Weekly Notes

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University volleyball team will hold its 2013 home finale, squaring off against rival Howard to celebrate Senior Day at 3 p.m. in Holland Hall.

The Lady Pirates are 6-0 at home this season and have won their last 10 home matches dating back to last season. Hampton will bid farewell to five seniors on Sunday: Andjela Petrovic (Belgrade, Serbia), Bibiany Fonseca (Uberlandian, Brazil), Ioana Kalfinova (Sofia, Bulgaria), Petra Parros (Bloomfield, N.J.), and Sheileen Pagan (Rio Grande, Puerto Rico).

Hampton (13-10, 7-2 MEAC) is looking to bounce back after dropping a pair of matches in Baltimore, Md. this past weekend, which were its first losses of the season in conference play.

Howard (18-8, 6-2 MEAC) comes into the weekend in second in the MEAC Northern Division, having won three straight matches heading into a Friday evening tilt at Norfolk State.

The top four teams in each division qualify for the MEAC Championships (Nov. 15-17 at Coppin State).

Heading into the weekend, junior rightside Vendula Strakova (Brno, Czech Republic) continues to lead the nation in both points (6.56 per set) and kills (5.70 per set), and her 0.51 service aces per set are the 10th-best average in the nation.

Strakova, a five-time MEAC Player of the Week, is also third in the MEAC with a .304 hitting percentage.

Junior middle blocker Marija Kocevska (SkopjeKarpos, Macedonia) is fifth in the MEAC and 42nd in the nation with 0.39 service aces per set, and her 0.91 blocks per set are the second-best average in the conference.

Fonseca leads the MEAC and is 71st in the nation with 10.48 assists per set.

Junior outside hitter Sonja Maksimovic (Belgrade, Serbia), who totaled 32 kills last weekend, is currently sixth in the MEAC with a .273 hitting percentage.

As a team, Hampton leads the MEAC in hitting percentage (.247), kills (13.29 per set), assists (12.08 per set), and aces (1.82 per set). The Lady Pirates are fourth in the MEAC in opponent hitting percentage (.200) and fifth in blocks (1.78 per set).

The Lady Pirates are 20-28 all-time against Howard, but Hampton has won each of the last 10 meetings between the two teams — including a straight-set victory over the rival Lady Bison earlier this season in Washington, D.C.

For more information on Hampton University volleyball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.