Sept. 20, 2005

The Atlantic Sun Conference season will open this Saturday for Florida Atlantic University. The Owls will host Mercer University at 7 pm in FAU Gym in the first match of the conference season. FAU will try to defend its 2004 A-Sun Title and a perfect 2005 record.

After facing Savannah State on Wednesday night, the Bears head to south Florida where they defeated FAU in 2003. Mercer's only other win over FAU was in 1997 while Florida Atlantic holds a 9-2 series advantage.

Mercer is 2-10 on the year. The team won its first match of the season against Jacksonville State before dropping the next 10. They picked up their second win on September 17 against Chattanooga.

Julie Darty leads Mercer with 147 kills, 3.27 kills per game, a .218 hitting percentage and nine service aces. The sophomore is ranked seventh in the conference in kills per game. Catie Clemens runs the offense and averages 7.67 assists per game, while Liz Kane controls the defense and averages 4.64 digs per game to lead the A-Sun.

FAU has relied on a solid offense this season on its way to a 12-0 record. The team leads the A-Sun in hitting percentage, assists, kills, blocks and service aces. The Owls' .269 hitting percentage ranks them in the top-20 in the country. Three time A-Sun Player of the Week, Kelly Paiva, leads the conference in nearly every offensive category and is ranked in the top-10 in the country in kills per game.

In the middle, Katie Arvidson and Justine Petry provide a strong presence. Both players are listed in the top-three in the A-Sun in hitting percentage along with Paiva. Arvidson holds the highest hitting at .379 and leads the conference with 1.23 blocks per game.

Freshman Casey LaRocca runs the offense and is partially responsible for he team's .269 hitting percentage, the highest for a season in the program's history. She leads the A-Sun with 11.84 assists per game.

2004 A-Sun Libero of the Year Makra Condill averages 3.75 digs per game.