Rams Host 13th Annual Art Carmichael Invitational to Open 2021 Season

COVID-19 Precaution Policy

Following the most recent masking recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee has issued guidelines requiring both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals to wear masks while indoors at all Rhode Island state facilities.
This policy applies to all guests, employees, clients, visitors and contractors visiting Keaney Gymnasium.

The Art Carmichael Invitational

Rhode Island opens the 2021 season at home this weekend, hosting the 13th annual Art Carmichael Invitational.
The Rams will face Quinnipiac on Friday, as well as both Bryant and Holy Cross on Saturday.
The two-day tournament will include three matches on each day.
Bryant was among the teams that participated in the 2019 Art Carmichael Invitational. That year, the Bulldogs went 0-3 will losses to Rhody, Albany and Boston College.
Neither Holy Cross nor Quinnipiac have competed in this tournament before.
Art Carmichael was Rhode Island's head coach from 1974 through 1980. In his time with the Rams, he totaled 162 victories, including 39 wins in 1977 and a 24-match winning streak in 1976 - both of which still stand as school records.

Rhode Island

Friday's game against Quinnipiac will be Angel Agu's first as a head coach. Agu took over the reigns of the Rhody volleyball program in July. She served as an assistant on last year's team, which went 6-3 in conference play and won the A-10's East Division.
URI's 2021 roster features 11 returning players and seven newcomers.
Senior Ella Ratzloff is back as the lone player to see action in each of Rhody's 54 sets last season. She led the team in total digs (258) and digs per set (4.78) while ranking third in assists (52) and fourth in service aces (13).
Senior Mariah Paulette and sophomore Samantha Blahut led Rhody's defense with 35 and 31 blocks, respectively, including six solos each. Offensively, Paulette registered 100 kills (1.96 per set) while Blahut averaged 1.80 per set. Blahut also recorded 14 aces last season, tops among all returning players.
Junior Claire Wagner and senior Gabrielle Shilling will add to the Rams' attack having combined for 125 of the team's 691 kills last season. Wagner averaged 2.06 kills per set while Shilling averaged 1.77 per set.

Bryant

The Bulldogs went 6-5 overall this past spring, including a 6-4 mark in Northeast Conference play, which was good for third place in the league.
Bryant led the NEC with 99 total blocks last year, and ranked 28th nationally with 2.54 blocks per set.
The Bulldogs' offense is led by All-Conference performers Emma McGovern and Carolina Kennedy. McGovern averaged 3.15 kills per set last season while Kennedy averaged 2.87.
Setter Mia Cergol returns as the team's top server, having recorded 14 aces last season. She also averaged 9.95 assists per set.

Holy Cross

Holy Cross returns eight players from last year's team, which went 5-6 overall and 5-5 in the Patriot League.
The Crusaders qualified for the Patriot League tournament last season for, the first time since the tournament moved to a four-team field in 1996. Holy Cross earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament, its highest-ever seed.
Captains Johnna Shamley, Skye Daval-Santos and Gracyn Benck will lead Holy Cross this season. Shamley led last year's team with 3.07 kills per set while Benck had a team-high 10 service aces. Daval-Santos, a defensive specialist, averaged 2.61 digs per set this past spring.
Head coach Kathleen Colpoys, who enters her third season this fall, was last year's Patriot League Coach of the Year.

Quinnipiac

The Bobcats went 3-5 overall last season, including a 3-4 record in the MAAC.
Quinnipiac returns a wealth of experience this fall, as its 14-player roster features six seniors and two juniors. The Bobcats also have three sophomores as well as three first-year players.
Maggie Baker averaged 4.06 kills per set this past spring, which led the team and ranked 56th in the nation. She also ranked third on the team in digs, with 96 total.
Defensively, Daniella Balsano averaged 4.97 digs per set while Lexi Morse collected 21 blocks, including four solos.
Chloe Ka'ahanui and Nicole Migliozzi are back as the Bobcats' setters, combining for 338 of Quinnipiac's 378 assists last season.

Tournament Schedule

Players Mentioned