HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University volleyball team will close out a four-match home stand this weekend, welcoming in Atlantic Sun Conference foes Florida Gulf Coast and Stetson for matches in Regents Hall.
 
The Norse will take on FGCU Friday at 6:30 p.m. It's Fright Night with a "Best Dressed" Halloween costume contest for fans in attendance. Saturday's matinee against Stetson will get underway at 1 p.m. Saturday is Superhero Day, fans are encouraged to come dressed in their favorite superhero costume. It's also Serve It Up Saturday, where the team will meet with fans and sign autographs following the match.
 
Live stats and links to the weekend's ASun.TV broadcasts are available at NKUNorse.com. Fans can also find up-to-the-minute updates by following @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter.
 
NKU has won the first two legs of the home stand, both in comeback fashion. On Friday, the Norse stunned A-Sun front runner Lipscomb, coming from 0-2 down to take a 15-9 victory in the deciding fifth set. On Tuesday, after dropping the opening set to Eastern Kentucky, the Norse stormed back to take a 3-1 decision. NKU now stands 15-7 overall and 4-4 in Atlantic Sun play.
 
A WORD ABOUT FLORIDA GULF COAST: The Eagles claim a share of the lead in the conference standings at 7-1 after taking a five-set match at Stetson last weekend. Olivia Mesner continues to be one of the A-Sun's most potent offensive threats, averaging 3.28 kills per set on a league-best .379 hitting percentage, while four Eagle hitters rank in the top 10 in the league in kills per set.  Gigi Meyer is the league's most effective passer, averaging 11.51 assists per set to rank 10^th in the nation in the category.  Libero Whitney Masters leads the defensive efforts on the back row, averaging 4.18 digs per set to rank fourth in the league.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST THE EAGLES: Mesner posted 19 kills and hit .485 to lead FGCU to a 3-1 win over NKU two weeks ago. Jessica Barnes added 14 kills and Eleonora Kazarian posted a double-double with 13 kills and 12 digs. Keely Creamer led the Norse with 15 kills on a .379 hitting percentage while Jenna Ruble had 13 kills and three blocks. Mel Stewart added a match-high 24 digs for the Norse, who saw their deficit in the all-time series with the Eagles fall to 1-5.
 
A WORD ABOUT STETSON: The Hatters have lost their last two conference matches to fall to 5-3 in A-Sun play, good for third place in the league table. Shelby Conners is the league's top blocker, averaging almost a block per set. McKenna Foster remains one of the top freshman performers in the conference, leading the Hatters at over three kills per set. Sophomore Madison Akins is right behind at 3.06 kills per set. On the back row, Alexa Drost is averaging 3.73 digs per set to lead the defense. The Hatters' biggest strength lies in their service game, where they rank 14^th nationally in service aces per set (1.66).
 
LAST TIME AGAINST THE HATTERS: Foster had 12 kills on a .423 hitting percentage to lead Stetson to a straight-set win over the Norse on Oct. 17. Akins added 11 kills for Stetson. Jenna Ruble's 10 kills topped the Norse, while Keely Creamer and Jayden Julian each had eight kills. The loss dropped NKU's lead in the all-time series with Stetson to 3-2.
 
CLIMBING CAREER LISTS: Sophomore setter Taylor Snyder is already climbing the all-time ranks for assists at NKU. She enters this weekend with 2,220 career assists to rank ninth in the Norse annals. Jenna Schreiver set the NKU record with 5,120 assists across her four years (2009-12).
 
Senior middle hitter Jenna Ruble is making moves on the career blocking lists as well. Her 241 block assists put her above Jennifer Quast for seventh all-time. Jessica Buroker's 338 block assists from 1997-2000 set the NKU record.
 
EFFICENCY IS THE KEY: NKU has been attacking at a .233 clip, leading the Atlantic Sun and 16 points better than the next-highest team (FGCU). The Norse have hit .245 or better as a team in four of their last five matches, including a .396 mark on Oct. 11 against Jacksonville. NKU is 7-0 on the season when reaching that level of efficiency.
 
MOST VALUABLE KIDS: NKU Athletics is teaming with Most Valuable Kids of Greater Cincinnati, Inc. (MVK) to invite underserved children in the area to attend Saturday's volleyball match against Stetson free of charge as a source of positive inspiration for kids. MVK overcomes the financial obstacles associated with live events by distributing unused tickets to kids who would enjoy the opportunity to go to an event, but would otherwise not be able to because of the high costs associated with tickets. These tickets are distributed to boys and girls, 18 and under, through local tax-exempt organizations that focus on children in low-income and underserved households. For more information, visit mostvaluablekids.org.