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Volleyball Huddle 2018
Steve Simoneau

Volleyball Athletic Communications

Hatters Begin Quest for ASUN Championship

Stetson Faces Liberty in the Quarterfinals on Thursday

2018 ASUN CHAMPIONSHIP - Tournament Central
BRACKET | Link (PDF)
LIVE VIDEO | ESPN+
LIVE STATS | Link
TWITTER | @StetsonVB
TEXT ALERTS | HatCheck
PDF NOTES | Stetson (PDF)

One year removed from a three-win campaign, the Stetson volleyball program was looking to make some progress this season.  Instead, the Hatters made a giant step forward, going 16-12 in the regular season and 8-8 in ASUN play to secure their first postseason berth since 2015.

Stetson is currently the only team in the NCAA to have 13-win improvement over last year, and the Hatters have hit the 16-win mark for just the third time since 1992.

"We have really learned all about building trust and learning to play with each other this season," Stetson head coach Yang Deng said.  "We have seen that our combined strength is much greater than just having a couple of players carry the entire team."

The Hatters will look to turn their giant step into a major leap this weekend as they battle for the 2018 ASUN Championship and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.  The fifth-seeded Hatters will face fourth-seeded Liberty (14-16) in the quarterfinals at 5 p.m. Thursday in Kennesaw, Ga.  Liberty defeated Stetson twice this season by identical 3-0 scores.

"Liberty is a good team. I'm glad that we get a chance to play them again," Deng said.  "Often people don't get an opportunity to play a team more than twice in a season. I am looking forward to seeing how much we've improved from the last time we met."

Stetson is making its fourth postseason appearance in the past six years, but only Anna Bezhan was a team member when the Hatters last qualified in 2015.  The Hatters' last postseason victory came in 1995, and their last and only tournament title came in 1985.  Stetson has never been to the NCAA Tournament.

Stetson has been backed by solid defensive play all season long.  The Hatters lead the ASUN and rank 38th in the NCAA in digs-per-set (16.95). The team's 1,763 digs is the second-highest total in the rally-scoring era.

Stetson also ranks third in the ASUN and 66th in the NCAA in blocks-per-set (2.37).  The team's 246 total blocks and 80 solo blocks are rally-scoring era records.

Offensively, the Hatters have been brilliant at times, posting attack percentages of .400 and .310 in victories over UNF and Kennesaw State.  Stetson has hit over .200 18 times this season but was held to .150 and .136 marks against Liberty.

The winner of Thursday's match will advance to play top-seeded FGCU at 5 p.m. Friday.  The championship match will be played at 7 p.m. Saturday.  

"We want to play at a high, consistent level for the entire tournament and to enjoy the journey we have together," Deng said.

All tournament matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+.  In addition, live stats, Twitter (@StetsonVB), and the HatCheck text messaging service will provide live updates as well.

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.
 
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Players Mentioned

Anna Bezhan

#7 Anna Bezhan

OH
5' 10"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Anna Bezhan

#7 Anna Bezhan

5' 10"
Senior
OH