After picking up two big wins in SoCon play over the weekend, the Georgia Southern volleyball team will put its eight-match winning streak on the line in non-conference action, traveling to Jacksonville, Fla., to face North Florida on Tuesday evening at UNF Arena. First serve is set for 7 p.m.
    “I think the North Florida match gives our group another opportunity to compete on the road,” noted Eagle Head Coach Chad Callihan. “We have played very well at home this season and have found ways to win on the road even though our execution hasn't always been great. We will need that execution to improve if we want to reach our goal of winning a SoCon championship.”
    The Eagles, owners of a 9-6 record outside of the Southern Conference, have won 17 of their last 18 matches, including five non-conference matches dating back to mid-September.
    Pacing GSU on offense are junior middle hitter Parker Small and junior outside hitter Bethany Sanford,  whose 2.97 and 3.44 kills per set, respectively, both rank in the top 10 in the Southern Conference. Small leads GSU at the net defensively as well with a team-leading 93 total blocks, including nine block solos. Sophomore setter Kate Van Dyke (Shawnee, Kan.) leads the Eagles and the league with 10.61 assists per frame.
    In Thursday’s 3-2 win over Furman, Small (15) and Sanford (21) combined for 36 kills, with Sanford adding 17 digs en route to her 16th double-double of the season. Junior right side Hannah Nelson also came up big for the Eagles vs. Furman, tallying 14 kills and two block assists.
    “We have leaned heavily on Parker and Bethany throughout this season and I hope this match gives them the chance to fine tune their attacking,” Callihan added. “Hopefully we will see the emergence of one or two more attackers to help relieve the offensive load these two have carried for us. Hannah Nelson had a very good match against Furman and I believe she is a player who can have a real impact down the stretch for us.”
    With a 5-18 record on the season, the North Florida Ospreys are led by sophomore outside hitter Paige Pridgeon, whose team-leading 3.84 kills per set rank second in the Atlantic Sun Conference this year. Osprey libero Nicole Baran is averaging 4.16 digs per set, good enough for fifth in the A-Sun.
    The Eagles and Ospreys last faced each other in August of 2007 in Statesboro in a match GSU swept 3-0.

LaRocque earns GSU's 3rd-straight weekly honor
    SPARTANBURG, S.C. — For the third-straight week, a Georgia Southern Volleyball player took home Southern Conference honors as freshman Lauren LaRocque earned the league’s Freshman of the Week award for the week of October 25-31.
    LaRocque helped the Eagles to a perfect 2-0 record on the week, which included wins over division foes Furman and Wofford.
    With back-to-back 14-dig matches this week, in addition to another 14-dig match last week, the freshman twice tied her previous season high set earlier this year. LaRocque earned the starting libero spot in Saturday’s win over Wofford. She recorded three of her five service aces on the week against the Terriers.
    LaRocque is the second Georgia Southern player to earn Freshman of the Week honors as teammate Nicole Jeschelnik was awarded the honor last week.

EGC ready for 1st hoops season
    SWAINSBORO — The East Georgia College men's and women's basketball teams will tip off their home schedule against Alabama Junior College powerhouse Chattahoochee Valley on November 4.  This season will mark the "official" beginning of Georgia College Athletic Association play for the Bobcats, who played an abbreviated independent schedule last season. 
    "We are excited to be full league members this season and we are looking forward to challenging for a conference title in our first year and to fight for a spot in the NJCAA tournament", said athletic director and men's coach Neil Bailey.
        The Bobcats will compete at the Division-I level, the top level in the NJCAA against traditional powers such as Middle Georgia College and Georgia Perimeter College.

    If you have a score to report, please call the Statesboro Herald sports desk at (912) 489-9408.