ATLANTA -- Fresh off a trip to California and a 4-2 start, the Georgia State volleyball team returns to the GSU Sports Arena on Wednesday as they it hosts in-state rival Mercer in a 5:30 p.m. match.
GSU's match with Mercer will be its first since going 1-2 at the Titan Classic in Fullerton, Calif. After dropping tough matches to Colorado and Cal State Fullerton, the Panthers swept Montana on Saturday night. Junior Muki Kangwa earned all-tournament honors after recording 30 kills and 13 service aces.
"The Mercer match will be a tough test for our team following the long trip out to California," said head coach Tami Audia. "I will be looking for our team to carry the momentum of this weekend's performance into this match."
The Bears are 2-6 and coming off a pair of victories against UT-Martin and The Citadel at the Mercer Bear Brawl this past weekend. Mercer opened the season with six-straight losses after facing tough competition in a pair of tournaments in Washington and dropping matches to Auburn and Presbyterian College late last week.
The series with the Bears has been one-sided in favor of the Panthers, as GSU holds a 31-4 series advantage. Mercer has managed to to win two of the last five after dropping 12 in a row, but GSU claimed last year's match, 3-0 in Macon.
Redshirt-junior Vineece Verdun has started off the year strong, as she currently sits second in the CAA in kills (3.67 kills a set) and points (4.52 points per set) and third in hitting percentage (.359). She leads the CAA in overall kills (88) and overall points scored (108.5). Junior setter Chelsea Perry sits third in the CAA in assists with 9.04 per set, while Kangwa is third in service aces at 0.58 per set (14 overall). Senior Audrey Cantrell is third in digs at 4.42 per set (106 overall).
As a team GSU is second in digs (403 overall and 16.79 per set) and service aces (49 overall and 2.04 per set).
Live stats for the match will be provided at GeorgiaStateSports.com and as a reminder to fans, admission to all volleyball matches is free of charge.
