WEEKLY HONORS

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Logan Pope, Charleston

Senior | Right Side | Chapel Hill, North Carolina / East Chapel Hill HS

Pope powered Charleston to a weekend sweep at Stony Brook, averaging 3.86 kills and 0.86 blocks per set, while compiling a .431 hitting percentage. 

On Sunday, the senior right side tallied a career-high 19 kills on a .417 hitting percentage. She had six blocks and five digs in a four-set victory over Stony Brook, as Charleston clinch a berth in the CAA Tournament. 

The performance came after helping the Cougars to a straight-set win Saturday, with eight kills on a .467 hitting percentage.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Lydia Wiers, Towson

Senior | Middle Blocker | Willard, Ohio / Willard HS

Wiers was a force at the net, recording 1.88 blocks and 2.00 kills per set in Towson’s weekend sweep over William & Mary. 

The senior middle blocker opened the weekend with a match-high nine blocks, helping the Tigers limit William & Mary to a .097 hitting percentage. She added three digs, in addition to eight kills on a .385 hitting percentage offensively. 

On Sunday, Wiers led the match with six blocks and added one dig, while rounding out her game with eight kills on a .889 hitting percentage. 

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Kali Moore, Stony Brook

Freshman | Outside Hitter | Brooklyn, New York / Park Slope Collegiate

Moore averaged 5.14 kills per set on a .318 hitting percentage, with 2.57 digs per set in a pair of matches for Stony Brook over the weekend. 

Moore nearly missed a pair of double-doubles, recording a match-high 16 kills on a .556 hitting percentage, adding nine digs in a setback against Charleston on Saturday. 

The freshman outside hitter followed the performance by leading the weekend finale with 20 kills, in addition to nine digs, despite the Seawolves falling to the Cougars.

? Let's hand out CAA Volleyball weekly awards presented by @PrimisBank @CofCVolleyball's Logan Pope@Towson_VB's Lydia Wiers@StonyBrookVB's Kali Moore

? https://t.co/wxBIqOFjFP pic.twitter.com/Zd3LdTjZiO

— Colonial Athletic Association (@CAASports) October 31, 2022

CONFERENCE NOTES

RACE TO THE FINISH 

• Hofstra remains atop the CAA standings at 12-0 following a bye in conference play. Towson is hot on the Pride’s tail at 11-1 after a 2-0 weekend against William & Mary. Both teams will be in action this weekend, as Hofstra hosts Northeastern and Towson visits Charleston, before the teams meet at SECU Arena during the final week of the regular season. 

TICKETS PUNCHED 

• Four teams secured their spots in the 2022 CAA Volleyball Championship field over the weekend. 

Charleston, Elon and Northeastern swept their previous series to clinch a berth in the tournament field, while a win from Delaware earned the Blue Hens a spot, too.

THE PENULTIMATE WEEKEND IS HERE 

• The second-to-last weekend of the regular season has arrived in CAA Volleyball. A lighter schedule than usual, with three teams on byes, features eight conference matches. There will be four contests apiece on Saturday and Sunday, with all eight available on FloVolleyball. Two of the four matchups will consist of the top four teams in the conference standings.  

• Hofstra will host Northeastern, as the Pride look to remain unbeaten in conference play, while the Huskies look to continue their rise in the CAA standings after climbing into third place with a pair of wins over North Carolina A&T. Hofstra and Northeastern split the season series in 2021, with both matches going five sets. The matchup is poised to be as good in 2022. 

• Towson and Charleston also split their season series in 2021, with both matches going five sets. The Tigers and Cougars will meet this weekend at TD Arena, as Towson looks to continue its pursuit of a third straight regular-season title, and Charleston aims to stay in the thick of the conference standings. 

TEAM NOTES

Charleston 

• Charleston clinched a berth in the CAA Tournament following a weekend sweep of Stony Brook. The Cougars defeated the Seawolves 3-0 and 3-1 in the first matchups between the teams. 

• Logan Pope led the Charleston attack, recording 27 kills (3.86 per set) on a .431 hitting percentage. Pope tallied a career-best 19 kills in the weekend finale. 

• Emma Appleman and Tynley Smeltzer reached career milestones over the weekend, surpassing 1,000 assists and 500 digs, respectively. Appleman also recorded her fifth double-double (33A, 12D), while Smeltzer averaged 4.43 digs per set in the series. 

Delaware 

• Delaware secured a spot in the CAA Tournament field after a weekend split against UNCW. The Blue Hens topped the Seahawks 3-1 on Saturday, before dropping a five-set decision on Sunday. 

• Lani Mason averaged 4.44 kills per set and 2.67 digs per set, recording double-doubles in both matches to lead Delaware. Mason tallied 27 kills and 13 digs in the weekend finale, after 13 kills with 11 digs in the Blue Hen victory.

• Eileen Gex had a terrific weekend on the backline, racking up 6.11 digs per set. Gex posted career-high totals in back-to-back matches, with 26 digs Saturday and 29 on Sunday. 

Elon

• Elon earned a weekend sweep over Hampton to clinch a berth in the CAA Tournament. The Phoenix opened the series with a four-set victory, before winning in straight sets Sunday.  

• Leah Daniel recorded double-digit kills in both matches, with 10 and 12, respectively. Daniel has at least 10 kills in 17 matches this season, including each of the last four.  

• Haylie Clark totaled 66 assists (9.43 per set) over the weekend, with 33 in each match. Clark has eclipsed double-digit assists in every appearance this season and has reached 30 assists in 14, including four straight.

Hampton 

• Hampton continued conference play, dropping a pair of matches to Elon over the weekend. On Saturday, Hampton fell in four sets, before a straight-set defeat on Sunday. 

• Gabby Calloway paced the Hampton attack with a team-best 18 kills (2.57 per set). On Saturday, she reached double figures with a team-high 11 kills. Calloway now has at least 10 kills in seven contests this fall and three of her past four appearances. 

• Leanna Caldwell led the Hampton backline with 30 digs (4.29 per set) and tallied double-figure digs in both matches. Caldwell has at least 10 digs in 11 contests this season. 

Hofstra 

• Hofstra saw its 12-match winning streak come to an end in non-conference action, as the Pride dropped a 3-1 decision to Chicago State on Sunday. 

• Izadora Stedile recorded her fifth double-double during her freshman campaign to lead the Pride. Stedile tallied 15 kills on a .324 hitting percentage, adding 10 digs. 

• Yagmur Cinel also tallied her fifth double-double this fall. The junior contributed 12 kills and 10 digs, while posting a .300 hitting percentage. Cinel has at least 10 kills on 14 occasions this year, including eight of the past nine matches. 

North Carolina A&T

 North Carolina A&T dropped a pair of matches to Northeastern, battling in five sets Sunday, before a straight-set defeat Monday afternoon.

• Naiya Sawtelle recorded a team-high 20 kills (2.50 per set) for the Aggies and added 11 digs (1.38 per set). With 11 kills in the series opener, Sawtelle has double-figure kills in 20 matches this season. 

• Chiara Napoli secured her sixth double-double this season with 21 assists and 16 digs Sunday. Napoli has at least 10 assists in 19 matches this season and 20 or more on 13 occasions. 

UNCW

• UNCW snapped a 10-match skid, defeating Delaware in its weekend finale in five sets to earn a series split against the Blue Hens. 

• Caitlyn Callahan had a solid weekend at the net, recording 12 blocks (1.33 per set) and 15 kills (1.67 per set). The redshirt sophomore tallied nine kills and a season-high nine blocks in the UNCW victory. 

• Katie Lanz was also a key contributor for the Seahawks, tallying 20 kills ( 2.22 per set) and 23 digs (2.56 per set). Lanz recorded her sixth double-double this season, with 11 kills and 11 digs in Sunday’s win. 

Northeastern 

• Northeastern extended its winning streak to four matches following wins over North Carolina A&T on Sunday (3-2) and Monday (3-0). 

• Jessica Frannea continued to impress, tallying 81 assists (10.13 per set), while recording her sixth double-double this fall. On Sunday, she recorded 53 assists, marking her fourth performance with at least 50 this season. She followed the performance with 28 assists and 12 digs Monday. 

• Erica Staunton paced the Northeastern attack, recording a team-high 28 kills (3.50 per set). With 19 kills on Sunday, Staunton has at least 10 in 18 contests this season. 

Stony Brook 

• Stony Brook dropped a pair of matches to Charleston, falling to the Cougars 3-0 and 3-1 over the weekend. It marks the first time the programs have faced off on the volleyball court. 

• Kali Moore led the Seawolves, recording 36 kills (5.14 per set) and 18 digs (2.57 per set) while posting a .318 hitting percentage. She tallied double-digit kills in both matches, including 20 in the series finale. She has 10 or more kills in 14 matches this season and 20 or more in four.

• Abby Campbell and Leoni Kunz also reached double-figure kills in the weekend finale with 14 and 12, respectively.  

Towson 

• Towson earned a pair of four-set victories over William & Mary to improve to 11-1 in CAA play this fall. The Tigers are 11-0 at home this season. 

• Lydia Wiers contributed on both sides of the net, recording 16 kills (2.00 per set) on a .591 hitting percentage with 15 blocks (1.88 per set). 

• Irbe Lazda had a personal-best weekend, setting new career highs for kills and blocks. On Saturday, Lazda tallied eight blocks before 17 kills Sunday. In total, she recorded 28 kills (3.50 per set) on a .328 hitting percentage with nine blocks (1.13 per set). 

William & Mary

• William & Mary fell in back-to-back matches to Towson, dropping both decisions in four sets. 

• Eleanor Stothoff led the Tribe with 27 kills (3.38 per set), including a match-high 18 on Saturday. Stothoff has reached double-digit kills in nine matches this season and five of her past six. 

• Anna Porter tallied double-figure digs in both matches for a weekend total of 30 (3.75 per set). She led William & Mary in both contests, recording 12 and 18, respectively. Porter has at least 10 digs in 18 matches this season, including 14 consecutive.