When             Friday, Oct. 4 – 3 p.m.
                        Saturday, Oct. 5 – 12 p.m.
Where            TU Arena | Towson, Md.
Stream           Monumental Sports Network (Friday) | FloVolleyball
Series            Towson leads North Carolina A&T 5-0
 
TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University Tigers volleyball team continues Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play this weekend with two matches against the North Carolina A&T at TU Arena in Towson, Md.
 
The first match is set for Friday, Oct. 4 at 3 p.m. First serve for the second match is Saturday at 12 p.m.
 
Friday's match will air live on Monumental Sports Network and be streamed on FloVolleyball. Saturday's will be streamed on FloVolleyball. Live stats for both games will be available on TowsonTigers.com.
 
SATURDAY PARKING ADVISORY
Fans coming to Saturday's match will have to secure a free digital parking pass here. Parking will be available in Lot 8 near the Child Care Center. Fans are asked to leave as soon as possible following the match as the lot will open to fans coming to Saturday evening's football game vs. William & Mary.
 
LAST WEEK'S RECAP
In the first CAA road trip of the season, the Tigers split two matches against the Delaware Blue Hens. On Saturday, Delaware defeated Towson in four sets. The Tigers responded on Sunday with a five-set victory over the Blue Hens.
 
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
Towson opened the CAA slate two weekends ago with two matches against William & Mary. The Tigers handled the Tribe in straight sets on Saturday night before winning in five sets on Sunday to start 2-0 in conference play.
 
Towson closed its non-conference schedule with the Tiger Invitational at TU Arena in the third week of play. The Tigers defeated Loyola in four sets, Coppin State in a sweep and Seton Hall in another four-set victory.
 
Outside hitter Victoria Barrett was named the Tiger Invitational MVP while libero Sydney Stewart and middle blocker Ylenia De Mango each received All-Tournament accolades for their weekend performances.
 
Towson went on its first road trip of the 2024 season to Halton Arena for the Charlotte Invitational in the second week of the season. The Tigers faced Delaware State, Tennessee Tech and Charlotte. Towson split its two matches on Friday, beating the Hornets in straight sets before falling to the Golden Eagles in five sets in the afternoon. The Tigers are the first team to win a single set over Tennessee Tech this season and held a 12-8 advantage in set 5 before falling 17-15 in the deciding frame. The Tigers redeemed themselves on Saturday with a three-set sweep vs. the hosting 49ers to close the weekend.
 
Outside hitter Zyare Abdul-Rahim and libero Sydney Stewart each earned All-Tournament recognition for their performances. Abdul-Rahim finished the weekend hitting .271 with 27 kills and three total blocks. Stewart totaled 47 digs and 13 assists, adding seven service aces.
 
Towson University outside hitter Victoria Barrett led the way for the Black & Gold in the opening weekend with a double-double in the opening match vs. Saint Francis (20 kills, 16 digs) and double-digit kill totals (20, 16, 11, 14) in all four to begin the year. Against Lehigh, four Tigers accumulated double-digit kills (Nakai - 19, Barrett - 11, De Mango - 10, Callender - 10).
 
Towson entered the 2024 season as the preseason favorite in the Coastal Athletic Association. The Tigers bring back nine returners from last season's 24-6 run, including two-time All-CAA first team selection and 2022 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-America honorable mention Victoria Barrett.
 
Barrett was voted as the CAA Preseason Player of the Year and a preseason first team All-CAA selection after totaling a career-high 354 kills last season, averaging 3.34 kills/set, the fourth-best mark in the league. Barrett notched double-digit kills in 20 of 30 matches played.
 
Junior middle blocker Erin Brothers and junior defensive specialist/libero Sydney Stewart each garnered All-CAA honorable mention accolades in the preseason poll as well. Brothers ranked fourth in the CAA in blocks/set in 2023, averaging 0.99. Stewart averaged 4.22 digs/set a season ago, landing her third in the league. Stewart totaled double-digit digs in 24 of 28 matches played.
 
The 2024 roster features 15 newcomers, including six freshman and nine transfers. Highlighting the group is transfer outside hitter Sarah Callender from William & Mary, Belmont setter transfer Izzy Schauer, and freshmen outside hitter Ava Nakai and setter Kaitlyn Moran.
 
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
North Carolina A&T enters the weekend at 8-4 overall and 3-1 in CAA play. The Aggies have two CAA sweeps over Hampton and one over Northeastern. They fell to the Huskies in their second of two matches last weekend. A&T also has non-conference wins over North Carolina Central (2), Western Carolina, Texas A&M - Commerce and Charleston Southern. The Aggies were picked 11th in the CAA preseason poll.
 
COLLECTING HONORS
CAA Preseason Player of the Year Victoria Barrett was named the CAA Co-Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 2 after the opening weekend of play. The senior amassed 61 kills on a .355 hitting percentage. She opened the season with a double-double against Saint Francis and totaled double-digit kills in all four matches of the weekend.
 
In the third week of play, Ylenia De Mango was named the CAA Defensive Player of the Week after posting 21.0 blocks across three matches. The senior posted 1.91 blocks/set and 3.05 points/per set during the Tigers' perfect 3-0 weekend, adding 13 errorless kills in the final match against Seton Hall.
 
Victoria Barrett earned her second CAA Offensive Player of the Week award in the first weekend of conference play. The senior averaged 5.63 kills/set hitting at a .367 clip in the Tigers' 2-0 weekend over William & Mary. Her 23 kills and four service aces in Saturday's match are both season highs and she followed that with 22 in Sunday's five-set victory.
 
LEADING THE AMBUSH
Outside hitter Victoria Barrett leads the CAA with 224 kills through 14 matches (55 sets). The Virginian stands 15th in the Division I with that total. She's averaging 4.07 kills/set, which is second in the league and 44th in the nation. Among points leaders in Division I, Barrett ranks 10th nationally with 263. Her 4.78 points/set stands 36th in DI.
 
Middle blocker Ylenia De Mango is second among league block leaders in the CAA with 67.0. That total puts her tied for 26th among all players in Division I. The senior's 1.22 blocks/set is the third-best mark in the league.
 
Libero Sydney Stewart leads the league with 26 service aces and is tied for 20th among national leaders in the category. Stewart also stands 31st in the nation with 244 total digs.
 
AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
The Black & Gold stand among the best in Division I in multiple team categories. The Tigers' 105 total aces stand 16th in the country and their 1.91 aces/set average is 25th. Towson has also held opponents to a .158 hitting percentage, which is 27th among NCAA leaders. The Tigers are hitting at a .262 clip, which is 33rd among national leaders. The Tiger defense's 129.5 team blocks are tied for 39th in the country. At 12-2 through four weeks, Towson's win-loss percentage is .917, which is tied for 17th in the nation.
 
PLAY THE HITS
Towson holds the top hitting percentage in the conference with a .262 clip. The next closest team is Delaware at .244. The Tigers stand first in the league with 696 total kills in 55 sets played. The Tigers offense is keeping opponents to a 1.58 blocks/set average, which is the best mark in the league.
 
LOCKDOWN DEFENSE
Towson is holding opponents to 10.45 kills/set which is best in the conference by 0.79 kills/set. Their 9.78 opponent assists/set is also a league-best mark.

PROTECT THIS HOUSE
- Since moving into TU Arena full-time in 2013, Towson has racked up an impressive 121-27 (.818) overall record at home.
- The Black & Gold have opened the 2024 season 9-0 at TU Arena.
- The Tigers have seven seasons with double-digit wins, including a perfect 16-0 mark in 2022 and a 17-1 mark in 2021.
- Dating back to 2019, the Black & Gold have amassed a 68-5 (.932) record in the arena.
- Towson went 3-0 at home in the shortened 2020 season (played in spring of 2021).
- The Tigers finished 2019 with a 12-1 overall mark at SECU Arena, with an 8-0 mark in the CAA.
- The Tigers finished 2018 strong at home with a three-match win streak.
 
A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
-Since 2015, Towson has been one of the top teams in the CAA. The Tigers have recorded a 106-28 record in league play since then, including a record-setting 16-0 mark in 2019.
-Towson finished conference play at 14-2 last season, including their first three-set loss in league play since 2018.
-The Black & Gold finished with a 15-1 mark two seasons ago, going a perfect 8-0 at home.                 
-Three years ago, The Tigers went 12-4 and never got swept.
2024: 3-1 | 2023: 14-2 | 2022: 15-1 | 2021: 12-4 | 2021 (spring): 2-0 | 2019: 16-0 | 2018: 10-6 | 2017: 12-4 | 2016: 10-6 | 2015: 12-4 | Total: 103-27 (.792)
 
TOP OF THE CHARTS
- Now in his 23rd season as an NCAA volleyball head coach, Coach Don Metil has amassed 487 wins.
- Metil is 487-214 all-time (.695) as a head coach.
- Metil's records by school: Notre Dame College: 40-30 | Lees-McRae: 30-9
Coppin State: 15-46 | Maryland Eastern Shore: 145-45 | Towson: 257-84
- Metil passed Cathy Cain as the all-time wins leader after knocking off #7 Pittsburgh on Sept. 10th, 2022.
- Don Metil: 257-84 (2013-Pres.) | Cathy Cain: 201-143 (1989-98) | Chris Riley: 144-54 (2000-05)
 
HOW TO SAY IT: TOWSON
TOWSON is pronounced TOW like towel + Son.
 
IT IS NOT: TOE-son, Townson, Towsond, Townsend, Townsen, Towzen. One N, no Z.
 
We are Towson University, no longer Towson State University (and haven't been since July 1, 1997).
 
Our mascot is Doc The Tiger, named after Donald "Doc" Minnegan, long-time soccer coach and athletics department administrator. Towson became the "Tigers" in 1962 after John Schuerholz (yes, the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame General Manager) pushed for the name change from the "Towson College Knights".