BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford University volleyball team are set to host the Mercer Bears Wednesday, travel to Furman on Saturday to close out the 2021 fall Southern Conference regular season.

Samford is currently riding a four-match winning streak having downed Western Carolina, UNCG, ETSU and Chattanooga in the Pete Hanna Center in successive weekends. The Bulldog run has been led by back-to-back SoCon Offensive Player of the Week, Kenya McQuirter, and back-to-back SoCon Setter of the Week, Kayla Keshock. McQuirter recorded 46 kills in Samford's pair of home matches, while Keshock set the offense with a combined 88 assists in seven sets this past weekend.

NOTES
Opponent: Mercer
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 10
Location: Birmingham, Ala.    
Site: Pete Hanna Center
Time: 7 PM CT
 
COVERAGE:
Live Stats
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Opponent: Furman
Date: Saturday, Nov. 13
Location: Greenville, S.C.   
Site: Alley Gymnasium
Time: 6 PM CT
 
COVERAGE:
Live Stats
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SERIES HISTORY

• Mercer
  • Since 2008 the Bulldogs have held the 18-6 lead in the Bulldog-Bears rivalry, however, the Bears bested Samford in the previous meeting this season with a 3-0 win in Macon.
• Furman
  • Samford leads the overall series with Furman 19-9 and is currently on a nine-match winning streak over the Paladins. The Bulldogs and Paladins have met once before this season in Birmingham with Samford earning the 3-0 sweep.

BULLDOGS TO WATCH

• Kenya McQuirter is backing up her spring Freshman of the Year campaign with an amazing sophomore season totaling 330 kills including a new career high 24 kills in just three sets in the Bulldogs dominant win over the Chattanooga Mocs.
• Kayla Keshock has had an outstanding sophomore campaign recording 850 assists in 82 sets this season. She has also added 29 service aces and 161 digs.
• Kate Morgan continues to lead Samford on the back row with 27 digs last weekend bringing her season total to 294.
• Briana Holmes was assertive on the offensive and defensive side of the ball against ETSU including the decisive points in two of the three sets won by Samford. Holmes accounted for nine kills and eight total blocks against the Buccaneers in big win for Samford at home.

OPPONENT QUICK LOOKS:

• The Mercer Bears are currently sitting alone atop the Southern Conference standings with a conference record of 11-3. The Bears are led by Rayanne de Oliveira who has 227 kills and 79 blocks on the season.
• Furman is 2-12 in conference play with attackers Bella Tolone and Neci Harris leading the way on the offensive side with 249 and 214 kills respectively.

DIG ORANGE:

• The Samford University volleyball team will celebrate their annual Dig Orange game to support cancer research, with all donations going to the American Leukemia Foundation. 
• The Dig Orange game is an annual event that honors Caroline Neisler, a former student-athlete who passed away in 2013 just weeks after being diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. The Bulldogs honor the life and legacy of Caroline through Dig Orange, and the Bulldogs will wear orange ribbons and accents to support of all of those affected by leukemia.

 
FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS:
For the latest news and information on Samford volleyball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordVolleyball (Facebook), @SamfordVB (Instagram) and @SamfordVB (Twitter).