Despite falling in a 3-0 shutout to Jacksonville on Saturday, KSU’s volleyball squad is in good position to claim the final seed in the Atlantic Sun Volleyball Championship, which will be hosted by KSU next weekend.
On Friday night, KSU (12-15, 7-10 A-Sun) earned a crucial victory during their trip to Jacksonville by beating North Florida for the second time this year. KSU’s final home match of the season is this Friday against in-state foe Mercer, who is just 1-26 on the season. A win will clinch the Owls a seed in the A-Sun tournament, while a loss will put KSU’s season in the hands of North Florida.
In the case that the Bears upset KSU, the Ospreys could replace the Owls by winning its final two matches against reigning champion ETSU (21-7, 15-1 A-Sun) and USC Upstate (4-22, 3-13 A-Sun). Northern Kentucky, which owns a 6-10 conference record, is ineligible to compete in the postseason due to reclassification rules.
In KSU’s win against North Florida, freshman Kelly Marcinek continued what has been quite a first-year campaign. Marcinek, who was named A-Sun Player of the Week on Nov. 4, registered 19 kills in the winning match. Her season-high was 23 on Aug. 8, which is second in KSU’s record books.
“(Kelly) continues to do incredible things as a freshman…,” said first-year head coach Keith Schunzel. “The team is well aware that we need at least one more victory to ensure our spot in the conference tournament, and what I love right now is that they’re embracing that challenge.”
KSU hosts the Bears on Saturday at 3 p.m. The rivalry matchup will be available to view on ESPN3.
