Friday, November 1
Lincoln, NE
8:00 PM ET
Rutgers University
at
Nebraska
Photo by: Rich Graessle
Volleyball Set For Road Matches With No. 8 Nebraska & Iowa
Oct 29 | Women's Volleyball
Scarlet Knights Take on Huskers on Friday & Follow With Matchup With Hawkeyes on Saturday
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - The Rutgers women's volleyball team hits the road for a pair of matches with No. 8 Nebraska on Friday and Iowa on Saturday. Both contests begin at 8 p.m.
Nebraska welcomes the Scarlet Knights with a 16-3 overall mark and 8-2 record in Big Ten play most recently dropping a five-set matchup at No. 20 Purdue last Saturday snapping a five-game win streak. Lexi Sun leads an attack that averages a league-best 14.24 kills in conference games with 3.54 kills/set to check in at sixth among her Big Ten peers. Also helping to direct the attack is Nicklin Hames, one of eight in the Big Ten averaging double figure assists at 10.79 per set. As a team, the Huskers are holding the opposition to a .143 hitting percentage, lowest in the Big Ten and ranking seventh nationally. At the net, Callie Schwarzenbach adds 1.09 blocks/set with Kenzie Knuckles averaging 3.78 digs/set.
Iowa enters the weekend at 9-12 overall and 3-7 in conference and will host Penn State before welcoming the Scarlet Knights to Iowa City. The Hawkeyes have won two of their last three with both victories coming against Indiana in between a loss at nationally ranked Purdue. Griere Hughes leads the offense at 3.22 kills/set with Gabrielle Orr in double figure assists at 10.09 per set. Defensively, Halle Johnston is second in the Big Ten at 4.27 digs/set.
• The Scarlet Knights are once again nationally ranked in blocking - coming in 31st this week with 2.56 per set, which ranks fourth in the Big Ten. RU set a program record for blocks in a season in 2018 with 300 total and 2.63 per set. Rutgers ended the season ranked 27th in the nation and fourth in the Big Ten in blocking last fall.
• Rutgers has broken out for high hitting percentages in Big Ten play this season. In the fifth and deciding set on Oct. 27 in a 3-2 win over Northwestern, the Scarlet Knights hit .467. The Scarlet Knights combined on a .353 hitting percentage in the third set victory at No. 7 Minnesota on Oct. 5. RU also hit .308 in a set against No. 2 Nebraska on Oct. 2 and .353 in a set against Michigan, who was receiving national poll votes, on Sept. 25.
• Between Sept. 6 and Sept. 14, Rutgers volleyball won two tournaments in a row, six straight matches and 12 consecutive sets for its longest winning streak since 2012, when the program won 12 straight matches for a 14-1 start to the season.
• Senior libero Karysa Swackenberg was named the Big Ten Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week for her performance during the period ending Sept. 8. The honor is the first of its kind for Rutgers since joining the conference in 2014.
• After setting eight school records in 2018, the Scarlet Knights already have two new program marks in the books for 2019. The team set a record for blocks in a four-set match with 18 against Towson on Sept. 6, while sophomore middle Merle Weidt totaled 12 blocks - an individual record for blocks in a four-setter.
• Swackenberg scooped a career-high 27 digs in the five-set match against Grand Canyon on Aug. 31 as she surpassed 1,000 career digs as a Scarlet Knight. She becomes just the eighth player in program history to reach 1,000 digs, and now ranks third all-time with 1,209. digs.
• Senior middle Jasmine Stackhouse took over sole possession of the Rutgers career block assist record in RU's victory over Northwestern and holds a career total 359 blocks, which is fifth in the all-time record book at Rutgers. Stackhouse was named to the Ellis Rowland Memorial All-Tournament Team at Colgate with 16 blocks in nine sets to go with 21 kills.
• Sophomore setter Inna Balyko was also named to the All-Tournament Team at Colgate with 86 assists, 30 digs and eight kills in three sets, while directing an offense that hit .294 over the weekend without dropping a set. She already ranks eighth all-time in Rutgers history with 1,715 career assists and most recently set a career-high with 52 in RU's victory over Northwestern on Oct. 27.
• Rutgers is coming off a 3-2 win over Northwestern picking up its first Big Ten victory since 2015. The win also upped RU's win total to seven, tying for the most victories since 2014.
• Rutgers has six or more service aces in 11 of 21 matches this season.
• Tali Marmen has led or tied for the team-lead in services aces nine times this season.
• Rutgers had led or tied for the lead in team blocks in 12 of its 21 matches, including five of the last seven Big Ten matches.
• Rutgers had led or tied for the lead in team service aces in 12 of 21 matches.
• Seven Scarlet Knights have 1.5 or more kills per set, while six different RU players have led a match in kills this season.
• Rutgers is 5-1 this season when winning the first set and 5-0 when leading in attack percentage.
• The Scarlet Knights are 5-0 when hitting over .250.
• Against Northwestern, senior middle Jasmine Stackhouse took over sole possession of the Rutgers all-time block assist record and currently has 336 to top the list
• Stackhouse is also fifth on the all-time total blocks list with 359 and needs 12 more to surpass Mikaela Matthews (2012-16) for fourth all-time.
• Sophomore setter Inna Balyko is two assists away from moving into seventh all-time in the category with 1,715. She is ninth in the category in the Big Ten averaging 8.68 assists/set.
• Balyko's 653 assists in 2019 places her eighth on the single season charts. Balyko's 1,063 assists in 2018 put her name third on the list.
• Senior libero Karysa Swackenberg's 15 digs vs. the Wildcats moved upinto third on the all-time digs list with 1,209 surpassing Kera Carter (1997-00) and need 136 more to move up the list into second. She currently ranks 13th in the category among her Big Ten counterparts at 3.31 digs/set.
• Both Jasmine Stackhouse and sophomore middle Merle Weidt are among the league leaders in blocks in the Big Ten as Rutgers is one of four schools with two more listed among the top 15 in the category. Weidt checks in at eighth in the conference at 1.21 blocks/set. Stackhouse, who is fifth all-time in total blocks at Rutgers, is currently averaging 1.08 block/set which is 15th overall in the Big Ten. At a team, RU checks in this week fourth in the Big Ten with 2.56 blocks/set.
• Sophomore outside hitter Tali Marmen who has led RU in the service aces nine times this season, is 10th in the conference at 0.35 aces/set. As a team, the Scarlet Knights are fourth in the league serving up 1.47 aces/set.
• Beka Kojadinovic set a new career mark in digs with 16, surpassing her previous best of 15 set against Lehigh and Navy in 2018.
• Inna Balyko collected a new career high in assists with 52, besting her previous mark of 49 against St. John's in 2018.
The Scarlet Knights return home for Alumnae Weekend hosting No. 16 Purdue on Friday, Nov. 8 and Indiana on Saturday, Nov. 9. Both matches begin at 7 p.m. at the College Ave. Gym.
Follow Rutgers women's volleyball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
| THE SCOUT |
Iowa enters the weekend at 9-12 overall and 3-7 in conference and will host Penn State before welcoming the Scarlet Knights to Iowa City. The Hawkeyes have won two of their last three with both victories coming against Indiana in between a loss at nationally ranked Purdue. Griere Hughes leads the offense at 3.22 kills/set with Gabrielle Orr in double figure assists at 10.09 per set. Defensively, Halle Johnston is second in the Big Ten at 4.27 digs/set.
| HEAD-TO-HEAD |
| KNIGHT NOTES |
• Rutgers has broken out for high hitting percentages in Big Ten play this season. In the fifth and deciding set on Oct. 27 in a 3-2 win over Northwestern, the Scarlet Knights hit .467. The Scarlet Knights combined on a .353 hitting percentage in the third set victory at No. 7 Minnesota on Oct. 5. RU also hit .308 in a set against No. 2 Nebraska on Oct. 2 and .353 in a set against Michigan, who was receiving national poll votes, on Sept. 25.
• Between Sept. 6 and Sept. 14, Rutgers volleyball won two tournaments in a row, six straight matches and 12 consecutive sets for its longest winning streak since 2012, when the program won 12 straight matches for a 14-1 start to the season.
• Senior libero Karysa Swackenberg was named the Big Ten Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week for her performance during the period ending Sept. 8. The honor is the first of its kind for Rutgers since joining the conference in 2014.
• After setting eight school records in 2018, the Scarlet Knights already have two new program marks in the books for 2019. The team set a record for blocks in a four-set match with 18 against Towson on Sept. 6, while sophomore middle Merle Weidt totaled 12 blocks - an individual record for blocks in a four-setter.
• Swackenberg scooped a career-high 27 digs in the five-set match against Grand Canyon on Aug. 31 as she surpassed 1,000 career digs as a Scarlet Knight. She becomes just the eighth player in program history to reach 1,000 digs, and now ranks third all-time with 1,209. digs.
• Senior middle Jasmine Stackhouse took over sole possession of the Rutgers career block assist record in RU's victory over Northwestern and holds a career total 359 blocks, which is fifth in the all-time record book at Rutgers. Stackhouse was named to the Ellis Rowland Memorial All-Tournament Team at Colgate with 16 blocks in nine sets to go with 21 kills.
• Sophomore setter Inna Balyko was also named to the All-Tournament Team at Colgate with 86 assists, 30 digs and eight kills in three sets, while directing an offense that hit .294 over the weekend without dropping a set. She already ranks eighth all-time in Rutgers history with 1,715 career assists and most recently set a career-high with 52 in RU's victory over Northwestern on Oct. 27.
| TRENDING |
• Rutgers has six or more service aces in 11 of 21 matches this season.
• Tali Marmen has led or tied for the team-lead in services aces nine times this season.
• Rutgers had led or tied for the lead in team blocks in 12 of its 21 matches, including five of the last seven Big Ten matches.
• Rutgers had led or tied for the lead in team service aces in 12 of 21 matches.
• Seven Scarlet Knights have 1.5 or more kills per set, while six different RU players have led a match in kills this season.
• Rutgers is 5-1 this season when winning the first set and 5-0 when leading in attack percentage.
• The Scarlet Knights are 5-0 when hitting over .250.
| SCARLET KNIGHTS IN THE RECORD BOOKS |
• Stackhouse is also fifth on the all-time total blocks list with 359 and needs 12 more to surpass Mikaela Matthews (2012-16) for fourth all-time.
• Sophomore setter Inna Balyko is two assists away from moving into seventh all-time in the category with 1,715. She is ninth in the category in the Big Ten averaging 8.68 assists/set.
• Balyko's 653 assists in 2019 places her eighth on the single season charts. Balyko's 1,063 assists in 2018 put her name third on the list.
• Senior libero Karysa Swackenberg's 15 digs vs. the Wildcats moved upinto third on the all-time digs list with 1,209 surpassing Kera Carter (1997-00) and need 136 more to move up the list into second. She currently ranks 13th in the category among her Big Ten counterparts at 3.31 digs/set.
| AROUND THE BIG TEN STATS |
• Sophomore outside hitter Tali Marmen who has led RU in the service aces nine times this season, is 10th in the conference at 0.35 aces/set. As a team, the Scarlet Knights are fourth in the league serving up 1.47 aces/set.
| CAREER MARKS VS. THE WILDCATS |
• Inna Balyko collected a new career high in assists with 52, besting her previous mark of 49 against St. John's in 2018.
| UP NEXT |
Follow Rutgers women's volleyball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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Players Mentioned
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/ Women's VolleyballJersey Mic'd with Skylar George
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