GAMEDAY CENTRAL
No. 19 Embry-Riddle (14-9, 7-0 TSC) vs St. Thomas (12-11, 6-0 TSC)
DATE: Friday, Nov. 1, 2013
CITY: Daytona Beach, Fla.
SITE: ICI Center
START TIME: 7 p.m.

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No. 19 Embry-Riddle (14-9, 7-0 TSC) vs Florida Memorial (5-13, 0-8 TSC)
DATE: Saturday, Nov. 2, 2013
CITY: Daytona Beach, Fla.
SITE: ICI Center
START TIME: 2 p.m.

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LIVE STATS: Stretch Internet
LIVE AUDIO: Stretch Internet
LIVE VIDEO: Stretch Internet

ABOUT EMBRY-RIDDLE
The Blue and Gold are ranked 19th in the eighth regular season coaches' poll after being ranked 10th in 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 215-81 career record in this, her ninth season at the helm of the Eagles.

ABOUT ST. THOMAS
St. Thomas hails from Miami Gardens, Fla. and is a fellow member of The Sun Conference. Callaway Mefford is in her second season at the helm of the STU program and owns a 28-17 record with the Bobcats. In 2012, STU finished 16-7 overall and 8-2 in league action, finishing third in the regular season conference standings and reaching the conference championship match, where they lost to Embry-Riddle, 3-0.

The Bobcats sit in sole possession of second place in The Sun Conference with a 6-2 mark in league play. As a team, St. Thomas is averaging 11.55 assists/set, ranking 39th in the NAIA. Dana Nowaczyk (6.6, 4th) and Sydney Maynard (4.7, 8th) are both in the top eight in the league in assists/set. Nicole McInnis has been the top offensive threat, averaging 3.74 kills/set, which is tops in the conference and ranks her 31st in the country. Jordan Wiese leads the team and is 12th in the conference with 241 digs while Rosa Viera is eighth in the league with a team-leading 50 blocks (four solo).

ABOUT FLORIDA MEMORIAL
Florida Memorial also hails from Miami Gardens, Fla. and is a fellow member of The Sun Conference. Gregory Stanback is in his third season at the helm of the Florida Memorial program and owns a 12-45 record with the Lions. In 2012, FMU finished 4-15 overall and 0-10 in league action, finishing eighth in the conference.

The Lions rank third in The Sun Conference with 1.65 service aces/set, led by Jada Long's 0.51 aces/set, ranking her fourth in the conference and 29th in the country. Sabrina Beckles is 10th in the league with a .186 hitting percentage, while Crystal Merrick has averaged 5.89 assists/set, sixth-best in the conference. Jovia Dukes is listed 12th in The Sun Conference with an average of 0.52 blocks/set and Natasha James is eighth with 3.36 digs/set.

STREAKING IN THE POLLS
When the NAIA released the eighth coaches' poll of the 2013 regular season on Tuesday, the Eagles found themselves at No. 19 in the rankings, a nine-spot drop from the team's previous ranking of No. 10. Embry-Riddle spent the entire 2011 season and all but one week in 2012 ranked in the top 10, a total of 25 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 46 consecutive 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 11.86 assists/set, the 27th-best average in the country. With 12.81 kills/set, ERAU ranks 32nd in the NAIA. Ranking 35th in the nation, the Eagles have picked up 17.01 digs/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 6.41 digs/set, the third-highest average in the nation. Her 519 digs are also the 31st-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 775 assists for an average of 9.81 assists/set, which ranks her 30th in the nation in that category. But she has also collected a team-leading 43 service aces in addition to picking up 221 digs, second-best on the team. Ferreira has also proven to be an offensive threat herself, putting down 124 kills, including a match-high 16 kills at Flagler on Sept. 11. The Barbacena, Brazil native also has 44 blocks (three 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 348 career blocks, 13 behind Susan Delahanty's 361 program record number. Jacobson has averaged 87 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 419-235 all-time, capturing five regular season titles, four conference tournament titles and making three appearances at the NAIA National Championship.