@CanesVB Ready for ACC Opening Weekend
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The University of Miami volleyball team opens ACC play this week with matches against two historical rivals.
The Hurricanes (6-6) will begin conference action with matches against No. 15 Florida State and Notre Dame. Miami will travel to Florida State for its ACC opener at 7 p.m., on Friday, while the Canes will host Notre Dame at 11:30 a.m., on Sunday in their ACC home opener.
Friday’s match against Florida State will mark the second match the Hurricanes will play this season against a ranked opponent. Miami faced No. 3 Texas during the second weekend of the season at the American Campus Classic.
Miami will be led into ACC play by one of the top players in the conference in junior Olga Strantzali. The outside hitter comes off her second all-tournament selection of the season, earning the honors at the Wildcat Classic and Delaware Invitational. Strantzali leads the ACC with 4.33 kills per set and has 199 kills on the year. She also ranks eighth in the ACC with 0.35 service aces per set.
Anna Haak and Kolby Bird are two other talented options Miami has at the pins. The sophomores are second and third, respectively, on the team in kills and rank near the top of several statistical categories on the 2016 Canes. Haak, who is second with 126 kills, also ranks third on the team in digs (98) and service aces (9). Bird has the third-most kills on Miami’s squad with 78, while ranking third in attack percentage (.242), second in service aces (11) and third in blocks (28).
The Hurricanes feature a talented trio of middle blockers. Junior Sakile Simmons is the most experienced, entering her third season as a starter for the Canes, while sophomore Lucia Pampana started a year ago and leads the team in attack percentage (.331) and blocks (39). At 6-foot-3, freshman Madison Dill gives Miami additional size in the middle that can help on the attack and with the block.
Freshman Hannah Sorensen made her Hurricane debut a week ago at the Delaware Invitational and got her collegiate career off to a solid start. Sorensen had two double-doubles as Miami’s setter and dished out a career-best 44 assists in the victory over Duquesne.
Sylvia Hernandez projects as Miami’s libero and has a team-leading 145 digs. The Hurricanes also have a host of options in reserve that include junior outside hitter Brook McDermott and junior setter Alyssa Basdavanos, sophomore defensive specialist Codi Lee and freshmen defensive specialists Sara Duque and Carly Davey.
Following this weekend’s matches, Miami will host Boston College and Syracuse during the second week of ACC play. Boston College will face Miami at the Knight Sports Complex at 7 p.m. ET on Sept. 30, while Syracuse plays the Canes at 1 p.m. ET on Oct. 2.
All Hurricanes volleyball home matches are played at the James L. Knight Sports Complex on the University of Miami campus. Admission is free. For a complete look at the Hurricanes’ 2016 schedule, click here.
For all the latest information on Miami Hurricanes volleyball, follow the official Twitter feed, @CanesVB, or “Like Us” on Facebook at facebook.com/UMVolleyball. The program is also on Instagram.
