LAKELAND, Fla.—After picking up their fifth conference win of the year against Florida Memorial on Saturday, the Fire (13-5, 5-2 TSC) will face opponents in four straight home games on consecutive nights.
Southeastern has been rolling as of late, jumping into third spot in the Sun Conference standings by winning their last four competitions.
During the four-game win streak,
Kaitlin Boyd has been unstoppable on both sides of the ball. The past two matches, the senior middle blocker has averaged 15 kills and an impressive .417 hitting percentage. Boyd has hit .363 on the season, which ranks her 13
th among all players in the NAIA, while hitting at least .350 in each of her last nine games. Defensively, in the two contests, Boyd stuffed 11 of her opponents' attack attempts and picked up five digs.
The first of the Fire's four games will feature a rematch with the reigning conference champions, (RV) Webber International (14-4, 7-1 TSC), on Wednesday. Webber is coming off of a 3-2 home victory over #19 Bellevue University.
In mid-September, Webber took a five set battle from Southeastern in Babson Park. In the contest, setter Carlee Baxter assisted on a career-high 53 kills, while Virginia Salanoa-Sagapolu killed 24 attempts with a .370 hitting percentage.
The Warriors are captained by Baxter and libero Michelle Calderon, who each lead the conference in their category of expertise. Baxter ranks 38
th in the country in assists per set (9.74), while Calderon is 31
st in the NAIA in digs per game (5.21). Both are the top totals in the Sun Conference.
The Fire will then take on NCCAA opponent Trinity College on Thursday night. This will be recognized as the annual Breast Cancer Awareness game in an attempt to draw attention to the fight against breast cancer. Fans will be asked to wear pink to support the cause.
The Trinity College Tigers have a 5-6 record so far this season and are riding a two-game winning streak.
Britney O'Hara and Ciana Hill are the most consistent offensive threats for Trinity. In their last game against Johnson University, O'Hara killed 14 attack attempts and added 14 digs, while Hill contributed with eight kills and a .400 hitting percentage.
The University of St. Francis (Ill.) Fighting Saints come to Lakeland to clash with the Fire on Friday at 3 p.m. The Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference member currently has an 11-16 (5-4 CCAC) record, and the Fighting Saints have lost five of their last seven games.
USF, who ranks third in the nation in total digs with 1831, is captained by Leah Alles defensively. Alles averages 5.45 digs per set, good enough for 18
th in the country, and ranks fourth in the NAIA in total digs (556).
Offensively, the Fighting Saints rank 33
rd in total kills with 1056. JoAnna Nowicki and Taylor Valant lead St. Francis in the category of kills with 227 and 217 kills on the year. Valant has added 149 digs in all matches this season.
In the final contest of the four-game stretch, the Fire return to conference play on Saturday to take on Johnson & Wales.
The Wildcats have struggled with a 0-7 record in the Sun Conference coming into their match with the Fire. Johnson & Wales, the second year program, won only a single match in their inaugural season of competition, but has already come out victorious in three in 2017.
Middle blocker Sharell Nairn leads the Wildcats in the kills department with 143. The sophomore from Miami, Florida has recorded a .326 hitting percentage on the season, which ranks her 25
th in the country in the category.
The competitions against Webber and Trinity College are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively, while the first serve of the Johnson & Wales match is set for 2 p.m.
