INSTITUTE, W.VA. – West Virginia State Volleyball returns to the road this weekend, bringing their 3-1 record into the Virginia State Invitational in Ettrick, Va., where they'll face a quartet of squads on the two-day affair.
 
THE WEEKEND AHEAD
Friday, Sept. 2—1:00 PM vs. Shippensburg
Friday, Sept. 2-- 5:00 PM vs. Virginia State
Saturday, Sept 3. – 11:00 AM vs. Chowan
Saturday, Sept. 3- 3:00 PM vs. Elizabeth City State

WVSU is coming off a quick victory Wednesday in their home opener, sweeping Kentucky State in a contest that took roughly just one hour to complete. The squad exhibited a strong, versatile roster, as 24 different Yellow Jackets appeared in at least one set during the match.

Junior transfer Diamond'Nique Young leads the way with 56 kills, averaging 4.00 a set and hitting at a stellar .479 efficiency. She also tops the team with 16 total blocks. Classmate Peri Martin guides the offense with 72 assists, narrowly edging senior Brooke Smith's 71. Both are averaging over 5.10 a set.

Yet another impressive third-year is defensive specialist Alex Darby, who has tallied 66 digs and a team-high seven service aces. Classmate Kiersten Eggleton has recorded three double-doubles in her first four contests, posting 46 kills, 19 assists, 54 digs and seven blocks.

SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
Shippensburg enters the weekend with a 1-3 clip on the young season, and will take on Chowan in a Friday matinee before facing the Yellow Jackets. The squad is led by junior transfer Jordan Bowen with 28 kills, and classmate Rachel Verhoef already has an impressive 19 rejections at the net. Freshman Kearstin Davis has dished out 62 assists, and redshirt sophomore Alex Leitner has a team-best 40 digs.

SCOUTING THE TROJANS
Virginia State also heads into the tournament with a 1-3 record, and most recently fell in a five-setter to a very knowledgeable foe to WVSU in conference member Glenville State. Rookie Amaya Cooper tops the squad with 27 kills, and also posts a team-best seven blocks. Sophomore Najlaa Williams has 59 digs, and veteran setter Makenzy Johnson has 59 assists. VSU will face Elizabeth City State prior to taking on State.

SCOUTING THE HAWKS
Chowan takes on Shippensburg and Elizabeth City State before facing WVSU Saturday, but carries a 2-1 record into the weekend. This squad also took down a fellow MEC member, with a 3-1 win over Alderson Broaddus before beating Dominican by the same score last weekend. Senior Anixa Rosa-Martinez leads the way with 34 kills with classmate Alexa Woodson pacing her at 54 assists. A pair of freshmen guide the Hawks defensively, with Diana Rodriguez's 50 digs and Nia Baskin's six blocks.

SCOUTING THE VIKINGS
Elizabeth City State comes into the weekend right at .500 with a 2-2 record, but takes on the rest of the tournament field before meeting WVSU. The Vikings, too, have also faced some Mountain East Conference squads in Glenville State (W, 3-1) and Davis & Elkins (L, 1-3). Sophomore Jada Rouse has started off hot for the squad with 51 kills, with junior Elizabeth Kellum's 67 assists guiding her. Kellum also leads the way in digs with 62, and rookie Clarke Blakemore tops in rejections with 15 blocks.

FOLLOW US!
Follow WVSU on Twitter for in-match updates as well as links for live stats and other information all season long.

UP NEXT
State returns to its home court, hosting Central State for a 7 p.m. first serve.