Sophomore Kelsey Hancock and the Golden Hurricane play the C-USA home opener Friday at 7 p.m. against Marshall, and take on East Carolina Saturday at 7 p.m.

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Volleyball C-USA Home Opener Friday and Saturday

Golden Hurricane plays Marshall Friday at 7 p.m. and East Carolina at 7 p.m. Saturday

Oct. 1, 2009

TULSA, Okla. - The University of Tulsa volleyball team opens its Conference USA home slate this weekend when it plays host to Marshall and East Carolina Friday and Saturday, each at 7 p.m., at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.

The Hurricane is looking to get back on track in the C-USA race after dropping its first to league matches on the road last weekend. Live stats via Gametracker and live video via Hurricane Vision will be available at www.TulsaHurricane.com.

"More than anything else, we're excited to get back home," Tulsa Head Coach Ed Allen said. "The travel may have taken a toll on our team, especially the freshmen, so it will be good to get back into the routine at home. We look forward to getting back in front of a home crowd and to get back on the right track to reach our goals in the conference. We have the talent to do that, and we rank in the top three in Conference USA in many categories. Both teams (Marshall and ECU) will present a challenge to us."

Tulsa (10-5, 0-2 C-USA) ranks among the top five in seven categories this week. The Hurricane is hitting .274 as a team (773 kills-259 errors-1873 attempts), with 773 kills (14.05 k/set), 719 assists (13.07 a/s), 65 service aces, 829 digs (15.07 dig/s) and 104.0 total blocks (1.89 per set).

Marshall (15-2, 3-0 C-USA) enters the weekend hitting .232 (879-345-2300) with 879 kills (14.18 k/s), 791 assists (12.76 a/s), 90 service aces, 976 digs (15.74 dig/s) and 108.0 total blocks (1.74 b/s).

Eat Carolina (8-7, 1-2 C-USA) enters the weekend with a .190 attack percentage (681-326-1868), 681 kills (12.38 k/s), 624 assists (11.35 a/s), 79 service aces, 698 digs (12.69 dig/s) and 104.5 total blocks (1.90 b/s).

Tulsa is led by the on the outside by senior Jennifer Eichler, who has 221 kills (4.02 kills per set), a .336 attack percentage, 120 digs, 35 total blocks and 247.5 points for the Hurricane. Freshman Tyler Henderson has 224 kills (4.15 k/s), hits .294, has 17.0 blocks and has scored 233.5 points.

At middle blocker, junior Hannah Stout hits .426 with 139 kills and 44 blocks, while senior Julia Kenealy is hitting .312 with 70 kills, and leads the team with 50 total blocks. Freshman libero Jessica Adams leads the Hurricane with 268 digs (4.87 d/s) and has 10 service aces. Setters Rachel Vukson and Jordan Clampitt have 328 (5.96 a/s) and 324 assists (5.89 a/s), respectively, and Clampitt adds 106 digs.

Marshall is led by Elizabeth Herman who has 193 kills (3.22 k/s), 123 digs, 11 aces and 42 blocks, and Emily Sullivan who hits .392, and has 186 kills (3.15 k/s) and 42 blocks. Elizabeth Fleming leads the Thundering Herd with 684 assists, while Ryanne Milligan paces the Herd with 233 digs.

East Carolina is led by Stephanie Turner, who has 165 kills (3.06 k/s), a .207 attack percentage, 13 aces, 92 digs and 12 blocks. Melissa Zentner and Lizzy Bruin have 139 and 123 kills, respectively, and 34 blocks apiece. Hannah Fenker leads the Pirates with 568 assists, as well as 11 aces, 108 digs and 22 blocks, while Amanda Lutzow paces ECU with 111 digs, and Nicole Jones adds 106 digs.

Tulsa and Marshall have played five times; TU leads the series, 3-2. All five matches have come since 2005, TU's first season in C-USA. The Thundering Herd won the first two matches played in Huntington, W.Va., and the Hurricane has won the two meetings in Tulsa. TU also won last year at Marshall.

Tulsa and East Carolina have played five times; TU leads the series, 4-1. Like the TU-MU series, this one has existed since both teams have been members of C-USA. The Pirates' only win in the series came in 2005 in Greenville, N.C., and the Hurricane has won the last four meetings, including twice in Tulsa and in the C-USA Championship first round last season.

For all Tulsa volleyball news and information, visit www.TulsaHurricane.com. Follow Tulsa Athletics on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TulsaHurricane. Become a fan of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane page on Facebook - search "Tulsa Golden Hurricane."