BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford University volleyball program enters Southern Conference play for the first time of the 2016 season when the program hosts Chattanooga (7-6) on Friday, Sept. 23, at 7 p.m. inside the Pete Hanna Center and then ETSU (8-4) the following day on Saturday at 7 p.m.

The Bulldogs (9-6) ended their out of conference schedule with a trip to Arlington, Texas to play in the UT Arlington Invitational. The squad came away with a 3-1 record on the weekend with their only loss handed to them by host institution UTA in the initial contest. Samford's bounced back in a big way and strung together a trio of victories over Houston Baptist, UTEP and New Mexico.

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Bognar named SoCon Player of the Week
Senior outside hitter Erin Bognar was named this week's SoCon Player of the Week after she posted three-straight triple doubles at the UT Arlington Invitational. Bognar leads the team with six total double-doubles on the year and also ranks second in the SoCon with 218 kills.

Samford in SoCon action
This will mark ninth season that Samford will have been a member of Southern Conference volleyball. Over that span the Bulldogs have amassed a record of 169-86 which includes four SoCon North Division Titles and a pair of SoCon Tournament Championships (2011 & 2014).
 
Scouting the Mocs

• The Bulldogs and the Mocs will square off for the 37^th time on Friday as Samford comes in with the lead in the series 24-13. Samford walked away with a 3-1 victory inside the Pete Hanna Center the last time the two teams met in Birmingham.
• UTC finished its preseason schedule at home where it went 2-1 with wins over Ole Miss and Appalachian State. The only loss on the weekend came against OVC member Tennessee State.
• Look for Ally Davenport and Kristy Wieser to pace the Mocs offense as the duo each have over 100 kills on the season. Defensively they will look for sophomore libero Rachel Petkosh who holds the team lead with 189 digs (4.40 d/s) on the season.

 
Scouting the Buccaneers

• This will be just the sixth overall meeting between the two programs on Saturday. The last time the two teams met was during the 2015 SoCon Tournament where the Buccaneers handed the Bulldogs an early exit 3-2 in the first round. It was the first time since 2009 that Samford was put out in the first round.
• ETSU is a sophomore laden team that has garnered valuable experience so far this season. A total of five sophomores have seen action a majority of the season – AJ Lux leads the class and has started 18 straight times for the Buccaneers.
• The Buccaneers lead the SoCon in hitting percentage with 594 kills (.253) in 42 sets on the season which is just ahead of Samford's average of .229 (754 kills).
• ETSU also boasts the league's best defense as it has held opponents to hitting just .178 on the year.