Volleyball Hosts Three Matches this Weekend

Friday: Watch | Live Stats
Saturday: Live Stats
Sunday: Watch | Live Stats
 
Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham volleyball team (7-15, 4-7 A-10) is in the home stretch of the 2021 regular season with two weekends of play left. This weekend, the Rams host three Atlantic 10 rivals, starting with Saint Louis on Friday at 6 p.m., VCU on Saturday at 5 p.m., and Davidson on Sunday at 1 p.m.
 
Friday and Sunday's matches will be streamed live on ESPN+, with the live stats link the same throughout.
 
Pride Match
Friday evening's match will be in support of the Bronx's LGBTQ+ community. Fans are encouraged to wear bright, prideful colors! We'll be raising money to support Destination Tomorrow, the Bronx's LGBTQ+ center, which you can support anytime HERE or at the match itself at the Rose Hill Gym. Fans will also have the opportunity to write on the Wall of hope for words of encouragement to the community.
 
Breast Cancer Awareness
Last Friday's match was for Breast Cancer Awareness. Fans who have yet to donate can do so HERE and help us reach our goal!
 
Last Time Out
The Rams fell to defending champions, Dayton, but rallied to defeat Duquesne on Saturday in thrilling fashion. Read about the results here and here.
 
Where They Rank
The Rams find themselves in the top half of every statistical category within the Atlantic 10 – 4^th in hitting percentage (.198), 5^th in kills per set (12.15), and 4^th in blocks per set (2.09) to name just three.
 
At the individual level, several Rams are near the top of their respective categories. Chloe Pejouan would lead the league in blocks per set if she met the proper requirements, averaging 1.58 over her 36 frames. Izzy Fichtel is up to 6^th in the league with 1.02. Whitley Moody is third in both kills per set (3.58) and points per set (4.02), while Mallory Lipski is third with 4.66 digs per set and Megan Brzozowski is third with 9.05 assists per set. Fordham has two players in the top-10 for hit percentage – Fichtel in fourth at .312 and Aria De La Rosa ninth at .280.
 
Nationally, Lipski is 54^th in digs per set and 70^th with 382 total digs. Moody is 66^th in attacks per set (10.75), 86^th in total attacks (871), and 121^st in kills per set. Brzozowski is 135^th in assists per set.
 
As a team, the Rams' 2.09 blocks per set would be seventh-highest all-time, while their collective .198 hit percentage ranks solo sixth.
 
Brzozowski Enters All-Time Top-10 in Assists
As you could guess by the title, junior setter Megan Brzozowski moved into 10^th all-time, passing Mary Diamantidis ('10), several weeks ago against George Mason. Brzozowski is up to 1,669, passing Abigail Konovodoff ('15) for ninth and is close to passing Maddy Walsh ('18), who had 1,712 for her career.
 
Lipski Named A-10 Defensive Player of the Week
The Louisville native earned her first piece of league hardware by averaging nearly six digs per set over eight frames of the Rose Hill Classic. Read all about it here.
 
Moody Named A-10 Player of the Week
Moody, the reigning Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year and a three-time Rookie of the Week in the Spring, earned her first Player of the Week award and Fordham's first since 2017. Read all about her weekend here.
 
Series Histories
Saint Louis – The Billikens have dominated the all-time series since joining the Atlantic 10 in 2005, winning 23 of 24 contests. Fordham's lone win came in five sets on the road in 2011. Saint Louis has won 13 straight since, including a sweep earlier this year, and are 11-0 in the Bronx all-time.
 
VCU – The (other) Rams lead the all-time series 10-3 since 1997 when the two met in neutral, nonconference action, a four-set Fordham win, before VCU joined the A-10 prior to the 2012 season. The Bronx Rams took that first A-10 meeting, too, in four sets, and a sweep at home in 2015, but the rest has been all VCU since, including a sweep on the road earlier this year.  
 
Davidson – Similarly, the Wildcats recent addition to the A-10 prior to the 2014 season has led to just 10 meetings all-time, which Davidson has won seven of. However Fordham is 3-2 on its home court.  Earlier this season, Davidson won in four sets at home.   
 
Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll
As a result of their effort in the spring, the Rams were predicted by the league's head coaches to repeat their fourth-place finish in the annual preseason poll, the highest Fordham has ever finished in it, besting the previous high of sixth in 2009.
 
VB Earns AVCA Team Academic Award
For the second straight year and third time in the last four, the Rams earned the USMC/AVCA Team Academic award for programs with a cumulative 3.3 GPA or higher.
 
Up Next
The Rams will honor their four seniors (Joey Landeros, Claire O'Neil, Makaela Tanaka, and Bella Ureña) on Senior Night next Friday against Rhode Island, which kicks off at 5 p.m. before going up to play at Rhody on Sunday at 3 p.m. in the regular season finale.