Volleyball Travels to UNH Tournament, Hosts North Dakota in Opening Weekend

Friday, September 6

Durham, NH

4:30 PM

Brown University

Seattle University

Volleyball Travels to UNH Tournament, Hosts North Dakota in Opening Weekend

9/4/2019 4:41:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Watch Live at UNH (ESPN+)Watch Live vs. North Dakota (ESPN+)

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Brown University volleyball opens its 2019 season at the Holly Young Invitational hosted by the University of New Hampshire, competing against Seattle (Sept. 6, 4:30 p.m.), New Hampshire (Sept. 7, 12:30 p.m.), and Holy Cross (Sept. 7, 2:30 p.m.) before hosting North Dakota on Sept. 8 at noon in the Bears' home opener at the Pizzitola Sports Center.

FOLLOW THE BEARS
Vs. Seattle: Live Stats
At New Hampshire: Live Video (ESPN+) | Live Stats
Vs. Holy Cross: Live Stats
Vs. North Dakota: Live Video (ESPN+) | Live Stats
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THE IVY LEAGUE ON ESPN
Video of all home contests and all Ivy League games, home and away, will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Fans can subscribe and view games by purchasing a monthly package for $4.99 or a yearly package for $49.99.

THE BEST OF 2018
Brown posted an 11-13 overall record last fall, marking its most wins since the 2014 season (12-14). The Bears went 7-3 in non-conference play, compiling their most non-league wins since 2008 (8-4). Sabrina Stillwell '19 concluded her career ranked eighth all-time at Brown with 1,027 career kills, and the Bears once again earned the AVCA Team Academic Award.

GROVER ALL-IVY
Junior right-side hitter Eliza Grover (Menlo Park, Calif.) earned Honorable Mention All-Ivy honors last season after ranking second on the team in both kills per set (2.53) and total kills (245). She played in all 24 matches and 97 of a possible 99 sets, including all 58 sets in Ivy League competition.

RETURNING STAT LEADERS
Juniors Eliza Grover (Menlo Park, Calif.) and Gabrielle Moriconi (Naples, Fla.) return as two of the Bears' top offensive threats after averaging 2.53 and 2.25 kills per set respectively a season ago.

One of the Bears' most versatile performers, senior Makena Ehlert (Orange County, Calif.) tallied eight double-doubles in 2018. She posted 2.84 digs and 1.76 kills per set and played in all 99 sets on the year. She landed double-figure kills in nine of the Bears' final 10 matches last season.

Sophomore libero Paris Winkler (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.) paced the Brown defense and ranked seventh in the Ivy League with 3.79 digs per set last fall, sophomore setter Kristin Sellers (Menlo Park, Calif.) ranked fifth in the Ancient Eight in assists per set (7.96) as a rookie, and senior Jacqueline Jacobs (Atlanta, Ga.) stood sixth in the league in blocks per set (1.03).

THE CAPTAINS
The Bears will feature leadership from across their classes with senior outside hitter Makena Ehlert (Orange County, Calif.), junior outside hitter Gabrielle Moriconi (Naples, Fla.), and sophomore libero Paris Winkler (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.) serving Brown as captains in 2019.

THE NEWCOMERS
Brown welcomes four incoming freshmen to the team in 2019, including middle blocker Audra Curtin (Tampa, Fla.), middle blocker/right-side hitter Elise Curtin (Tampa, Fla.), outside hitter Sophia Miller (Dallas, Texas), and libero/defensive specialist Kaitlyn Wong (Los Altos, Calif.).

YEAR TWO
Ahen Kim returns for his second year as the head coach of the Brown volleyball program, coming off a year in which he led the Bears to their most wins since the 2014 season. He brings back top assistant coach Katie Reifert, while adding assistant coach Eryn Riley.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Seattle brings a 2-1 record into the weekend, coming off a pair of wins over Southern Mississippi (3-1) and San Francisco (3-1) and a setback at Denver (3-0) in its opening weekend. The Redhawks went 11-19 a season ago.

UNH carries a 3-1 mark into the weekend behind wins over Rhode Island (3-1), Iona (3-1), and Bryant (3-1) alongside a loss to Army (3-0). Last year, the Wildcats posted a 12-15 overall record.

Holy Cross dropped its first three contests of the 2019 season, falling to Wichita State (3-0), Penn State (3-0), and Hofstra (3-0). The Crusaders notched an 8-21 record last fall.

North Dakota opened the year with a 3-1 mark, earning wins over Arkansas Pine Bluff (3-1), Louisiana Monroe (3-1), and Mississippi Valley State (3-0), while falling to New Orleans (3-1). Last season, the Fighting Hawks finished 14-18.

UP NEXT
After hosting North Dakota on Sunday, Brown will compete at the Friar Classic, taking on Coppin State (Sept. 13, 7:00 p.m.), Fairleigh Dickinson (Sept. 14, 11:00 a.m.), and host Providence College (Sept. 14, 5:30 p.m.).