Match #27
ART U Urban Knights (6-20, 5-13 PacWest) vs. Azusa Pacific Cougars (14-11, 10-8 PacWest)
Friday, Nov. 22, 2024 at 5 p.m.
Azusa, Calif. – Felix Event Center
Live Stats | Live Video

Match #28
ART U Urban Knights (6-20, 5-13 PacWest) vs. Vanguard Lions (12-11, 9-10 PacWest)
Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024 at 2 p.m.
Costa Mesa, Calif. – Freed Center
Live Stats | Live Video

COUGARS, LIONS UP NEXT AS ACADEMY OF ART CLOSES OUT REGULAR SEASON
Academy of Art volleyball heads to south for the second and final time this year as the Urban Knights prepare for back-to-back Pacific West Conference matches against Azusa Pacific and Vanguard.

FIRST SERVE
In Southern California to conclude the 2024 season, ART U first stops by Felix Event Center to take on Azusa Pacific this Friday, Nov. 22 at 5 p.m. before debuting at the Freed Center in Costa Mesa against Vanguard for a 2 p.m. first serve on Saturday, Nov. 23. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram, as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps.

KNIGHT WATCH
The quartet of Academy of Art hitters averaging more than 2.00 kills per set remains with freshman outside hitter Kerrigan Habing (2.40), sophomore middle blocker/outside hitter Alohi Garcia (2.28), junior right side/middle blocker Katherine Von Kraut (2.22), and graduate student opposite Claire Ricard (2.03) still leading the way. Among the top six in the PacWest as she has been all year, senior setter Elly McInerney averages 7.16 assists per set and, with 1,941 in her career (fourth in ART U history), continues to approach the 2,000-assist milestone. In addition to pacing the team with 32 service aces, sophomore libero LC-Reece Nakagawa ranks sixth in the conference in digs per set (4.02) after posting double-digit digs in 22 of her 26 matches played thus far. At 0.75 blocks per set, graduate student middle blocker/outside hitter Fina Tuinauvai is the team leader and carries a 22-match streak with at least one block while graduate student middle blocker Chandra Reed has her own 19-match streak posting at least one block toward an average of 0.67 blocks per set.

COUGAR TOWN
Though Azusa Pacific began PacWest play with five consecutive victories to extend a seven-match win streak, the Cougars followed by going 3-6 with four road losses in that span. Now 14-11 overall and 10-8 in conference action, APU has more recently gone 2-2 despite falling to both Chaminade and Point Loma in Azusa in the last week. The Cougars are strong all around, ranking second in the PacWest in digs per set (16.1) as well as third in both hitting percentage (.224) and blocks per set (2.1) with Anya Green topping the conference at 1.18 blocks per set and second sporting a .408 hitting clip. Delaney Tate sits second in the PacWest at 3.80 kills per set while Mia Medrano is in that same position at 4.69 digs per set. Success for the Cougars has come in the recent history with ART U as they lead 14-3 in the all-time series.

RELEARNING THE LIONS
Following its 3-1 loss to Academy of Art on Oct. 11, Vanguard has been up and down, winning back-to-back matches three times, but never extending those streaks. The Lions have gone 4-2 heading into this weekend with home losses to UH Hilo and Hawaii Pacific helping bring their overall record to 12-11 and 9-10 in conference. Offense remains VU's strong suit as the PacWest's third-most assists per set (11.8) have yielded the fourth-most kills per frame (12.5) with Adeline Galvanoni's 3.00 kills per set (ninth in PacWest) and .309 hitting percentage (sixth in PacWest) at the forefront. Saturday will be just the second meeting to date between Academy of Art and Vanguard.

KNIGHTS DIVERSIFY ATTACK, UNABLE TO GET PAST SUNBIRDS
Though Academy of Art volleyball held a 22-20 lead in the opening set and offered a better hitting percentage than Fresno Pacific in the second, FPU was able to secure the 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-15) Pacific West Conference victory on Nov. 16 inside the Sunbirds' Special Events Center.