Weekly Notes

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University volleyball team will hit the road for three matches starting on Thursday, including back-to-back non-conference tilts before resuming MEAC play on Sunday at rival Howard.
 
Schedule: Thursday, at Manhattan, 7 p.m.; Friday, at NJIT, 7 p.m.; Sunday, at Howard, 3 p.m.
Live Stats: Manhattan. NJIT.
Live Video: Manhattan. NJIT.
 
Last Time Out: The Lady Pirates (13-9, 8-0 MEAC) picked up their third straight win this past Sunday, defeating Morgan State in straight sets. Senior rightside Vendula Strakova (Brno, Czech Republic) led the way with 19 kills and five aces, hitting .400 for the match. Overall, Hampton has won eight of its last nine matches.
 
The Opponents: The Lady Pirates have never faced Manhattan or NJIT. Hampton is 23-28 against Howard all-time, including a 3-1 win earlier this season. Overall, the Lady Pirates have won the last 13 meetings against Howard.
 
Away From the Pirates Den: Dating back to last season, the Lady Pirates are 21-17 in matches away from Holland Hall, going 8-12 in true road contests and 11-5 in neutral-court matches. Hampton is 5-4 in true road matches so far this season after a straight-set win over Norfolk State on Oct. 19. Dating back to 2013, the Lady Pirates have won 14 of their last 21 matches away from Holland Hall.
 
A Historic Season: The 2013 season was one of firsts for the Lady Pirates; they won their first-ever MEAC Tournament title — and corresponding bid to the NCAA Tournament — after taking their first MEAC Northern Division regular-season crown. Hampton won 19 matches last season, tying the program Div. I mark for most wins in a season, and the Lady Pirates' 10-2 record in conference play marked a program Div. I high in conference wins in a season.
 
Lady Pirates Picked to Repeat: The Lady Pirates were picked as the favorite to win the MEAC Northern Division this season, picking up 23 of a possible 26 first-place votes in a preseason poll voted on by the conference's head coaches and sports information directors. Hampton went 19-11 last season and won the MEAC Northern Division regular-season crown with a mark of 10-2 — setting the program Div. I mark for most conference wins in a single season. The Lady Pirates went on win their first-ever MEAC Tournament crown.
 
Strakova Named MEAC Preseason Player of the Year: Strakova has been tabbed the MEAC Preseason Player of the Year — after earning the conference's top honor in 2013 (becoming the first Hampton player to do so). It's yet another in a laundry list of accolades for Strakova, who last year was named Honorable Mention All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association — becoming the first Hampton player ever to be recognized by the AVCA. She was also named AVCA All-East Region, the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Player of the Year, and the MEAC Tournament's Most Outstanding Player (another Hampton first).
 
Setting a New Mark: This past Friday against Coppin State, Strakova became the program's all-time career kills leader, surpassing the 1,472 kills Chavanca Hoskins had from 2003-06. After this past weekend, Strakova has 1,509 career kills at Hampton, and she is one of just six players in program history to eclipse the 1,000-kill mark (including her teammate Krista Kraskura). Strakova has 475 kills so far this season, leaving her 152 shy of breaking her own record for most kills in a single season; she set that mark last season when she racked up 626 kills.
 
Kraskura Reaches Career Milestones: Senior outside hitter Krista Kraskura (Kuldiga, Latvia) is one of just six players in program history to reach 1,000 kills for her career, and just one of two players in program history to reach 1,000 career digs. She reached the 1,000-kill mark on Sept. 9 at Radford, and she eclipsed the 1,000-dig mark on Oct. 5 against Howard. Kraskura has 1,136 career kills and 1,047 career digs after this past weekend's matches.
 
Megne Chasing Down a Record: Senior setter Kitija Megne (Kuldiga, Latvia) has 912 assists so far this season, leaving her 88 shy of becoming just the fourth player in program history to register 1,000 assists in a single season. She is also 257 assists away from setting the program's all-time single-season assist mark, which currently sits at 1,168 (Sydnee Keel, 2005). Her 10.73 assists-per-set average, as it stands now, would also be a program best for a single season.
 
Weatherington Closing in on 100: Head coach Karen Weatherington, in her second season with the Lady Pirates, is five wins shy of 100 for her head coaching career heading into this week's action. Weatherington has won 32 matches so far at the helm at Hampton, after winning 63 matches in four seasons at Kennesaw State.
 
Medina Broke Out in 2013: Junior outside hitter/libero Allysa Medina (Menifee, Calif.) was one of the Lady Pirates' most improved players in 2013, showing power on the outside that betray her 5-foot-6 frame. Medina had a career-high nine kills in a five-set win over William & Mary to announce her arrival, and in conference play, she had 92 kills, an average of 0.91 per set, to go along with 123 digs on defense. She added eight kills against Norfolk State, hitting a career-best .533 in that match after going error-free in 15 attacks.
 
Thomas Gives Lady Pirates Local Flavor: Freshman middle blocker Tatyana Thomas (Suffolk, Va.) isn't just the tallest player on the team, standing at 6-foot-3. She is also the only player on the roster from Virginia, having played her high school volleyball at Nansemond River High School in nearby Suffolk, Va. There, she played under current Lady Pirates assistant coach Nicole Giancola, and as a senior, she was named the Ironclad Conference Player of the Year. She led Nansemond River to the conference championship and was named Team MVP.
 
Block Party: Six Lady Pirates recorded at least 30 total blocks last season, led by middle blocker Marija Kocevska (Skopje, Macedonia), who had 100.0 total blocks. Strakova was second on the team with 69.0 total blocks in 2013, and Petra Parros — who is now on the Lady Pirates' coaching staff — was third with 64.0 total blocks. Senior outside hitter Sonja Maksimovic (39.0), recently-graduated setter Bibiany Fonseca (38.0), and Kraskura (33.0) were also strong at the net in 2013. Hampton had more blocks than its opponent 11 times in 2013, going 10-1 in those matches.
 
Lady Pirates in the National Rankings: Through this past weekend's action, Strakova leads the nation with 475 total kills, and she ranks second among all Div. I players in both kills per set (5.59) and points per set (6.32). She is also eighth in the nation with 12.40 attacks per set, and her 1,054 total attacks are 12th in the nation. Megne is 39th in the nation in total assists (912) and assists per set (10.73). As a team, the Lady Pirates rank 28th nationally in hitting percentage (.260) and 38th in aces per set (1.51). Their 128 aces are 42nd in the nation.
 
Lady Pirates Have Plenty of Experience: Despite graduating five seniors last season, the Lady Pirates come into 2014 with a bevy of experience — thanks in large part to four returning seniors, a senior transfer, and a junior. Strakova, Kraskura, Maksimovic, and Kocevska each have at least two seasons' worth of experience at Hampton, and all four played in at least 85 sets in 2013. In addition, Megne, a setter, has Div. I experience thanks to her time at Virginia Tech. Medina is the team's lone junior.
 
Making Quick Work of It: The Lady Pirates went 10-4 in three-set matches last season, and prior to their NCAA Tournament match-up against Stanford, they had won seven of their last eight matches that wrapped up in straight sets. Hampton is 6-2 in straight sets so far this season after a straight-set win over Morgan State on Sunday.
 
Over the Long Haul: The Lady Pirates went 4-2 in five-set matches last season — including the MEAC Tournament championship match against Coppin State. Over the past two-plus seasons, the Lady Pirates are 10-8 in matches that go the distance following a hard-fought five-set loss to VCU on Oct. 14.
 
For more information on Hampton University volleyball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.