PHILADELPHIA – The Explorers open up conference play this weekend in the friendly confines of Tom Gola Arena. The Blue & Gold will faceoff against the George Mason Patriots at 7:00pm on Friday, and will matchup against the Rhode Island Rams at 7:00pm on Saturday. The Explorers hope to get off to a quick start to conference play with the early stretch of their conference slate at home.
 
Scouting the Explorers
La Salle enters this weekend's action coming off a hard fought three set loss to the NJIT Highlanders. The Explorers battled the Highlanders hard; taking them to extra-points in the second set, but ultimately fell short. It has been a tough non-conference road for the Explorers; however, they hope that the difficult slate of matches have left the team battle tested for the Atlantic 10 gauntlet.
 
In recent matches the Explorers have struggled to establish a consistent offensive game. The primary reason for this is because they have missed the contributions of their leading sophomore hitter Kelly Perillo, who has been held out of the last six matches. She still leads the Blue & Gold with 117 kills and a 3.00 kills/set average on the season. As of the beginning of this week, her 117 kills still ranked seventh in the A-10 rankings, while her 3.00 kills/set average was tied for the ninth best mark in the conference.
 
Sophomore Laura Kuhlmeier has assumed the mantle of being the primary attacking option in Perillo's absence and she has not disappointed. She has posted several strong matches, including an 11 kill – 16 dig double-double performance in the team's most recent match against NJIT. Kuhlmeier has done it all for the Explorers, ranking first on the team in total points (126.5), while ranking second in kills (110), digs (147), and total blocks (15). She is on pace to post her first 200 kill – 200 dig season.
 
Complementing the attack on the outside has been senior Rachel Finkbeiner. She has notched 54 kills (.094) on the season. In her most recent match she racked up 6 kills against NJIT, tying her second highest mark of the season.
 
A trio of middle hitters has supplemented the shorthanded attack on the outside. Leading the way has been sophomore Elena Lamping. She has amassed 73 kills (.088) on the season. Right on her heels is freshman Ashley Felton who has enjoyed a strong start to her Explorer career. She has racked up 70 kills on a .120 hitting percentage. Junior Jennifer Whelan has rounded into form since missing the beginning of the season with an injury. She has notched 32 kills on the season, including a season high tying 5 kills in the match against NJIT.
 
Feeding the Explorer attack has been the dynamic duo of junior Rachel Melich and sophomore Michelle Healy. They are the only pair of teammates in the conference to amass 200+ assists apiece. Melich leads the Blue & Gold with 230 assists and a 4.11 assists/set average. Healy is right behind Melich with 216 assists on the season, including a team leading 14 assists in a double-double (14 assist – 10 dig) performance against NJIT.
 
Defensively, Felton leads the Explorers at the net front. She has racked up 44 total blocks (4 solo blocks – 40 block assists) on the season, placing her just outside of the top 10 in the A-10 rankings.
 
The backline has been brilliantly patrolled by libero Erin Noga. Noga has enjoyed a breakout sophomore season. At the beginning of play this week she ranked eighth in the conference in digs and digs/set average. She is primed for a bump in the standings, as she posted a career high 30 digs in the Explorers last match against NJIT. She has collected 216 digs on the season, far and away the top mark on the Explorer roster.
 
La Salle Explorers (1-16) vs. George Mason Patriots (4-10)
Friday, September 27, 2013 | 7:00 PM | Tom Gola Arean – Philadelphia, Pa
Live Stats | Follow on Twitter @ExplorerGameDay | Sign Up for Text Alerts
 
Scouting the Patriots
George Mason enters the matchup coming off a 1-2 weekend at the Spartan Spiketacular in Greensboro, North Carolina. The Patriots were swept in the first two matches of the weekend against UNC Greensboro and TCU, but rallied to sweep North Carolina Central in straight sets to conclude tournament action.
 
The Patriots are led on attack by the explosive duo of senior outside hitter Lana Zonjic and freshman outside hitter Jessie Greenslade. Zonjic leads George Mason with 108 kills (.224) and 3.48 kills/set average, while participating in only eight matches this season. She has missed the Patriots last five matches, but her 3.48 kills/set average still ranks sixth best in the A-10. Greenslade has stepped up in Zonjic's absence, racking up 106 kills (.112) and a 2.41 kills/set average. In her most recent match against North Carolina Central, Greenslade set a new career high with 17 kills on a fabulous .400 hitting percentage.
 
Another strong combination complements the George Mason attack in the middle. Redshirt sophomore Lolade Owokoniran has notched 87 kills, while senior Laura Spencer has contributed 75 kills. Although they do not form the majority of the Patriot attack, they usually succeed when given the opportunity. Spencer's .263 hitting percentage is the sixth best mark in the conference, while Owokoniran's .259 ranks eighth.
 
The George Mason attack flows through the creative hands of senior setter Tori Price. Price leads the Patriots in assists by a wide margin. Her 440 helpers are the fourth most in the A-10, while her 8.63 assists/set average is the seventh best mark in the conference.
The strength of this George Mason squad is their defense. They rank second in the conference in team blocking, fourth in team digging, which translates to the third best rank in opponent hitting percentage.
 
Owokoniran leads the defense at the net front, proving to be an intimidating presence with her exceptional blocking skills. She ranks first in the conference in blocks/set average (1.40), while she ranks second in total blocks with 73. Spencer has contributed 60 blocks of her own, with her 1.15 blocks/set average the sixth best mark in the A-10.
 
Sophomore libero Bernetta Moore leads the backline defensively. She ranks first in the conference with 245 digs and a 4.71 digs/set average.
 
La Salle Explorers (1-16) vs. Rhode Island Rams (6-7)
Saturday, September 28, 2013 | 7:00 PM | Tom Gola Arena – Philadelphia, Pa
Watch | Live Stats | Follow on Twitter @ExplorerGameDay | Sign Up for Text Alerts
 
Scouting the Rams
Rhode Island enters this weekend's action in the midst of a small midseason swoon. The Rams went 1-3 in the Dartmouth Duel last weekend, sandwiching a win over New Hampshire between losses against Minnesota, Dartmouth and Connecticut. The Rams will open A-10 play at Fordham on Friday evening before traveling down I-95 for the matchup with the Explorers on Saturday.
 
Rhode Island ranks first in the conference in team kills with a 13.59 kills/set average, while ranking second in team assists with 12.33 assists/set average.
 
Two tremendous outside hitters headline the Rams attack strong. Sophomore Franki Darnold is one of the very best attackers in the A-10. She ranks third in the conference with a 4.02 kills/set average, while her 173 kills are tied for fourth most in the A-10. Her .224 hitting percentage is the tenth best success rate in the conference. Junior Catie Steffen complements Darnold's attack. Steffen's 114 kills is the eighth most in the conference, while her 3.00 kills/set average is tied with Explorer hitter Kelly Perillo for ninth best.
 
Freshman Layne Self supplements the Rhode Island attack in the middle. She has racked up 92 kills on the season, while her .261 hitting percentage is the seventh best success rate in the conference.
 
The Rams attack is filtered through talented freshman setter Callan Kinnan. Kinnan was named A-10 newcomer of the week after a dazzling weekend of play where she collected 180 assists, including two 50+ assist efforts against Dartmouth and Connecticut. Overall, her 10.62 assists/set average is the top mark in the A-10, while her 425 assists are the fifth most in the conference.
 
Defensively, Rhode Island is the top team in the conference in team digs with a 16.54 digs/set average, while ranking fifth in team blocking with a 2.20 blocks/set average.
 
Layne Self guards the net front, leading the team in total blocks. Her 52 total blocks are the fifth most in the A-10, while her 1.24 blocks/set average is the fourth best mark in the conference.
 
Sophomore libero Lizzy Scanlon and sophomore outside hitter Cate Seman lead the backline defense. They are two of four Rams players who have amassed over 100 digs on the season. Seman leads all Rams with 141 digs, while Scanlon has chipped in 113. Scanlon's 3.77 digs/set average is the sixth best mark in the conference, while Seman's 3.20 digs/set average ranks tenth in the A-10.