GAMEDAY CENTRAL
No. 12 Embry-Riddle (11-6, 5-0 TSC) at Ave Maria (5-10, 2-1 TSC)
DATE: Friday, Oct. 18, 2013
CITY: Ave Maria, Fla.
SITE: Tom Golisano Field House
START TIME: 7 p.m.

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No. 12 Embry-Riddle (11-6) at Northwood (8-16, 1-3 TSC)
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 19, 2013
CITY: West Palm Beach, Fla.
SITE: Countess de Hoernle Student Life Center
START TIME: 2 p.m.

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LIVE STATS: Stretch Internet

ABOUT EMBRY-RIDDLE
The Blue and Gold is ranked 12nd in the sixth regular season coaches' poll, holding steady from last week's poll. The Eagles reached the NAIA National Tournament Final Site for the third consecutive season in 2012. Head Coach Josylnn Gallop is the winningest coach in program history, owning a 212-78 career record in this, her ninth season at the helm of the Eagles.

ABOUT AVE MARIA
Ave Maria hails from Ave Maria, Fla. and is a fellow member of The Sun Conference. John Leonard is in his third season at the helm of the Ave Maria program and owns a 21-44 record with the Gyrenes. In 2012, AMU finished 4-15 overall and 3-8 in league action, finishing sixth in the regular season conference standings and reaching the conference quarterfinals, where they lost to St. Thomas, 3-0.

The Gyrenes are averaging 9.5 kills, 9.3 assists, 15.9 digs and 1.3 blocks per set. Hayley Wonka leads the squad with 117 kills and Briana Jackson has compiled 298 assists running the offense. Marian DeTar leads the defense with 201 digs while Wonka has picked up 178 digs to rank second on the team. With 23 blocks (five solo), Hannah Wurster leads the Gyrenes in blocking.

ABOUT NORTHWOOD
Northwood hails from West Palm Beach, Fla. and is also a fellow member of The Sun Conference. Chris Taylor is in his second season at the helm of the Northwoodl program and owns a 14-31 record with the Seahawks. In 2012, NU finished 6-15 overall and 2-9 in league action, finishing seventh in the regular season conference standings and narrowly missing the conference tournament.

The Seahawks average 9.9 kills, 9.2 assists, 15.4 digs and 1.5 blocks per set. Northwood ranks 43rd in the NAIA in service aces per set (1.84), led by Sydney Fish's 50 aces, the 12th-best individual total in the country. Fish leads the team with 49 blocks (10 solo) and also ranks second on the team with 178 kills, trailing only Nikki McKown's 188. Breanne Machacek (353 assists) and Nicole Papineau (278 assists) serve as the two setters in the Seahawk offense, while Danielle Lampman (319 digs) anchors the defense. 

STREAKING IN THE POLLS
When the NAIA released the sixth coaches' poll of the 2013 regular season on Tuesday, the Eagles found themselves at No. 12 in the rankings for the second consecutive week. Embry-Riddle spent the entire 2011 season and all but one week in 2012 ranked in the top 10, a total of 24 weeks, including a trio of weeks at No. 2 (Sept. 20 - Oct. 4, 2011). In total, the Eagles have been ranked in the Top 25 for 43 polls, the fifth-longest active streak in the NAIA.

BLUE AND GOLD AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
The Eagles have shown early in 2013 that they are among the best in the NAIA in three of the most important facets of the game: kills, digs and assists. Embry-Riddle is currently averaging 12.05 assists/set, the 21st-best average in the country. With 13.05 kills/set, ERAU ranks 26th in the NAIA. Ranking 30th in the nation, the Eagles have picked up 17.05 digs/set. The Blue and Gold also rank 49th in the country with 1.74 service aces/set.

GRAY DOMINANT DEFENSIVELY
Junior libero Hannah Gray has proven that she is one of the best defensive players in the country with her stellar play this season. Gray, last year's Sun Conference Libero of the Year, is currently averaging 6.64 digs/set, the third-highest average in the nation. Her 405 digs are also the 35th-highest total in the NAIA.

FERREIRA DOING IT ALL
Sophomore setter Tamires Ferreira is out to prove that setters can do more than just rack up assists. She has done a great job circulating the ball while running the 5-1 offense for the Eagles, recording 482 assists at an average of 9.88 assists/set, which ranks her 30th in the nation in that category. She has also collected a team-leading 35 service aces, in addition to picking up 161 digs, second-best on the team. Ferreira has also proven to be an offensive threat herself, putting down 96 kills, including a match-high 16 kills at Flagler on Sept. 11. The Barbacena, Brazil native also has 31 blocks (one solo) on the season, ranking third on the Eagle squad.

MILESTONE CHASE
At least one Eagle is in the hunt for a career milestone and a program record during the 2013 season. Emily Jacobson stands at 332 career blocks, 29 behind Susan Delahanty's 361 program record number. Jacobson has averaged 88.3 blocks per season since stepping on ERAU's campus.

REPLACING THE BEST CLASS IN EAGLE HISTORY
Following the 2012 season, Gallop lost four seniors that were arguably the best class in program history. Jordan Holcomb and Taylor Martin (now volunteer assistant coaches for the Eagles) rank No. 3 and No. 4 respectively on the all-time kills list (1,000-Kill Club), while Adriana Vazquez shattered the career assist mark (5,035) while collecting four straight Sun Conference Setter of the Year honors (1,000-Assist Club). Glorida Kemp also graduated after compiling 672 kills, a .276 attack percentage and 237 blocks in her four-year career.

PRESEASON FAVORITES
The Sun Conference coaches selected the Eagles to top the league's preseason poll, released earlier this month. Embry-Riddle garnered six first-place votes and 48 total points to claim the No. 1 spot in the poll, while St. Thomas came in second with two first-place votes and 43 total points.

19 SEASONS OF EAGLE VOLLEYBALL
The 2013 season marks the 19th edition of Eagle volleyball. Embry-Riddle is 416-232 all-time, capturing five regular season titles, four conference tournament titles and making three appearances at the NAIA National Championship.