No. 21 UCF vs. South Florida |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – After a 23-game winning streak, one of the best campaigns in program history and the American Athletic Conference title, the No. 21 UCF volleyball team will close out the 2018 regular season on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. against South Florida.
The Knights will look to complete the season sweep of the Bulls and pick up three more points in the War On I-4. UCF currently leads South Florida 15-6 on the year.
Here are five things to know heading into the South Florida match:
LAST TIME OUT
The Knights sealed a perfect 9-0 record away from home in The American with a pair of wins on the road at SMU and Houston. UCF swept the Mustangs last Friday in Amber Olson’s first match as an all-around setter. The rookie dropped a then-career-high 35 assists, as Kristina Fisher and McKenna Melville totaled 20 and 16 kills, respectively. On Sunday, the Black and Gold bounced back from a first set defeat to edge the Cougars 3-1. Fisher led a trio of Knights in double-figure kills.
SENIOR KNIGHT
Wednesday night will be the final regular season match in The Venue for senior Jordan Pingel. The libero will be honored in a postgame ceremony for her leadership and accomplishments over the last four seasons. The Colorado Springs, Colo., native will go down as the best defensive player in program history. Earlier this season, Pingel became the first player in UCF history to pass the 2,000-digs plateau. She needs just 14 digs to break the single-season digs record on Wednesday.
BLOCK PARTY
Pingel is far from the only record breaker for the Knights this season. The block has been one of the many strengths of the team this year. Last week, the Knights eclipsed the 1999 program record for block assists in a season of 484. Freshman Kathryn Wesolich is just 14 assisted stuffs away from breaking the school record of 142 block assists in a season.
STREAKING
The Knights’ 23-match winning streak is now the fourth longest active stretch in the nation, behind Stephen F. Austin, BYU and Stanford. UCF now holds the longest DI winning streak in program history, eclipsing the 22-match streak from 1997. The unbeaten run trails streaks of 55, 30 and 29 from 1978, 1977 and 1979, respectively.
THE OPPOSITION
The Bulls enter the final game of the regular season with a 9-8 record and tied for fifth in The American with a 20-10 mark on the year. The two clubs met back on Sept. 21 in a match that went five sets to open up league play. Jac’cara Walker is fourth in the conference with 3.46 kills per set.
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