Opponents:
Salem at Southern Virginia | October 5 | Buena Vista, Va. | 6 p.m.
Salem at Mary Baldwin | October 7 | Staunton, Va. | 2:30 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE SPIRITS
A three-set victory over Pfeiffer at Varsity Gym on Saturday afternoon, highlighted by eight kills from Aspen Bradley, resulted in the 2023 Salem volleyball team equaling 2017 unit for the program record of most consecutive wins (six).

Salem, which moved to 13-5 overall and 5-3 in USA South Conference action, began its current six-match winning streak with a 3-1 triumph over Brevard on September 19th. Since that point the Spirits have claimed victories against N.C. Wesleyan (twice), Methodist, William Peace and Pfeiffer. The victory also marks the fifth sweep by Salem in the first month of the season and second of the last six outings.

Bradley topped individual leaders with eight kills in 16 attempts, while Anna Rymer added seven and Abrielle Eckenroth came through with six. The Spirits offense, which struggled to find its rhythm, tallied 31 digs by virtue of 15 assists from Ashlyn Wood and 11 from Rymer. Salem's defensive support came from Valeria Rosa Lopez, who tallied seven digs and five kills. Bradley was also active with three solo blocks.

TRACKING LOPEZ'S MOVE UP THE STATISTICAL CHARTS
Salem senior outside hitter Valeria Rosa Lopez recently joined Taylor Moulton as the only two players in program history to rank inside both all-time kills and digs in Spirits' volleyball history.

Lopez ranks third in kills (876) as she looks to join Moulton and Kylie Taffer as the only three players in Spirits history with 1,000 kills in a career. Lopez needs 124 kills to reach that milestone.

She has also marched up the career digs mark, moving into third with 1,203 in her Salem career. Lopez entered the season fifth in all-time digs with 983 to her credit, trailing Hannah Delcamp (994) and Mariah Sharon (998) for fourth and third, respectively.

After surging past both Delcamp and Sharon on the all-time digs list, the Ponce, Puerto Rico, native now sits exactly 70 digs from tying Zy Henderson (2012-14) in digs with 1,273. Moulton owns the program mark with 1,369.

Lopez enters the week with 832 career kills, which is fourth-most all-time in program history. The Ponce, Puerto Rico native, sits nine kills away from tying Madelyn Chappell for third-most in Spirits' history with 841.

HITTING .225 OR BETTER
During their current six-match winning streak, the Spirits have had five matches of a .225 hitting percentage or better.

The Spirits, who began their winning streak with a four-set victory over Brevard on September 19th, posted a .270 attack percentage in the process. Salem tallied 60 kills, by virtue of 58 assists, while committing just 13 miscues along the way.

Four days later, in the first match against N.C. Wesleyan, Salem posted a .269 attack percentage after notching 39 kills in 104 attempts, resulting in a sweep. Later that afternoon, in Rocky Mount, the Spirits had their best hitting percentage of the winning streak (.281) after driving home 62 kills in 171 total attacks while making 14 errors.

Last week, in the first of three matches, Salem posted a .277 attack percentage in a five-set win against Methodist. The Spirits, who had three individuals end with double-digit kills, established the single-match program mark for most team kills (79), assists (76), hitting percentage in a five-set affair (.277), while Valeria Rosa Lopez set the mark for most kills (27) in a single match in program history.
Salem extended its streak of boasting at least a .225 attack percentage to five consecutive matches in a four-set win against William Peace. Against the Pacers, Salem's offense came through with 60 kills in 194 attempts, committing just 14 miscues along the way, to finish with a .237 attack percentage. The well-balanced offensive attack, which saw four Spirits reach double-digit kills, was led by Aspen Bradley's 14-kill performance.

Salem's streak of hitting at least .225 in a match drew to a close against Pfeiffer, after a .179 attack percentage. While the Spirits won the match in three straight, tying the 2017 unit for the longest winning streak in program history, they managed 31 kills and committed 16 errors in 84 total attacks.

WOOD HAS SIGHTS SET ON MAHER
Salem setter Ashlyn Wood, who became the fourth setter in program history in program history to reach 1,000 assists in her career against N.C. Wesleyan on September 23rd, is looking to move into the Top-3 in all-time assists by season's end.

Wood enters the week with 1,075 assists, needs just 317 assists to equal Sara Maher for third in program history.

Wood has amassed 390 assists through the first 18 matches of the season, averaging 6.00 assists per set along the way. Last season, in her first year, Wood tallied 685 assists (5.91 assists/set).

SIX-MATCH WINNING STREAKS BY COMPARISON
With a three-set victory over Pfeiffer on September 30th, Salem extended its winning streak to six straight matches—a mark established by the 2017.

This season's six-match winning streak has included wins over Brevard, N.C. Wesleyan (twice), Methodist, William Peace and most recently Pfeiffer. By comparison, the 2017 team defeated Agnes Scott, Johnson &Wales, Methodist, Ferrum, N.C. Wesleyan and Mary Baldwin in succession.

However, the comparisons don't stop there for the two units. The 2023 team has also had a five-match winning streak, which stretched from September 2-September 9 and included triumphs over Bridgewater, Randolph, Roanoke, Ferrum and Hollins.

The 2017 squad followed up their six-match winning streak with a five-match streak that lasted from October 12-October 18. During that span, the Spirits defeated Hollins, Ferrum, N.C. Wesleyan, Mary Baldwin and Guilford.

HOW THE KNIGHTS HAVE FAIRED IN 2023
The Knights have dropped six of their last seven matches with the lone victory in that span coming in a five-set (3-2) triumph over USA South Conference foe Brevard since September 23rd at William Peace. The longest winning streak for Southern Virginia came in mid-September when the Knights posted wins over Pfeiffer (3-2), Meredith (3-0) and Mary Baldwin (3-0).

Southern Virginia owns a 7-12 overall record, winning two games at home and on the road while posting three victories at neutral sites.

Sydney Bassett leads the way for the Knights' offense with 199 kills (3.16 kills/set), while teammates Breanna Clyde (156) and Brookelyn Madland (134) have also reached the century mark in kills this season. Sarah Hoofman has also been integral on offense with a team-high 408 assists (7.70), resulting in Southern Virginia averaging 13.88 kills per set.

The Knights' defense is led on the back row by Jessica Ensley, who has 118 digs (4.37 digs/set), while Jilane Pedersen and Katelyn Wankier anchor the front row with four solo blocks apiece. Pedersen has one more total blocks (17) and Wankier.

Salem claimed its first-ever win over Southern Virginia earlier this season when the two teams met in a non-conference clash at the Virginia Wesleyan Tournament in Virginia Beach, Va.

Salem's well-balanced attack in the four-set win over Southern Virginia resulted in the program's first-ever triumph over the Knights. Aspen Bradley led all hitters with nine kills and a .208 attack percentage, while the Valeria Rosa Lopez, Ella Brameus and Anna Rymer tallied six kills apiece. Rymer led all hitters with a .286 attack percentage.

Defensively, first year Jolina Bun highlighted the back row with 17 digs, adding three service aces, with Lopez contributing 14 digs. Ashlyn Wood spearheaded the Salem offense with 19 assists, resulting in 38 total kills.

HOW THE FIGHTING SQUIRRELS HAVE FAIRED IN 2023
Two days after facing Southern Virginia, Salem will return to the Commonwealth of Virginia to face Mary Baldwin at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday afternoon. The Spirits will follow that up by hosting four of their next five matches at Varsity Gym.

Mary Baldwin, who is 2-14 overall and 1-5 at home in 2023, will head to Meredith on Wednesday evening where the Fighting Squirrels will look to claim their first USA South Conference win (0-7) and second road victory of the season.

The Fighting Squirrels are on a seven-match losing streak that began with a 3-0 setback to Brevard on September 16th. Since that loss, Mary Baldwin has won just one set, which came against Pfeiffer on September 23rd.

Hanna Roach has slammed home 113 kills (2.02 kills/set) for Mary Baldwin this season, leading the way for an offense that is averaging 10.33 kills/set. Meanwhile, teammate Josie Sheets is the top setter on the unit with 201 assists.
Jaisley Tibayan, with her 155 digs (2.77 digs/set), anchors the back row for the Fighting Squirrels, while Megan Andrews' 15 solo blocks (18 total blocks) is the best among front row defenders.

Salem is 14-2 all-time in clashes with Mary Baldwin, winning the last three head-to-head matches.