Wildcats finish up regular-season with NJIT on Senior Day

Saturday, March 27

Durham, N.H.

2 PM

University of New Hampshire

NJIT

3/26/2021 8:30:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

Saturday, March 27th vs. NJIT (2pm)
Senior Day
(Lundholm Gymnasium; Durham, N.H.)
Watch | Live Stats | Roster Card

Sunday, March 28th vs. UAlbany (1pm)
(Lundholm Gymnasium; Durham, N.H.)
3-0 win by forfeit

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS: UNH enters the final weekend of the regular season with a 5-3 overall record and in third place in the America East standings with a .625 winning percentage. The Wildcats are coming off a 3-1 week against UMBC and Binghamton in four neutral site matches at NJIT. Junior outside hitter Kate Bilyeu (Omaha, Neb.) and freshman outside hitter Hannah Serbousek (Fort Collins, Colo.) each notched a team best 39 kills in the four matches last week, while freshman middle blocker Kelly Kaufmann (Raleigh, N.C.) chipped in with 30 kills. Junior middle blocker Abby Sullivan (Methuen, Mass.) leads the team with 64 kills through eight matches for the Wildcats.

PLAYOFF SCENARIOS: UNH would clinch championship berth with: Two wins this weekend combined with one UMBC loss or one win this weekend combined with two UMBC losses and one Stony Brook loss to Binghamton and by finishing with a better winning percentage in conference sets vs. all conference opponents than Hartford. The two teams would finish with the same number of wins and did not play so tiebreak (iv) would be first applicable. Currently, UNH has won 17‐ of‐30 sets (.567) and Hartford has won 14‐of‐27 sets (.519).

HONORING EMMA PATLOVICH ON SENIOR DAY: The Wildcats will honor their lone senior, setter Emma Patlovich (Lake Forest, Ill.) in a pre-match ceremony on Saturday vs. NJIT. She was an America East All-Rookie selection in 2017 and is a two-time America East Academic Honor Roll selection. She has registered 2,281 assists in her Wildcat career, including a career-high 991 in her sophomore season in 2018. Patlovich has amassed 555 career digs and 88 service aces. She has a 3.32 GPA as a Human Development and Family Studies major.

LAST TIME OUT: The UNH volleyball team earned a pair America East victories on Monday afternoon at Fleisher Athletic Center on the campus of NJIT. In the late match, UNH swept UMBC, 3-0. The set scores were 25-17, 25-22 and 22-19. Bilyeu led the UNH attack with a team-high 11 kills with a .212 hitting percentage and four digs. Serbousek and Sullivan chipped in with eight kills apiece. Serbousek added a .350 hitting percentage and nine digs, while Sullivan hit at a .538 clip with seven total blocks.

MIA PAGLIARINI NETS AE DEFENSIVE SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK HONOR: Freshman libero Mia Pagliarini (Springboro, Ohio) of the UNH volleyball team was named America East Defensive Specialist of the Week, which was announced on Tuesday by the conference office. Pagliarini, who wins the award for the first time in her Wildcat career, notched 70 digs and 4.67 digs per set in the 3-1 week for UNH in four total matches. She totaled 18 digs in three of the four matches and registered 16 digs in the 3-0 sweep on UMBC on Sunday. Pagliarini also registered a 98.3% on serve receive over the weekend in 59 total attempts. In her first season in Durham, she has led the Wildcats defensively with 122 digs in 29 sets and eight matches, posting 4.21 digs per frame. Her 4.21 digs per set ranks third among America East players. Pagliarini has posted 15 or more digs in six of eight matches, which included a career-high 20 digs on February 28 at UAlbany.

SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS: NJIT comes into the weekend with a 2-9 overall mark and a 2-8 record in AE play. The Highlanders have won two of their last three matches with both victories coming against Binghamton. In the 3-1 win vs. the Bearcats on Monday, Adriana Goetz-Morales posted a match-high 15 kills, while Kaitlyn Arias totaled a match-high 17 digs. Elley Torres leads the team with 99 kills on the year, averaging 2.48 kills per set.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. NJIT: The Wildcats own a 3-0 all-time meeting against the Highlanders, including the most recent meeting, a 3-1 Wildcat win in the season opener on February 27. Freshman middle blocker Gabby Smith (Carmel, Ind.) notched a career-high 15 kills in her first collegiate match for the Wildcats, while Pagliarini notched 18 digs in the victory.

AE LEADERS: The Wildcats lead America East with 2.07 service aces per set, 18.1 digs per set and total blocks with 2.11 per stanza. UNH also ranks second in kills (14.0) and assists (12.3). Serbousek and Bilyeu ranked third and fourth among AE players with 0.48 and 0.46 aces per set, respectively. Sullivan and Kaufmann rank fifth and sixth among conference players with 0.92 and 0.86 blocks per frame, respectively. Sullivan's .341 hitting percentage is fourth best among America East hitters.

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