Robert Morris (0-0 / 0-0) at Indiana (0-0 / 0-0)
Friday, August 30, 2013, at 7:00 p.m. / University Gymnasium - Bloomington, Ind.

Robert Morris (0-0 / 0-0) vs. Kent State (0-0 / 0-0)
Saturday, August 31, 2013, at 9:30 a.m. / University Gymnasium - Bloomington, Ind.

Robert Morris (0-0 / 0-0) vs. Rutgers (0-0 / 0-0)
Saturday, August 31, 2013, at 2:30 p.m. / University Gymnasium - Bloomington, Ind.

The Colonial Chapter - The Colonials have played two of the three teams in the Indiana Invitational prior to the start of the 2013 season.  Robert Morris has faced Indiana just once in the 22-year history of the program.  The two teams squared off in 2010 during head coach Dale Starr's first season as RMU would drop the match in straight sets.  The Colonials have seen the Golden Flashes ten times, most recently in 2011.  During the match at the Kent State Open, RMU would fall to Kent State in five sets.  All-time, Robert Morris is 2-8 against the Golden Flashes and the most recent victory came back in 2005.  Two member of Starr's staff, Danny Doherty and Sarah Kaczuk, both graduated from Kent State.  When the Colonials take the court for the third game of the invitational, they will be facing Rutgers for the first time in program history.

Scouting Indiana - Indiana finished the 2012 season with a record of 12-20 while going 4-16 against Big Ten opponents.  Despite the subpar record, the Hoosiers averaged more kills, assists, service aces, and digs per set than their opponents.  Indiana added six new players - two transfers and four freshmen - to their roster for the 2013 season that also includes four seniors.  Senior Jordan Haverly returns after leading the Hoosiers with 480 kills in 2012; she also led the team with 38 service aces.  Fellow senior Caitlin Hanses returns after recording a team-high 421 digs last season.  Sophomore Katie Gallagher returns as the main setter for Indiana this season after registering 679 assists while splitting time at the position in 2012.  Losing its top two blockers from a season ago, Indiana will turn to junior Morgan Leach to anchor the front line after recording 64 total blocks in 2012.

Scouting Kent State - Kent State finished the 2012 season with a record of 6-22.  Despite the subpar record, the Golden Flashes averaged more blocks per set than their opponents.  Kent State added four new players to their roster for the 2013 season that includes just two seniors.  Junior Tinuke Aderemi-Ibitola returns to Kent State as a junior after leading the Golden Flashes with 300 kills last season.  Aderemi-Ibitola's 28 service aces are the most by any returner for the 2013 season.  Senior Aleksandra Nowak led Kent State with 705 assists and is one of the two seniors returning.  The other senior returning, Hannah Herc, led the Golden Flashes with 403 digs in 2012.  Despite losing its top blocker from 2012, Kent State returns Liz Reikow who tallied 81 total blocks last season.

Scouting Rutgers - Rutgers finished the 2012 season with a record of 18-12, the best of any team at the Indiana Invitational.  The Scarlet Knights held an advantage iover their opponents n almost every statistical category except blocking last season.  Withe the addition of four new players and just one senior on the roster, Rutgers was selected to finish ninth in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll.  The Scarlet Knights return just one of the three players that registered more than 300 kills last season, sophomore Alex Lassa.  The lone senior, Tracy Wright, returns after leading Rutgers with 356 digs during the 2012 season.  With the loss of their top three blockers, the Scarlet Knights will look for junior Rachel Andreassian to step up after providing 54 total blocks last season.

Looking Ahead - After hitting the road for its first regular season tournament, Robert Morris will hit the court at the Charles L. Sewall Center as co-hosts of the Duquesne / Robert Morris Invitational on Sept. 6 and 7.  After a single match against Xavier on Friday, the Colonials will take on Central Michigan and cross-town rival Duquesne on Saturday.

Networking with the Colonials - Become a fan of the Colonials on Facebook by searching for the "Robert Morris Volleyball" page.  Fans can also follow the Colonials on Twitter @RMUVolleyball to get updates on the team throughout the season.

Preseason Coaches' Poll - Robert Morris was chosen by the league's coaches to finish second in the Northeast Conferece this season.  Defending conference champion LIU Brooklyn was picked to win the conference title, earning six of the eight first-place votes.  2012 conference championship runner-up Central Connecticut was selected third while earning the two remaining first-place votes.  Sacred Heart was selected fourth while Bryant and Saint Francis U tied for the fifth spot in the poll.  Fairleigh Dickinson and St. Francis Brooklyn filled in the two remaining spots in seventh and eighth.

Rookie Debuts - Four freshmen will be looking to make their collegiate debuts this weekend at the Indiana Invitational.  Madelyn Betts, Leah Dunivan, Arden Fisher, and April Krivoniak will all be looking to join their fellow Colonials on the court this weekend.

Looking Back at 2012 - In 2012, Robert Morris posted a record of 17-17 and appeared in its 14th straight NEC tournament after going 13-3 in league play.  The Colonials earned the program's first win over a Big-12 team after defeating West Virginia in five sets.  After the season, Becky Jay and Lindsey Monger were named to All-NEC teams while Una Japundza was named the NEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year while also earning the university's Presidential Transformational Award.

Climbing the Charts - Juniors Hannah Hoffman and Becky Jay have begun to write their names into the Robert Morris record books after just two seasons.  Hoffman sits at sixth on the career assists list with 2,081.  Jay has entered herself into the defensive section of the record books as her 197 block assists currently have here ranked seventh all-time in program history.

Holding Serve at Home - Robert Morris finished the 2012 season with a record of 10-2 at the Charles L. Sewall Center.  The Colonials last lost at home to LIU Brooklyn on October 6, 2012.  It was just the fifth time in program history that the Colonial won at least ten games in a season at home and the first time since 2008.

Killing Them Softly - During his first three years as a head coach, Dale Starr's teams have gone 32-2 when registering more kills then their opponents.  Last season, the Colonials were a perfect 10-0 when tallying more kills.  Robert Morris also went 15-0 in 2012 when recording a higher hitting percentage then their counterparts.

The Ohio Blocking School - All three of the middle blockers on the Robert Morris roster have attended high school in the state of Ohio. Becky Jay, returning to Robert Morris after leading the NEC in blocks, teams up with sophomore Kristin Thompson - 54 total blocks as a freshman - and Leah Dunivan (325 solo blocks in high school) to form a solid rotation in the middle.