Women’s Volleyball Preview: Flyers Gear Up To Assert Dominance In A-10

Ethan Swierczewski
Contributing Writer

The Dayton women’s volleyball team continues to roll through their Atlantic 10 schedule, completing another impressive win on Sunday afternoon against Rhode Island 3-0.

The Flyers are now 7-1 in conference play heading into their non-conference matchup with state rival Cincinnati on Wednesday. Dayton is 16-5 overall on the season and continues to impress fans and onlookers with their dominance; the team has not dropped a set in four straight games, all against conference opponents.

The A-10 recognized both senior Lauren Bruns and freshman Alli Papesh with weekly honors; Bruns received her fifth A-10 Player of the Week Award while Papesh was proclaimed Rookie of the Week. Both Bruns and Papesh tallied double digits in kills in the squad’s victory over Rhode Island on Sunday.

The Bearcats enter their matchup with the Flyers as winners of their last seven games, the last four of which have come on the road. Cincinnati is 16-4 overall on the season and 7-0 in American Athletic Conference play, tied for first overall in their conference standings.

The Flyers have posted 95 kills over their last two games while limiting their opponents to only 46 kills over that same stretch. The team as a whole reached a season-high in hitting percentage in their matchup with Rhode Island, putting up a .410 mark on the game.

The Flyers will face a formidable non-conference opponent in the Bearcats, led by redshirt junior Jordan Thompson.

Thompson was just named the national Player of the Week by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. She was the national leader in kills, points, kills per set and points per set for seven consecutive weeks this season.

While winning this match will be no easy job for the women’s volleyball squad, their performance as of late has been more than stellar. Wednesday night’s contest will be another great test for a team that has been nothing but dominant over the past several weeks.

Photo courtesy of Christian Cubacub.