Lehigh Travels to Army West Point and Holy Cross for Patriot League Weekend

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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh volleyball squad will hit the road for a pair of Patriot League matches this weekend, starting with Army West Point on Friday at 7 pm on ESPN+, followed by match at Holy Cross on Saturday at 4 pm

The Mountain Hawks, who are 12-11 overall and 3-8 in Patriot League action, are coming off a 1-1 weekend at home. Lehigh took down Bucknell, 3-2, in a back and forth five-set match on Saturday before falling 3-1 to Lafayette in The Rivalry presented by Lehigh Valley Orthopedic Institute.

Sophomore Megan Schulte, the team-leader in kills, and first-year Natalie Luscomb, who ranks second in kills both recorded 23 kills in their two matches last weekend. Schulte added 10 blocks, eight digs and two assists while Luscomb, who was a Patriot League honorable mention, contributed six blocks and posted a .373 hitting percentage. The Mountain Hawks also totaled 32 team blocks in the two matches.

Sophomore Makena Smith tallied 68 assists last weekend, with 41 in the victory against Bucknell and tied her career-high seven kills. She currently leads the team with 758 assists this season. Sophomore Kyleigh Brown contributed 47 digs for the Mountain Hawks which brings her to 349 on the year.

Army is currently 13-8 on the season and 9-2 in league play and on a three-match winning streak coming into Friday’s contest. The Black Knights, who play four of their last five matches at, will take on Lafayette the following day to close out the weekend.

Junior Paige Fixemer leads Army with 222 kills this season while fellow junior Savannah Bray follows close behind with 215 kills. Fixemer also recorded 84 blocks, with 20 solo blocks, which is a team-high. Sophomore Diana Ethridge has registered 790 assists on the year which leads all Black Knights’.

The Mountain Hawks are searching for their 17th all-time win against Army and first victory over the Black Knights since 2018 this weekend. In their first meeting this season, Army downed Lehigh 3-1 at Grace Hall.

Holy Cross will host the Mountain Hawks on Saturday after the Crusaders face off with Bucknell on Friday night. The Crusaders are 2-20 overall and 0-11 in Patriot League play ahead of their matches this weekend after dropping matches to Loyola (Md.) and Navy in straight sets a week ago.

The Crusaders are led by sophomore Abbie Lane and freshman Rachel Johnson who both have 150 kills each. Senior Gracyn Benck sits close behind with 147 kills. Senior Halle Carter paces Holy Cross by registering 325 assists on the season while freshman Katie Russell has added 215 assists. Defensively, sophomore Lauren Halverson leads the Crusaders with 40 blocks while senior Emma Vanseveren has a team-high 268 digs.

Lehigh will search for his 47th overall victory over Holy Cross on Saturday afternoon and his third-straight win over the Crusaders. In their previous meeting this season, Lehigh earned a 3-1 victory in Bethlehem.

Following this weekend’s action, Lehigh will return home to Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall for their final home matches of the season. The Mountain Hawks will take on Navy on Friday Nov. 4 at 7 pm followed by American on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 4 pm Both matches will be broadcast on ESPN+.

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