  Their offense was firing on all cylinders in that opening frame, tallying 14 kills to one error on 25 attacks, good for a .520 hit percentage. However, Rhody responded with an even better offensive performance in set two, with a .643 attack percentage on 28 attacks. The visitors carried their newfound momentum into a third set victory. With their backs against the wall, the Rams fought back. Rhody didn't help itself with 11 attack errors in set four but the Fordham defense played a big part in that. Rhode Island took a lead in set five but Fordham rallied, aided by six kills from Kaitlin Morley, with 11 kills to surge past the visitors and secure a thrilling victory.
 
Benjamin Named Defensive Player of the Week
For just the second time since 2012, the Fordham Rams have been represented as the Atlantic 10's Defensive Player of the Week. It's also the second straight week a player has earned the distinction, after Morgan Williams did so last week, and it's also the third time in program history the team has had two different players win the award. Elise Benjamin was announced as the award winner on Monday afternoon by the league office after tallying a career-high 11 blocks, one solo, against Rhode Island in the Rams' conference opener last Saturday evening, one shy of the five-set record of 12 blocks set by Randi Ewing in 2011. Benjamin anchored a front block that broke the school's five-set single-match record by 1.5 team blocks, finishing the match with 17.5. Read more about her week and award HERE.
 
The junior out of Desoto, Texas missed the first two weeks of the season due to injury but returned to match her previous personal-best of seven blocks against Cal State Fullerton in her third match back, set a new personal mark with eight against Dartmouth two Saturdays ago, and then notched 11 a week later.
 
Despite the late start, Benjamin is just five blocks short of Claire O'Neil's team lead and is tied with Olivia LaPorta for most solo blocks, with four. Her 1.36 blocks per set average over her 28 frames would rank 29^th in the country if she met the minimum requirement of appearing in two-thirds of the team's total sets. The A-10 only requires playing in half of a team's matches so Benjamin is second in the conference with that per-set rate, behind VCU's Jasmin Sneed.
 
Series Histories
Duquesne – The Dukes hold a 35-4 all-time series lead since 1995 when the Rams entered the A-10. Fordham's lone wins have come in 1998 (both matches), 1999 (away), and 2004 (home). Duquesne has won the last 20 meetings between the two schools. The Rams hold a 2-16 record in the Bronx.
 
La Salle – Conversely, Fordham holds a 39-8 all-time record over the Explorers since 1984. Five of the series' matches came before 1995, with La Salle winning four of them, plus the series' first A-10 meeting. The Explorers have since won just three matches, including in Philadelphia at the end of the 2016 season. Between losses in 1998 and 2014, both on the road, Fordham enjoyed 30 consecutive wins. In fact, the Rams have never lost to La Salle in the Rose Hill Gym over 19 matches.
 
Conference & National Ranks
Individual

• Kaitilin Morley 182 kills (A10: 5^th, NCAA: 132^nd)
• Kaitlin Morley 3.25 kills per set (A10: 5^th, NCAA: N/A)
• Kaitlin Morley 203.0 points (A10: 5^th, NCAA: N/A)
• Morgan Williams 230 digs (A10: 3^rd, NCAA: 106^th)
• Morgan Williams 4.18 digs per set (A10: 5^th, NCAA: 145^th)
• Elise Benjamin 1.36 blocks per set (A10: 2^nd, NCAA: N/A)
• Makaela Tanaka 337 assists (A10: 8^th)
• Makaela Tanaka 7.84 assists per set (A10: 7^th)

 
Team

• 122.0 total blocks (A10: 3^rd, NCAA: 84^th)
• 69 aces (A10: 1^st, NCAA: 148^th)
• 619 assists (A10: 3^rd, NCAA: 150^th)
• 162 kills (A10: 3^rd, NCAA: 162^nd)
• 783 digs (A10: 4^th, NCAA: 153^rd)
• 2.18 blocks per set (A10: 3^rd, NCAA: 114^th)

 
Preseason Poll
Fordham was selected to repeat its finishes of the past two years and end this upcoming season seventh it was announced in the Atlantic 10's preseason poll voted on by the league's head coaches. The Rams garnered 36 votes. Read more about it.
 
Up Next
The Rams take to the road for a pair of Atlantic 10 matches on back-to-back days next weekend, facing George Mason and George Washington, both at 7 p.m., starting on Friday, October 5.