PHILADELPHIA – The Explorers finally return home from a lengthy road swing to take on the NJIT Highlanders Wednesday at 7:00pm at the Tom Gola Arena. The Blue & Gold have not played in the friendly confines of their home gym since the opening weekend of the season.
 
Scouting the Explorers
The Blue & Gold enter this hump-day matchup with the Highlanders coming off a rough weekend down in Tennessee at the Tiger Invitational. The Explorers traveled to Memphis looking to ignite an offense that has struggled to capitalize on opportunities without their leading hitter Kelly Perillo. Unfortunately, the team found little in the way of southern hospitality from Memphis, APSU, or UALR, as the offense was able to find little traction throughout the weekend.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Kelly Perillo continues to lead the Explorers offense in kills, a testament to how strong of a season she has put together, as she has played sparingly in the teams last five matches. Her 117 kills are still the seventh highest mark in the Atlantic 10 Conference, while her 3.00 kills/set average is tied for ninth best in the A-10.
 
Laura Kuhlmeier has enjoyed a breakout sophomore season and has been the go-to option for the Explorers in the absence of Perillo. She ranks second on the Blue & Gold with 99 kills and a 1.87 kills/set average. Her next kill will put her at the century mark, this first time she has reached triple-digit kills in her young Explorer career. Kuhlmeier has also been phenomenal on defense this season; ranking second on the Explorer roster in digs (131) and tied for second in total blocks (13.0).  
 
Elena Lamping and Ashley Felton have continued to be a formidable duo in the middle. Lamping ranks third on the Explorers with 70 kills, while Felton is right on her tail with 69 kills of her own.
 
Rachel Melich and Michelle Healy have been a dynamic combination in feeding quality chances for the Explorer hitters. While neither stands alone within the conference rankings, they form perhaps the best setting combination in the conference. Melich leads the Explorers with 220 assists and 4.15 assists/set average, while Healy is not far behind with 202 assists and 3.81 assists/set average. Both players have excelled while on serve as well, notching 12 and 10 respectively.
 
Defensively, freshman middle hitter Ashley Felton has led the way at the net front. She is far and away the leader for the Explorers in blocks, leading in solo blocks (4), block assists (34), and total blocks (38).
 
On the backline, sophomore libero Erin Noga has played spectacularly. She leads the Explorers in digs (186) and digs/set average (3.51). Both those marks are good for eighth best in the A-10 Conference rankings. She also is tied for the team lead with 12 service aces.
 
La Salle Explorers (1-15) vs. NJIT Highlanders (2-10)
Wednesday September 25, 2013 | 7:00 PM | Tom Gola Arena – Philadelphia, PA
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Scouting the Highlanders
NJIT enters Wednesday night having dropped their last five matches. Most recently they participated in a weekend tournament at Central Connecticut State, getting swept in the three matches against Fordham, CCSU, and Hartford. They have been competitive despite dropping their last five matches, as they have taken at least one set in four of their last five matches.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Danica Vukotic leads the Highlanders offensively. She has posted an impressive 126 kills and 3.07 kills/set average through the team's first twelve matches this season. Her attack is supplemented on the outside by senior Cathy Leung and fellow sophomore Fran Edmondson. Leung is second on the Highlanders with 85 kills, while Edmondson has chipped in 82 kills.
 
The Highlanders do not filter a high percentage of their attack through the middle, but when they do it usually proves successful. Senior Julia Colombo and junior Valerie Carroll have notched 41 kills and 38 kills respectively. They also lead the Highlanders in the hitting percentage, with Colombo hitting .272 while Carroll has hit at a .293 clip this season.
 
NJIT feeds the attack through several outlets, as three Highlanders has amassed 100+ assists this season. Sophomore setter Grace Gao leads the Highlanders with 126 assists, while amassing a 7.00 assists/set average in part-time action this season. Edmondson also gets into the assist category fairly often when not attacking herself. She has 118 assists, while junior libero Gladis Oseguera has contributed 101 helpers on the season.
 
Defensively, Edmonson, Colombo, and Carroll lead the Highlanders at the net front. Carroll ranks first on the Highlanders with 31 total blocks, while Edmondson has notched 27 and Colombo 25.
 
The backline defense is paced by junior libero Katie Goswick who has racked up 116 digs and a 4.14 digs/set average. Leung is the only other player with 100+ digs, contributing 109 digs on the season.