CHATTANOOGA – The Chattanooga Mocs' indoor volleyball team will hit the road this weekend for the first time in Southern Conference play. UTC will play Furman on Friday, Oct. 1 at 8 p.m. in Greenville and make the trip to The Citadel, facing the Bulldogs on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.

WEEKEND CENTRAL
UTC at Furman | 8 PM | LIVE STATS
UTC at The Citadel | 7 PM | LIVE STATS | ESPN+

LAST WEEK'S RECAP
Chattanooga (4-11) enters the weekend 0-2 in Southern Conference play with losses to two of the SoCon's top teams in UNCG and Western Carolina. The Spartans swept Chattanooga in the league opener, while the Mocs took the opening set against the Catamounts but fell in four.

CHLOE'S CAREER WEEKEND
Chattanooga's starting right side attacker, Chloe Bryan, set career highs in nearly every category this weekend. Against UNCG in the conference opener, Bryan recorded nine kills on 24 swings. On Saturday vs. Western Carolina, Bryan led the team with 12 kills, hitting .478. Her .478 hitting percentage was the most by a Moc this season and the most by any SoCon player in conference play.

WHERE THEY STAND IN THE SOCON
The Mocs are in the top half of the SoCon in all three defensive categories. UTC is third in both digs per set and blocks per set with 15.41 digs and 2.09 blocks per frame. The Blue and Gold are fourth in the conference limiting opponents to a .225 hitting percentage.

ROCKING ALL AROUND THE ROTATION
Maia Rackel, a fourth year middle blocker for the Mocs has developed throughout the floor this season. Rackel has transitioned to the pins this season and has also shined in the back row. The Signal Mountain, Tenn. native posted her first career double-double earlier this season. Rackel leads the team with 188 kills, averaging 3.24 kills per set this season.

AT THE NET AND IN THE BACK ROW
The Mocs are tied for second in the league with 15.90 digs per set this season. Chattanooga is led by Paige Gallentine in the back row who has recorded 10+ digs in every match this season. The second-year libero is averaging 4.60 digs per set this season and 5.43 digs per set in SoCon action. In the match vs. Western Carolina, Gallentine posted 20+ digs for the fifth time this season and 11th as a Moc. Cumulatively, three different Mocs have recorded over 100 digs this season.
At the net, the Mocs are averaging nearly two blocks per set. Their 1.96 blocks per set are fourth in the conference. Marcelle Baez-Carlo leads the team with 1.38 per set and 62 total blocks. The feshman leads the conference in blocks per set and her 59 block assists are 12 more than the second-best. Overall, four Mocs have tallied 20 or more blocks this season.

MILESTONES APPROACHING
With 33 assists this weekend, Sophia Bossong will eclipse 1,000 in her career. She recorded 546 in last year's shortened season and has 421 to date this year.

Gylian Finch currently sits at 845 career kills. She is 155 away from becoming the 10th player in program history with 1,000.

Makenzie Jordan looks to join Finch and Paige Gallentine as the third Moc with 500-career digs. She sits at 470 after posting 261 at Mississippi State and 209 during her time at UTC.

After surpassing 500 career kills earlier this season, Maia Rackel sits at 656 in her career. She is four digs and 15 blocks away from 200 in both of those categories.

ABOUT FURMAN
The Mocs will be the first opponent for the Paladins in nine days after Furman opened the Southern Conference season with a five-set victory over Wofford last Wednesday; they are 6-5 overall and 1-0 in SoCon play. The Paladins and the Terriers were neck and neck throughout the first four sets of the match with Furman winning sets one and four, 25-23 and falling in the second and third set, 27-29, 19-25. The Paladins dominated the fifth set, hitting .500 with seven kills on 14 swings and held Wofford to a .000 hitting percentage, taking the set 15-5. Furman is in the middle of the conference in most major statistical categories but is second to last in opponent hitting percentage (.238) and blocks (1.64).

ABOUT THE CITADEL
The Citadel is 4-5 overall after a late start to the regular season. The Bulldogs are 1-2 in SoCon action after suffering losses at Mercer and Samford last weekend and are coming off a four-set victory over Wofford last night. Sharlissa de Jesus leads the team with 4.12 kills per set and 140 on the season. She is the active career leader in the conference with 1,529 in her tenure at The Citadel. As a team, the Bulldogs average 15.06 digs and 11.94 kills per set.

SERIES HISTORY
The Mocs are 31-5 all time vs. The Citadel, but the Bulldogs have won the last three matches. Furman leads the all-time series vs. UTC 48-25.  
ABOUT GO MOCS APP
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Athletics Department, in partnership with From Now On, has launched a free app that gives fans easy access to the Mocs information they want most. The 'Go Mocs' app presented by FirstBank provides users with live stats, game day information, ticket purchasing, and exclusive Mocs content all in one place. It also includes push notifications, so fans are always the first to know score updates, breaking news and promotional offers.

MORE ABOUT CHATTANOOGA VOLLEYBALL
Watch "Mission First, Family Always" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8mOmxbzHk4&t=2s
Read "Mission First, Family Always" here: https://gomocs.com/news/2019/9/27/general-chatt-chats-mission-first-family-always.aspx?path=general

FOLLOW CHATTANOOGA VOLLEYBALL
Follow @GoMocsVB on Twitter & @GoMocsVolleyball on Instagram for the most up-to-date information and news regarding Chattanooga volleyball.