Weekly Notes | Tournament Page

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University volleyball team will make its home debut this weekend, as the Lady Pirates host the Tiny Laster Memorial Classic on Friday and Saturday in Holland Hall.
 
Weekend Schedule: Georgetown vs. Hampton, Friday at 6 p.m.; Presbyterian vs. Georgetown, Saturday at 10 a.m.; Presbyterian vs. Hampton, Saturday at 6 p.m.
Live Stats: Click here.
 
Last Time Out: The Lady Pirates (5-3) fell in five sets at Radford on Tuesday, despite 22 kills from senior Vendula Strakova (Brno, Czech Republic), as well as a season-high 17 kills from senior Sonja Maksimovic (Belgrade, Serbia) and 13 kills from senior Krista Kraskura (Kuldiga, Latvia). Kraskura also had a team-high 18 digs for her sixth double-double of the season.
 
The Opponents: The Lady Pirates are 0-1 against Georgetown, falling in straight sets to the Hoyas in 2009 in Washington, D.C. Hampton has never faced Presbyterian.
 
At Home: The Lady Pirates were a perfect 7-0 in Holland Hall last season, including a five-set win over William and Mary in their lone non-conference home match. Five of those seven matches were straight-set victories. Overall, the Lady Pirates have won 10 straight home matches dating back to the 2012 season; their last home loss was Oct. 21, 2012 against Norfolk State.
 
A Historic Season: The 2013 season was one of firsts for the Lady Pirates; they won their first-ever MEAC Tournament title — and corresponding bid to the NCAA Tournament — after taking their first MEAC Northern Division regular-season crown. Hampton won 19 matches last season, tying the program Div. I mark for most wins in a season, and the Lady Pirates' 10-2 record in conference play marked a program Div. I high in conference wins in a season.
 
Lady Pirates Picked to Repeat: The Lady Pirates were picked as the favorite to win the MEAC Northern Division this season, picking up 23 of a possible 26 first-place votes in a preseason poll voted on by the conference's head coaches and sports information directors. Florida A&M was picked to win the MEAC Southern Division.
 
Strakova Named MEAC Preseason Player of the Year: Strakova has been tabbed the MEAC Preseason Player of the Year — after earning the conference's top honor in 2013 (becoming the first Hampton player to do so). It's yet another in a laundry list of accolades for Strakova, who last year was named Honorable Mention All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association — becoming the first Hampton player ever to be recognized by the AVCA. She was also named AVCA All-East Region, the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Player of the Year, and the MEAC Tournament's Most Outstanding Player (another Hampton first).
 
Two-For-Two For Strakova: Not only has Strakova won MVP honors in the two tournaments in which the Lady Pirates have competed so far this season, she is also a two-time MEAC Player of the Week – as both of the conference's weekly honors have gone to her. This comes a week after she also earned weekly honors from the AVCA and ECAC.
 
Start the Countdown: Following Tuesday evening's five-set match at Radford, Strakova has 1,215 career kills at Hampton, which ranks her fourth in program history and makes her one of just five players ever to cross the 1,000-kill mark. After tallying 22 kills on Tuesday, Strakova is now just 257 kills behind all-time record holder Chavanca Hoskins, who tallied 1,472 kills from 2003-06. She is now 29 kills behind third-place Nicole Adams, who had 1,244 career kills from 2000-03.
 
Kraskura Off to a Strong Start: As the Lady Pirates' No. 2 offensive threat, Kraskura had a strong 2013 season — earning Second Team All-MEAC honors. She was strong in the DePaul Invitational this past weekend, recording three double-doubles and hitting .340. She now has six double-doubles to open the season after her 13-kill, 18-dig performance this past Tuesday at Radford.
 
Medina Broke Out in 2013: Junior outside hitter Allysa Medina (Menifee, Calif.) was one of the Lady Pirates' most improved players in 2013, showing power on the outside that betray her 5-foot-6 frame. Medina had a career-high nine kills in a five-set win over William & Mary to announce her arrival, and in conference play, she had 92 kills, an average of 0.91 per set, to go along with 123 digs on defense. She added eight kills against Norfolk State, hitting a career-best .533 in that match after going error-free in 15 attacks.
 
Thomas Gives Lady Pirates Local Flavor: Incoming freshman middle blocker Tatyana Thomas (Suffolk, Va.) isn't just the tallest player on the team, standing at 6-foot-3. She is also the only player on the roster from Virginia, having played her high school volleyball at Nansemond River High School in nearby Suffolk, Va. There, she played under current Lady Pirates assistant coach Nicole Giancola, and as a senior, she was named the Ironclad Conference Player of the Year. She led Nansemond River to the conference championship and was named Team MVP.
 
Block Party: Six Lady Pirates recorded at least 30 total blocks last season, led by middle blocker Marija Kocevska (SkopjeKarpos, Macedonia), who had 100.0 total blocks. Strakova was second on the team with 69.0 total blocks in 2013, and Petra Parros — who is now on the Lady Pirates' coaching staff — was third with 64.0 total blocks. Maksimovic (39.0), recently-graduated setter Bibiany Fonseca (38.0), and Kraskura (33.0) were also strong at the net in 2013. Hampton had more blocks than its opponent 11 times in 2013, going 10-1 in those matches.
 
Lady Pirates in the National Rankings: Coming into the week, the Lady Pirates rank eighth among all Div. I programs in total assists, ninth in assists per set, 10th in total kills, 11th in hitting percentage, and 19th in kills per set. Individually, Strakova leads the nation in both total kills and total attacks, while ranking third in both kills per set and points per set. She is also fourth in the nation in attacks per set. Senior Kitija Megne (Kuldiga, Latvia) is second in the nation in both total assists and assists per set.
 
Lady Pirates Have Plenty of Experience: Despite graduating five seniors last season, the Lady Pirates come into 2014 with a bevy of experience — thanks in large part to four returning seniors, a senior transfer, and a junior. Strakova, Kraskura, Maksimovic, and Kocevska each have at least two seasons' worth of experience at Hampton, and all four played in at least 85 sets in 2013. In addition, Megne, a setter, has Div. I experience thanks to her time at Virginia Tech. Medina is the team's lone junior.
 
Making Quick Work of It: The Lady Pirates went 10-4 in three-set matches last season, and prior to their NCAA Tournament match-up against Stanford, they had won seven of their last eight matches that wrapped up in straight sets. Hampton is 2-1 in straight sets so far this season after a straight-set win over Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday.
 
In It for the Long Haul: The Lady Pirates went 4-2 in five-set matches last season — including the MEAC Tournament championship match against Coppin State. Over the past two-plus seasons, the Lady Pirates are 9-6 in matches that go the distance following a hard-fought five-set loss at Radford this past Tuesday.
 
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.