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HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University volleyball team is back in the Millis Center hosting the Panther Invitational on Sept. 11-12.
 
The Panthers (4-4) will entertain Wake Forest, Davidson and Marshall in a 6-match tournament this weekend starting at Friday at 4:30 p.m.
 
Last Time Out:
HPU went on the road to UNCG on Tuesday night and fell in four sets to the Spartans. In defeat, senior Annemarie Chin racked up 37 digs for the Purple & White. The 37 digs are the most in a match for HPU since the NCAA went to rally scoring and the highest total in a 4-set match in the nation this year.
 
Sophomore Haley Barnes paced the offensive attack with 14 kills to go along with eight digs. Freshman Jordan Hefner – the reigning Big South Freshman of the Week – posted six kills and six blocks on the night.
 
Scouting the Wildcats:
Davidson (3-4) is coming off a 4-20 season last year and enter the Panther Invitational just one win away from equaling 2014's win total. The Wildcats opened 2015 with losses to Charlotte, UNC Asheville and USC Upstate before sweeping the Wildcat Classic against Hampton, Presbyterian and East Carolina. Like HPU, Davidson played a road game on Tuesday when they lost in straight sets at Elon.
 
Freshmen Mason Rooney and Sabrina Shepherd are pacing the Wildcats with 2.46 and 2.14 kills per set, respectively. Defensively, it's senior Morgan Shannon (4.00 digs per set) and sophomore Mary Harriet Moore (1.00 blocks per set) that lead the way.
 
Scouting the Thundering Herd:
Marshall is off to a 6-1 start with a .227 attack percentage while holding opponents to .162 clip. The Thundering Herd opened up with four straight wins before losing to New Hampshire in four sets. The team has bounced right back, however, with consecutive 5-set wins in the Fairfield Invitational (Sept. 4-5).
 
Junior Cassie Weaver and sophomore Taylor Pelton have each registered 5.50 kills per set this season as sophomore Kayla Simmons is averaging 8.70 assists per set. Junior Allie Kellerman (4.46 digs per set) paces the defense in the back row while sophomore Justice Craft is one of three players averaging over 0.70 blocks per set.
 
Scouring the Demon Deacons:
Wake Forest (4-2) opened 2015 by going 1-2 at the Rambler Challenge hosted by Northwestern. The team responded by sweeping N.C. Central, Charleston Southern and Elon in three matches at the Elon Phoenix Classic.
 
Senior Matalee Reed – 3.64 kills per set and .302 attack percentage – leads the Demon Deacons' offense. On the defensive side of the net, sophomore Caroline Wolf (4.41 digs per set) is the team's leader. Meanwhile, freshman Katie Moore is tops on the squad with 0.86 blocks per set.
 
Panther Notes:
• Annemarie Chin's 37-dig performance against UNCG is the second best individual dig effort in the nation this season.
 
• HPU boasts the reigning Big South Defensive Player of the Week in senior Annemarie Chin and Big South Freshman of the Week in Jordan Hefner.
 
• Chin has taken over the top spot in the Big South, and is sixth nationally, with 6.00 digs per set while HPU is averaging 16.84 per set, which is good for second in the league.
 
• Hefner is leading the team and is seventh in the Big South in attack percentage (.316) and blocks per set (0.91) – both are tops among league freshmen.
 
• Sophomore Haley Barnes has moved into fifth in the conference in kills per set with 3.30.
 
Next Up:
The Purple & White finish up their stretch of 9-of-10 games in the Millis Center against North Carolina A&T on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. The squad spends next weekend (Sept. 18-19) at the Red Flash Classic against Coppin State, Fordham and host St. Francis (Pa.). 
 
#GoHPU