TOWSON, Md. – If you're a fan of tigers, this weekend at SECU Arena will be nearly perfect.
 
Fresh off the Puerto Rico Clásico last weekend, the Towson University women's volleyball will be hosting some of the nation's top squads for the 2018 Towson Invitational this weekend. In addition to the Towson Tigers, other participating institutions will be the University of Missouri Tigers, the Princeton University Tigers, The Ohio State University Buckeyes and the Long Beach State University 49ers.
 
Towson Invitational Schedule
Thursday, Sept. 6 | Long Beach State vs. Princeton | Noon
Thursday, Sept. 6 | Towson vs. Princeton | 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 7 | Princeton vs. Missouri | 10:30 a.m.
Friday, Sept. 7 | Towson vs. Long Beach State | 1 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 7 | Princeton vs. Ohio State | 4 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 7 | Towson vs. Missouri | 7 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 8 | Missouri vs. Ohio State | 11 a.m.
Saturday, Sept. 8 | Towson vs. Ohio State 4:30 p.m.
 
Broadcast Information
All eight matches at SECU Arena for the Towson Invitational will be streamed live and free on TowsonTigers.com. Video and audio streams will be available. To find links for the games, in addition to live stats, please visit the women's volleyball schedule page of TowsonTigers.com.
 
Last Time Out
Last weekend in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the Tigers put together an impressive 2-1 mark, bookending the weekend with sweeps of Miami and Xavier, but falling 3-0 against Arizona State. But despite the final outcome against the Sun Devils, the Tigers pushed all three sets to extra points, falling 28-26, 27-25, 26-24.
 
With Labor Day on Monday, the Tigers enjoyed their time on Monday and the first half of Tuesday in the San Juan Area, visiting the historic sites and the beach before returning to town late Tuesday night.
 
All-Tournament Teams
At the conclusion of the Puerto Rico Clásico, junior outside hitter Olivia Finckel was named to the All-Tournament Team. The Baltimore native scored 28 kills while in San Juan while contributing on eight blocks.
 
Finckel joins redshirt senior Anna Holehouse with All-Tournament honors, as the latter was selected to the Baltimore Bash Presented by The Lord Baltimore Hotel All-Tournament Team in the opening weekend of the season.
 
Ain't No Party Like a Towson Party
Prior to the Tigers' Friday night match against Missouri, Towson students are invited for free food and soft drinks on the suite level of SECU Arena. The student area will open at 6 p.m. and will be located on the far side of SECU Arena from the entrance on the Tiger Plaza.
 
Home Sweet Home
After a pair of tournaments away from Towson, one four miles down the road at Loyola University Maryland and the second 1,600 miles away in Puerto Rico, the Tigers will get nice and comfortable at home over the next two weeks.
 
In addition to four matches this weekend at the Towson Invitational, the Towson will host the Tiger Invitational next weekend, welcoming La Salle, Ball State and UMBC to SECU Arena for the weekend.
 
The Series: Princeton (3-0 Overall) (Princeton Leads 6-2)
Thursday night's match will be the ninth meeting all-time between the two Tiger teams. Princeton leads the series at 6-2, but the Towson Tigers took the last meeting in straight sets, downing the Ivy Leaguers 25-20, 25-21 and 25-19 during the 2016 Seton Hall Tournament in New Jersey.
 
The Series: Long Beach State (4-4 Overall) (First Meeting)
Continuing a theme of the early season, Towson will have its first-ever meeting on the volleyball court against Long Beach State. Earlier this season, Towson made first-time appearances against Siena, Miami and Arizona State. Towson is 2-1 this year when playing a first-time opponent.
 
The Series: Missouri (5-1 Overall) (Missouri Leads 2-0)
Saturday night's match will pit the Towson Tigers against another Tiger foe as Towson meets Missouri for the third time in program history. The Midwest Tigers lead the series 2-0 but will face the Towson Tigers for the first time since 2013, Towson head coach Don Metil's first season at the helm at the University. Missouri won the last meeting in three, topping Towson 25-11, 25-16 and 25-15.
 
The Series: Ohio State (5-1 Overall) (Ohio State Leads 3-0)
Towson and the Buckeyes will meet for a third time in the series. The Buckeyes lead the all-time series 3-0 as the teams square off for the first time since the 2011 campaign. The Buckeyes won the last matchup 3-0 (18, 16, 19) at the West Virginia Mountaineer Invitational. Saturday's match will be the first non-neutral site meeting.
 
Sixth Season for Metil
Head coach Don Metil is now in his sixth season at the helm of the Towson volleyball program. With the Tigers, he is 115-52 overall, a winning percentage of .688. In his previous 16 seasons as a head coach, Metil has amassed a record of 345-182 (.654). Metil and the Tigers will look to surpass the 20-win mark for a fifth-straight season this year.
 
Kuilan's Big Swing
Senior Jocelyn Kuilan is firmly one of the top offensive players in program history. The right sider has knocked down 1,209 kills in her career at Towson, ranking sixth all-time. She needs 143 more kills to surpass Maddie Haseltine (2005-08). April Hoffman (2002-05) leads the career records with 1,588 kills. Kuilan averages 391 kills per season, including a rookie season with 426. Kuilan will need 416 kills to take the program's career record.
 
Bringing Down the Holehouse
Redshirt senior libero Anna Holehouse is poised to become the program's all-time digs leader. Through her first three years, she has kept the ball up 1,785 times, just 84 short of Paige Sekerak's mark of 1,869 from 2011-14. She currently ranks ninth all-time in CAA history.
 
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