The Matchup
Memorial will play five games over four days, which includes matches against every team in the conference. This is the second year that this league tournament has taken place and will give an early indication of where they stack up with other teams in the conference.
The schedule for this weekend is as follows:
Thursday, November 16 – vs. Moncton (7:30pm NST)
Friday, November 17 – vs. Dalhousie (5:30pm NST)
Saturday, November 18 – vs. UNB (12:00pm NST)
Saturday, November 18 – vs. Acadia (6:00pm NST)
Sunday, November 19 – vs. Saint Mary's (12:30pm NST)
Last Action
The Sea-Hawks were off last weekend, but previously hosted the Moncton Aigles Bleus in a home weekend triple header. Memorial won all three matches and will look to build on those victories this upcoming weekend.
By the Numbers
3 – Memorial enters the weekend in second place in the AUS standings with a 3-0 record. Dalhousie currently sits in first place with a perfect 5-0 record.
12.82 – The Sea-Hawks lead the AUS in kills per set, with 12.82. Kier Fey & Sarah Dawe are the team leaders with 47 and 34, respectively.
1.45 – Memorial is averaging 1.45 blocks per set, which is 4th (of 6) in the AUS. The team will look to improve on this number this weekend.
Players to Watch
Kier Fey (Memorial) – Fey is coming off a career weekend, which saw her post three consecutive double-doubles. She totaled 47 kills, 46 digs, 4 aces, and 2 blocks. She leads the AUS in kills/set with 4.27.
Alison Poynter (Memorial) – The 4th year setter also posted a strong opening weekend, totaling 130 assists. She leads the AUS in assists/set with 11.82.
Coach's Take
Head Coach John Slauenwhite liked what he saw from his squad during opening weekend, but knows they will need to show improvement in a few key areas to have continued success.
"I'm very pleased with our team culture, willingness to make changes, and daily work ethic so far this season. As a team, we have set a goal to win the event and have been focused on what we want to achieve over the last two weeks. This event is unique where we have to prepare for all five teams."
Furthermore, Slauenwhite feels this weekend is great early preparation for the AUS playoffs and his team will look to enter this weekend with a playoff type mentality.
"As a team, we have decided to treat each game like the playoffs. In the playoffs, you prepare for the match at hand, and then deal with the next opponent once that is decided. This weekend will be no different. Our focus right now is on our Thursday evening match versus Moncton. Following our Thursday match, we will prepare all day Friday for our Friday evening match and so on."