Women's Volleyball 9/7/2022 12:31:00 PM

Rams Host 14th Annual Art Carmichael Invitational this Weekend

The Art Carmichael Invitational

Rhode Island returns to Keaney Gym this weekend to host the 14th annual Art Carmichael Invitational.
The Rams will face Marist on Friday, as well as both LIU and Boston College on Saturday.
The two-day tournament will include three matches on each day.
Both Boston College (2019, 2011, 2008) and Marist (2017, 2010) have competed in the Art Carmichael Invitational before. This will mark BC's fourth time and Marist's third at Rhody's annual tournament.
LIU has never competed in the Art Carmichael Invitational.
Art Carmichael was Rhode Island's head coach from 1974 through 1980. In his time with the Rams, he totaled 162 victories. His 39 wins in 1977 and 24-match winning streak in 1976 both still stand as school records.

Rhode Island (1-5)

Rhode Island enters the weekend with a 1-5 record.
The Rams' lone win was a 3-1 victory over Siena last weekend.
As a team, URI is averaging 9.05 kills per set.
Senior Claire Wagner leads the offense with 72 total kills (3.43 per set), followed by junior Brynne Wright's 32 (1.68 per set).
Wagner – who has double-doubled twice in six matches – also ranks second on the team in digs (43), blocks (11) and service aces (6).
Sophomore Hannah Blaney is the team-leader in both aces (7) and digs (78/3.71 per set).
Grad student Gabrielle Shilling has recorded a team-best 14 blocks, including a pair of solos.
Sophomore setter Katie Butler is averaging 6.57 assists per set.

Boston College (6-0)

The Eagles are 6-0 and will host Hartford tonight (Wednesday) in their home opener.
To date, Boston College has recorded four 3-0 sweeps (Siena, Binghamton, Montana State, Harvard) and a pair of 3-1 wins (Maryland Eastern Shore, Bryant).
BC is averaging 14.10 kills per set and has four players with 40-or-more kills so far this season.
Alayna Crabtree leads the team with 50 total kills (2.94 per set), followed by Izzy Clavenna (47), Kate Brennan (43) and Katrina Jensen (40).
Crabtree also leads the team in service aces (9) while Brennan has recorded a team-best 28 blocks.
Grace Penn is averaging a team-leading 6.55 assists per set. Sophia Lambros is just behind her with 5.90 assists per set, followed by Jane Petrie (5.18 per set).
Defensively, Anna Murphy leads the way with 80 digs (4.00 per set).

LIU (2-4)

LIU comes to Kingston looking to bounce back from losses to George Washington (3-2) and Bucknell (3-0) last Saturday.
Prior to that, the Sharks defeated NJIT for head coach Ken Ko's 100th career win.
Karolina Nova paces the LIU offense with 2.61 kills per set and 60 total through six matches.
Setter Allie Merz leads the team in assists (122 total, 5.55 per set) and service aces (7).
Defensively, Olivia Lucia has recorded a team-high 16 blocks while Celine Mukura's three solos are tops on the squad.
Anastasia Scott leads the Sharks with 5.52 digs per set.

Marist

Marist enters the weekend with a 3-3 record
The Red Foxes have wins over Coppin State (3-1), Belmont (3-1) and Georgia State (3-0) and losses to Virginia Tech (3-0), Old Dominion (3-1) and Auburn (3-1).
Sasha van der Merve (3.00 k/s), Jordan Newblatt (2.77 k/s) and Gabrielle Heller (2.50 k/s) are Marist's top offensive weapons.
With 66 total kills and nine service aces, van der Merwe leads the team in both categories.
McKinley Fox is averaging an impressive 8.82 assists per set and has 194 total through six matches.
At the net, Vanessa Zolg has recorded a team-best 19 blocks. She and Heller both have a pair of solos.
The Red Foxes are scrappy on the floor as four different players enter the weekend with 40+ digs – Mogan Owens (75), Newblatt (51), Heller (47) and van der Merwe (43).

Tournament Schedule

Friday	11:00 AM	LIU vs. Marist	Live Stats
Friday	4:00 PM	Boston College vs. LIU	Live Stats
Friday	7:00 PM	Marist vs. Rhode Island	Live Stats	ESPN+
Saturday	11:00 AM	LIU vs. Rhode Island	Live Stats
Saturday	2:00 PM	Marist vs. Boston College	Live Stats
Saturday	7:00 PM	Boston College vs. Rhode Island	Live Stats

Players Mentioned