Weekend Road Trips to Hartford (Oct. 7) & UMass Lowell (Oct. 9)

UNH (9-8, 2-0 America East) at Hartford (4-12, 1-2 America East)
Friday, Oct. 7 • 7 pm • Hartford Volleyball Gym • West Hartford, Conn.
Video • Live Stats

UNH (9-8, 2-0 America East) at UMass Lowell
Sunday, Oct. 9 • 1 pm • Costello Athletic Center • Lowell, Mass.
Video • Live Stats

Wildcat Truimvirate Feted by America East
Three UNH student-athletes received a weekly award from America East on Tuesday. Senior captain and middle blocker Demi Muses (Orangevale, Calif.) was named Player of the Week; senior and captain Keelin Severtson (Delray Beach, Calif.) was tabbed Setter of the Week; and freshman outside hitter Kennedi Smith (The Woodlands, Texas) was selected Rookie of the Week for the second consecutive week.

The trio led UNH to straight-set home wins against conference foes UMBC (25-19, 25-18, 25-14) and Stony Brook University (25-19, 25-15, 25-22).

Muses: Player of the Week Highlights
Demi Muses averaged 3.67 kills, 3.33 digs and 2.0 blocks per set. She recorded her third consecutive double-double with a match-high 15 kills and team-leading 13 digs against UMBC last Friday; she also recorded a .406 hitting percentage and four blocks vs. the Retrievers. Muses had another all-around impactful match Sunday against SBU with a match-high eight blocks as well as seven kills, a .227 hitting percentage and team-high seven digs.

Severtson: Setter of the Week Highlights
Keelin Severtson averaged 11.00 assists and 1.83 digs per set. She also chipped in with five blocks, four kills (.286 hitting percentage) and three service aces. Under her direction, the 'Cats recorded a .268 hitting percentage in the two matches. Severtson tallied 34 assists on UNH's 41 kills to orchestrate the Wildcats to a .276 hitting percentage; the 'Cats closed the match with a .393 hitting percentage in the third set. Severtson recorded 32 assists on New Hampshire's 38 kills to lead the Wildcats to a .258 hitting percentage vs. Stony Brook. UNH hit at a .345 clip in the first set followed by .385 in the second; she was also credited with three blocks, two kills and one service ace against the Seawolves.

Smith: Rookie of the Week Highlights
Kennedi Smith recorded 3.0 kills per set, 2.33 digs per set and 1.00 blocks per set. She recorded seven kills on the strength of a .375 hitting percentage vs. UMBC; Smith was also credited with nine digs, two blocks and matched her career high of three service aces. She tallied a match-high 11 kills with a .227 hitting percentage vs. Stony Brook; She equaled her personal best of four blocks and also had five digs and one ace; in the second set, she had six kills and .444 attack percentage, then in the third set she contributed three kills, four digs, three blocks and an ace to help UNH rally from a 13-7 deficit to win 25-22.

UNH at Hartford
New Hampshire has a 39-3 lifetime record against Hartford and has won each of the last seven meetings and lost just three sets total in that span, which dates back to Nov. 9, 2012. Most recently, UNH prevailed 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-21) on the road. Earlier in the 2015 season, the Wildcats won in straight sets (25-12, 25-12, 25-7).

UNH at UMass Lowell
New Hampshire has won all seven matchups against UMass Lowell. Last year, the Wildcats recorded sweeps both home on Oct. 11 (25-12, 25-21, 25-7) and at UML's Costello Athletic Center on Nov. 6 (25-15, 25-10, 25-12).

New Hampshire Scout
UNH enters the weekend with a 9-8 overall record that includes 1-3 on the road and 2-0 in America East. The Wildcats ended a seven-match homestand last weekend with straight-set victories against UMBC and Stony Brook; New Hampshire had a 5-2 record on the homestand with four wins in straight sets. The 'Cats begin a stretch of eight consecutive road matches Oct. 7 at Hartford.

National Numbers
Keelin Severtson enters the weekend ranked No. 18 in the nation in service aces (28) and No. 19 in aces per set (0.47).

Conference Dominance
Since the start of the 2013 season, UNH has a 36-4 America East conference record (.900 winning percentage). The Wildcats won both the regular-season and tournament titles in 2013, 2014 and 2015.

Double Doubles
Freshman Emily Tanski (Plymouth, Mich.) has a team-high seven double-doubles this season; most recently, she tallied 11 kills and 12 kids vs. UMBC (Sept. 30). Senior middle blocker Demi Muses has recorded a double-double four of the last six matches and has five in 13 matches; her most recent double-double was also vs. UMBC with 15 kills and 13 digs.

The Leaderboard
Muses and Tanski enter Friday's match tied atop the kills leaderboard with 170; Muses leads UNH in both kills per set (3.62) and hitting percentage (.300). Severtson is atop the assist leaderboard (627) – no other 'Cat has more than 30 assists – as well as the list of service aces with 28. Senior defensive specialist Sara Carlson (Hutchinson, Minn.) is UNH's leader in both digs (205) and digs per set (3.36). Also on the defensive side of the net, sophomore middle blocker Gabri Olhava (Mount Prospect, Ill.) has a team-best 45 blocks.

Conference Call
UNH is atop the America East conference leaderboard in kills per set (12.85) and assists per set (11.95). Aslo of note, the Wildcats are No. 2 in both digs (16.31/set) and opponent hitting percentage (.191), as well as No. 3 in service aces (1.48/set). On the individual leaderboards, Severtson leads the league in service aces per set (10.45) and is second in assists per set (10.39); Muses ranks second in points per set (4.17) and hitting percentage (.300), third in kills per set (3.62) and eighth in blocks per set (0.83); Carlson is No. 5 in digs per set (3.36), followed by Tanski (7^th; 3.08) and Muses (8^th; 2.96); in other stats, Tanski is No. 7 in points (3.15/set) and No. 9 in kills (2.74/set); and Olhava ranks fifth in blocks per set (0.94).

She Doesn't Take a Set Off
Tanski is the only Wildcat who has played in all 62 sets. Carlson (61), Severtson (60) and Bowman (58) have also topped 50+ sets played. Muses has played in 47 of 49 sets since missing the first four matches of the season.

3, 4 or 5
Eight of New Hampshire's 17 matches have been decided in straight sets with a record of 5-3. The Wildcats have a 2-5 record in four-set matches and are 2-0 in matches that go the five-set distance.

Hartford Scout
The University of Hartford (West Hartford Conn.) enter Friday's match vs. UNH with a 4-12 record that includes 2-2 at home and 1-2 against America East opponents; this will be the Hawks' first home conference match. Most recently, Hartford lost against Albany on Oct. 2, 3-1, with Paulina Modestow leading the team in kills with 13, while Astrid Mangual lead the team in assists and digs, with 33 and 12 respectively. Modestow leads the team in kills with 195, and Mangual leads the team in total digs (142) and assists (527). Hartford is 1-4 in its last five games; eight of the Hawks' 12 losses have been in straight sets.

UMass Lowell Scout
UMass Lowell (Lowell, Mass.) plays host to the Wildcats on Oct. 9. The River Hawks have a 5-13 record, and are 0-3 against America East opponents with a 1-2 home record. They are on a 10-match losing streak and have not won since Sept. 9. In their most recent game, Bryant University won the last two sets to rally for a 3-2 victory on Oct. 5. Last weekend, UMass Lowell lost to Binghamton (3-2; Oct. 2) and Albany (3-1; Sept. 30). For the season, Haley Shimon and Madi Bell ranke 1-2 in kills with 164 and 163, respectively, Delaney Mendez has team high 407 assists, and Lindsey Visvardis stands atop the team leaderboard in digs with 274.

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