TOWSON, Md. -- The Towson University women's volleyball team returns to SECU Arena for the Tigers' penultimate home weekend of the regular season. Towson takes on long-time foes James Madison Friday night and Delaware Sunday afternoon.

Trunk or Treat
Prior to Friday night's match against James Madison, Towson's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will be hosting a Trunk or Treat event in Lot 21 in front of the Towson Center. Children and their parents are encouraged to wear costumes for the event. Following Trunk or Treat, the Tigers take on James Madison at 7 p.m. Kids in costume can enter SECU Arena free of charge.

$500 Gift Card
All fans entering SECU Arena Friday night will receive a raffle ticket for a chance to win a $500 gift card to the University Store. Fans must enter SECU Arena by 7:15 p.m. to get a raffle ticket and you must be present to win. The ticket will be pulled between the second and third set with the announcement to follow the match.
First Serve
It's the second to last weekend at SECU Arena for the Towson women's volleyball team as the Tigers host rivals James Madison and Delaware for a pair on Friday and Sunday, respectively. Friday's match pits one-versus-two in the CAA Standings against one another.

In The National Rankings
None of the teams involved in this weekend's matches are mentioned in the AVCA Poll.

Scouting the Tigers
Towson (20-2, 10-0 CAA) kept the streak alive last weekend, sweeping Northeastern and topping defending champion Hofstra in four on Friday and Sunday, respectively. The Tigers extended the winning streak to 14 while winning their 15th regular season CAA match in a row. Sophomore Emily Jarome leads Towson's offense with 229 kills (3.09) while four teammates are nearing the 200-kill mark. Olivia Finckel is second with 195 (2.67), freshman Lydia Wiers is third with 186 (2.51) while Annie Ertz is fourth with 183 (2.61). Silvia Grassini rounds out the triple digit Tigers with 164 kills (2.22). Wiers leads not only Towson in hitting percentage at .436 but leads the entire conference and is in the top 10 nationally. Fellow middle Grassini is second on the team and in the league at .398 as Towson has the best hitting percentage in the CAA at .279. Senior setter Marrisa Wonders leads the team and league in assists per set at 11.20, pushing up a career second-best 829 assists. She is poised to move into the program's top four with 3,062 assists to date. On the line, Camryn Allen leads Towson with 27 service aces, racking at least one in each of the Tigers' last 18 matches. Jarome is second on the team with 21 aces. Allen leads Towson's back row with 276 digs (3.73). The best blocking team in the conference, averaging 2.75 per set, Towson is led by 95 blocks from Wiers, along with 87 from Grassini and 81 from Finckel. The trio each average better than a block per set.

Scouting the Dukes
James Madison comes to SECU Arena with a 14-6 overall record and an 8-2 mark in league play.  JMU is currently riding a six-match winning streak that includes five sweeps in that span. The Dukes picked up two road wins last weekend  over Charleston (3-1) and UNCW (3-0). Briley Brind'Amour leads the offense with 194 kills (2.94) while Sophia Davis is second with 182 (2.76). M'Kaela White (155) and Danielle Nathan (151) round out the Dukes with at least 100 kills. Sarah Martin runs the offense with 583 assists this season, averaging 9.56 per set. Brind'Amour and Savannah Marshall lead JMU at the service line with 15 aces apiece. Marshall is the top Duke in the back with 291 digs, averaging 4.41 per set. Karis Beasley is second in total digs with 152. Davis paces James Madison at the net with 87 total blocks (1.32), with White ranking second with 67 (1.02). Davis has registered 12 solo blocks this season as well. 

Towson-James Madison History
Friday night will be the 58th meeting all-time between the Tigers and the Dukes and the all-time series is nearly split down the middle JMU leads 29-28, but the Tigers have won the last two meetings. Neither side has won more than two straight matches since the Tigers won four in a row from Nov. 12, 2011-Nov. 8, 2014. The Tigers hold a 13-6 all-time advantage in Towson and have won six straight at home against the Dukes, including a 3-2 epic last season at SECU Arena. Towson won this season's matchup in Harrisonburg by a 3-1 count (25-19, 23-25, 25-16, 25-15).

Towson-James Madison By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record JMU 29-28
at Towson  Towson 13-6
at James Madison JMU 16-9
at Neutral Sites JMU 6-4
at Unknown Sites Towson 2-1
First Meeting 1976 (Towson 2-0)
Last Meeting Sept. 29, 2019
Towson 3, James Madison 0
Streak Towson +2

Last Time Out vs. James Madison | Sept. 29, 2019 | Harrisonburg, Va. | Sinclair Gymnasium
Towson capped the opening weekend of league play with a four-set victory on the road at James Madison's Sinclair Gymnasium at the end of September. Towson won the match 25-19, 23-25, 25-16, 25-15, holding the Dukes to a .147 hitting percentage. Emily Jarome led three Tigers in double digits with 15 kills as she was joined by Lydia Wiers (12) and Annie Ertz (10). Wiers hit for .429 against the Dukes while adding four blocks. Silvia Grassini led the Tigers with six assisted blocks while four Towson players had double-digit digs, led by a dozen from Camryn Allen.

Scouting the Blue Hens
Delaware begins the weekend with a 12-9 overall record and a 4-6 mark in league play. The Hens currently sit in sixth in the CAA standings and will play James Madison Saturday evening at 5 p.m. Delaware's offense is a two-headed beast, led by Maria Bellinger's 338 kills (4.51) and Lani Mason's 220 (2.93). Bailey Pearlman is a kill shy of hitting triple digits. Bellinger has Delaware's top hitting percentage among regular attackers at .232. Ezgi Basaranlar runs the offense and has 769 assists to date, averaging 10.39 per set. Mason has 31 service aces while Basaranlar is second with 22. Libero Andie Hanus has 363 digs this season, averaging 4.84 per set. Adelina Rivera leads the action at the net with 50 total blocks, followed closely by Ayala Plummer's 47 and Julia Hayes' 40.

Towson-Delaware By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record Towson Leads 42-39
at Towson Delaware 17-15
at Delaware Towson 19-12
at Neutral Sites Towson 8-6
at Unknown Sites Delaware 4-0
First Meeting 1976 Delaware 2-0
Last Meeting Sept. 27, 2019
Towson 3, Delaware 0
Streak Towson +5

Towson-Delaware History
With two longtime foes separated by just 45 miles, it's no wonder that Sunday's showdown will be the 82nd meeting all-time between Towson and Delaware. The Tigers hold a narrow 42-39 lead over Delaware. However, the road teams have the better record; Towson is 19-12 in Newark while the Hens are 17-15 in Towson. The Tigers have reeled off five straight over the Blue Hens, including four consecutive sweeps. Towson won the first matchup this season by a 25-20, 25-19, 25-21 count to open conference play. The Tigers and Blue Hens have met at least once in every year of Towson's program history.

With a Win Over James Madison, Towson Would...
- Extend its winning streak to 15-straight matches, the longest for the program since the opening 2017 with a 16-0 mark.
- Win its third-straight match over James Madison, its longest winning streak over the Dukes since racking four from 2013-14.
- Be Towson's eighth-straight win at SECU Arena dating back to the Towson Invitational on Sept. 14 against UAlbany.
- See Towson improve to 11-0 in league play for the first time since the Tigers went 12-0 in league play in 2012.
- 62-23 all-time at SECU Arena since moving into the building for the 2013 season.

Lock it Up
With the pair of wins last weekend at Northeastern and Hofstra, the 2019 Tigers have officially secured a berth in the upcoming CAA Women's Volleyball Championship Tournament. The league's automatic qualifying berth to the NCAA Tournament will be on the line Nov. 21-24 and will be hosted at Hofstra's David S. Mack Physical Education Center in Hempstead, New York. Seeding is still to be determined through the remainder of the regular season.

The Lydia Wiers CAA Rookie of the Week Award
For a fourth time this season and third-straight week, Towson freshman Lydia Wiers was selected as the CAA Rookie of the Week. It is her fourth honor in the last five week.

A Rookie of the Year candidate, Wiers was a force to be reckoned with all weekend as the Tigers picked up two wins on the road at Northeastern (3-0) and Hofstra (3-1) on Friday and Sunday, respectively. Wiers knocked down 26 kills in two matches, averaging 3.71 kills per set. She took 46 swings and committed just five attack errors, hitting at a .457 clip for the weekend in her first trips to the Cabot Center and Mack Physical Education Center. At the net, Wiers aided seven blocks, averaging a block per set for the weekend while coming up with digs. Wiers continues to lead the league in hitting percentage (.436) and is second in blocks per set (1.28). In league play, Wiers is hitting .448.

Familiarity, Meet Contempt
Friday and Sunday's opponents are not unfamiliar with one another. The Tigers have played James Madison and Delaware a combined 139 times entering the weekend. The Dukes and Blue Hens have met 57 times in their respective histories. Towson's series with the Dukes and the Blue Hens is tight; JMU leads Towson 29-28 while the Black and Gold have gotten the better of Delaware by a 42-39 count. JMU leads Delaware 30-27 entering this weekend.

Climbing the Books
Senior middle blocker Silvia Grassini has made her presence known at the net during her three years with the Black & Gold. The Padua, Italy native has racked 293 career blocks, ranking 12th all-time in program history. Jessica Beck (1994-97) is 11th with 305 while Candace Steadman (2012-16) is 10th with 315. Grassini is just seven blocks away from becoming the 12th player in program history with at least 300 blocks.

In the current 25-point rally scoring system (2008), Grassini ranks fourth in program history among players whose entire careers were played from 2008 on.
25-Point Rally Scoring Era Careers (2008-Present)
1) 427 - Lindsey Flaherty - 2013-16
2) 322 - Susan Gansor - 2008-11
3) 315 - Candace Steadman - 2012-16
4) 293 - Silvia Grassini - 2017-Present

The 50 Nifty
The NCAA released its most recent Rankings Percentage Index (RPI) earlier this week and the Tigers continue to move up the rankings. The Tigers checked in this week's RPI at 47, up one spot from a week ago, with a 20-2 overall record, including 8-1 on the road, 8-1 at home and 4-0 at neutral sites.

"Official" Regional Rankings
While not quite official, the AVCA recently released a regional ranking poll compiled by Rich Kern. The Tigers rank fifth in the East Region, trailing only Power Five members Pittsburgh, Louisville, Notre Dame and Florida State. Beyond Towson, the remainder of the East Region poll includes Coastal Carolina, James Madison, Georgia Tech and Winthrop.

Let Me Help You With That
Despite playing in a 6-2 rotation for the first three years of her career, senior setter Marrisa Wonders is inching closer to the record books. The Mount Joy, Pennsylvanian has hoisted 3,062 assists in her career. She is 17 shy of surpassing Towson Hall of Famer Mary Clare Coghlan's fourth-place mark of 3,078.

Wonders is having a career season in 2019, pushing up 829 assists in just 74 sets, averaging 11.20 per set. Her total to date already ranks as the second-most in her career. Her rookie season she logged 869, followed by 758 as a sophomore. She needs just 41 to improve her personal best at Towson.

Two Legs vs Four Legs
Mascots come in all shapes, sizes, animals and breeds and people. But that hasn't stopped the Tigers this season. To date, the Tiger are 13-0 against mascots with four legs (Bobcats, Bears, Tigers, Great Danes, Greyhounds, Wildcats, Dukes (dog), Huskies, Pride (lions), Tribe (griffin) and Cougars). Towson has faired well against two-legged mascots, going 7-2 to date with wins over Pirates, Cavaliers, Penguins, Highlanders, Blue Hens, Phoenix and Seahawks. Towson's lone pair of losses came against two-legged foes, the Scarlet Knights and Chanticleers.

Welcome to Our House
The friendly confines of SECU Arena have been kind to the Towson Tigers. Since moving into the new building full time in 2013, Towson has racked up an impressive 61-23 overall record at SECU Arena. The Tigers have three seasons with double digit wins, including a 10-3 mark in 2017. With a challenging home schedule last season, the Tigers went 7-8, but finished strong on a three-match win streak at home. To date, the Tigers are 8-1 in SECU Arena this year.

Ace Up Her Sleeve
Junior libero Camryn Allen doesn't have the biggest serve, but it's effective. Allen is second on the team in service aces this season, dropping in 27 through 22 matches. More impressive, is the current tear Allen is on; the 5-7 defensive specialist has logged at least one ace in each of the Tigers' last 18 matches. She is the only player in the CAA to rack up at least 10 matches this season with at least one service ace. On Oct. 27 at Hofstra, Allen zipped in a career-best four service aces, including three straight to open the second set.

The Law Firm of Finckel, Grassini and Wiers
If you've been hurt by a block this season, chances are it's from Olivia Finckel, Silvia Grassini or Lydia Wiers. Towson is the only team in the CAA to have three players ranked in the top five in blocks per set. Wiers, the rookie, is second in the conference with a 1.28 per-set average. Grassini is currently fourth in the league with a 1.18 average while Finckel is fifth in the league at a 1.11 clip. Towson is one of two programs in the league with multiple players averaging a block per set and is the only team in the conference with multiple players in the top five.

Stuck in the Middle With You
The Tigers are boasting a one-two punch in the middle this season between freshman Lydia Wiers and senior Silvia Grassini. The pair is ranked first and second, respectively, in the CAA in hitting percentage. Wiers leads the league at a .432 percentage, scoring 160 kills on 296 swings with 32 errors. Grassini is second with a .422 hitting percentage on 150 kills, 282 attempts and 31 errors. Towson is the only program in the league with multiple players in the top five. 

Getcha Brooms Out
The Tigers are a perfect 15-0 in three-set matches this season, sweeping Northeastern (28-26, 25-19, 25-15) on Friday. Under head coach Don Metil, the Tigers are 84-25 in three-setters and have had double-digit sweeps in each of the last six seasons. Under Metil, Towson has now tied its highwater mark for sweeps  with the 15-2 mark set the 2014 campaign. Towson has already surpassed its winning sweep mark from last season after going 10-6 in three set matches in 2018.

All-Time CAA Openers
September 27 saw Towson open its 18th season in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). The fact that the league opener was Delaware was very apropos as well. Towson and Delaware have long been league foes, dating back to the East Coast Conference, which later became the America East Conference. Since joining the CAA in 2002, Towson is now 14-4 in conference lid-lifters. Under head coach Don Metil, Towson is 5-2 in the first CAA match of the year, including winning the last four.

Wins on Wins on Wins on Wins
Over the last five seasons, the Tigers have been a tough out for opponents. Between 2014-18, the Tigers have racked up a 121-41 overall record, which ranks 19th among NCAA Division I teams in terms of total wins in that span. With a winning percentage of .747 over the last five years, Towson ranks 22nd among fellow Division I teams in terms of winning percentage.

The ACC Won't Let Me Be Me
The night cap on Friday, Sept. 6 was the sixth time under head coach Don Metil that the Tigers will square up with an opponent from ACC. Under Metil, the Tigers are now 3-3 against the league, topping Virginia 3-1 at the Rutgers Invitational, The Tigers have won their last three matches against the ACC, with two wins over Virginia and a sweep of Miami last season. In 2017, Towson went 1-1, sweeping Virginia before falling 3-0 against Syracuse in the NIVC Tournament in Hamilton, New York In Metil's first season at Towson (2013), the Tigers fell in both matches against ACC opponents NC State and Virginia Tech, both going to four sets.

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!
This fall, the Towson Tigers will check off each animal on the fabled list from the Wizard of Oz. Towson faced the Bears of Morgan Saturday on Aug. 31 before sweeping Tigers of a different color against Princeton (Sept. 7). Towson will face Hofstra, which uses lions for its mascots, once more (Oct. 27) after a sweep on Oct. 6. To date, Towson is 3-0 against the Wizard of Oz.

Tigers in the Community
The Towson University athletics department deems community service as one of its highest priorities to give back to the Greater Baltimore area.
- For the 7th consecutive year, the department exceeded 10,000 hours of community service to the Greater Baltimore region, finishing with 11,162 hours of community service in the 2018-19 academic season.
- Towson ranked #1 nationally for community service and won the 2018 National Championship for Community Service through the Helper Helper NCAA Team Works Competition.
- Towson had a 97% participation rate, attended 118 community service opportunities and volunteered with 19 organizations.
- Towson won the 2018 Volunteer of the Year Award from Susan G. Komen of Maryland.