What you need to know:
* Georgia State will look to put together another solid tournament in Georgia Tech's O'Keefe Gymnasium in the Georgia Challenge starting Thursday.
* The Panthers play two matches Thursday at 12:30 p.m. against host Georgia Tech and versus Georgia at 5:00 p.m. GSU will finish off the Georgia Challenge with another neutral match against Kennesaw State on Friday at 3:00 p.m.
* Georgia State will rely on senior attacking leaders Kristina Stinson and Eliza Zachary as well as defensive specialist freshman Celeste Friesen to control match tempo versus stout competition.
ATLANTA – Starting tomorrow, Georgia State court volleyball will attempt to bounce back after a tough Bruiser Showcase. The Panthers are coming off a weekend in which they went 1-2 versus William & Mary, Mercer and Belmont. The weekend started off promising with a straight sets victory over the Tribe, but GSU dropped the last two matches in a combined six sets to fall to 3-3 on the young season.
The coaching staff and players know the competition will only intensify this week with an ACC and SEC opponent as well as a Kennesaw State team that went 19-9 last season. The Panthers are a combined 14-46 versus the three schools all-time, but they do have a winning record versus the Kennesaw State Owls at 5-1. GSU will go for its first win over the Yellow Jackets since 1998. Tech is off to a fast start at 4-2, while Georgia is undefeated at 6-0. The Owls opened the year slowly, starting just 1-6.
Heading into the Georgia Challenge, Kristina Stinson and Eliza Zachary have combined for a team-leading 97 kills on the season. Underclassmen Celeste Friesen and Anna Rantala have led the way defensively for Georgia State with 91 and 57 digs, respectively. Zachary leads the Panthers in blocks with 17 and sophomore transfer Katie Creger is close in second with 16. Sarah Renner is just one assist shy of her 200th early in her sophomore campaign.
Head coach Sally Polhamus and the team look forward to battling once again tomorrow afternoon and understand that getting off to a fast start will be crucial. Be sure to tune in to see all the coverage of the Georgia Challenge starting on Thursday at 12:30 p.m.
Follow along with Georgia State on Twitter (@GeorgiaStateVB) for the latest news.
