CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Royals welcome Eastern Kentucky and Bellarmine to the Queen City on Oct. 18 and Oct. 20 for ASUN action inside the Levine Center. 

Friday's match against Eastern Kentucky will be streamed on ESPN Plus. Sunday's match will be streamed on the Queens Sports Network. Both matches will have live statistical coverage on the official Queens StatBroadcast page.

OPENING NOTES
The Royals once again have the home court advantage this weekend after a 0-2 weekend inside the Levine Center against North Florida and Jacksonville. In Friday's match against North Florida (Oct. 11), the Royals showed fight in every set, with Alleigh Johnson leading the offense with 10 kills and Kayla McDuffie adding eight kills and two blocks. Setter Kendall Buish kept the offense in rhythm with 27 assists, while Jesse George contributed 10 digs. Though Queens ultimately fell 25-21, 25-18, 25-18, their energy and effort were evident, especially in long rallies and defensive plays that kept them close throughout the match. On Sunday against Jacksonville (Oct. 13), Queens kept pace with the Dolphins, pushing them in each set despite the final scoreline of 25-20 in all three. Johnson once again led the team with seven kills, while Ellis Sargent chipped in six kills. Kaylin Dowling was a standout on defense with 13 digs, and Buish tallied an impressive 35 assists, ensuring the Royals stayed competitive. 

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT(S):

• EKU is a balanced team - They have strong offensive contributors like Sarah Mitchell, who leads with 231 kills (3.35 kills per set) and hits at a .224 percentage. AG Vandagriff follows closely with 191 kills at a .256 hitting percentage.
• EKU's blocking averages 2.22 blocks per set, with Carson Ledford leading the way at 0.81 blocks per set.
• Emilee Hill plays as the primary setter with 447 assists (6.48 per set), while Josie Schmitendorf anchors the defense with 319 digs (4.62 per set). EKU also has an effective serve, averaging 1.49 aces per set.
• They are susceptible to service errors, recording 123 service errors across 69 sets.
• EKU heads to the Queen City after a perfect weekend against FGCU and Bellarmine (six straight set wins)
• Natalie Bland leads Bellarmine offensively with 216 kills, averaging 3.79 kills per set.
• Bellarmine enters the Queen City with momentum after sweeping Stetson 3-0 last week.
• Bellarmine also sits at a 2-4 record in the conference, like Queens
• Mara Perry leads with 215 digs (3.58 D/S), helping Bellarmine average 15.4 digs per set. 
• The Knights average 1.35 blocks per set, trailing behind their opponents' 2.0. Jayda Harris (29 blocks) and Erika Smith (28 blocks) are key at the net.

SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow the Royals women's volleyball team on Instagram and Twitter/X stay up to date on all the latest news surrounding the team. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics to stay updated on all the Royals sports teams in action by searching @QueensAthletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.