Robert Morris (0-7 / 0-0) at Wright State (3-7 / 0-0)
Friday, September 13, 2013, at 6:30 p.m. / McLin Gymnasium - Dayton, Ohio

Robert Morris (0-7 / 0-0) vs. Indiana State (4-3 / 0-0)
Saturday, September 14, 2013, at 10:00 a.m. / McLin Gymnasium - Dayton, Ohio

Robert Morris (0-7 / 0-0) vs. Murray State (4-3 / 0-0)
Saturday, September 14, 2013, at 3:30 p.m. / McLin Gymnasium - Dayton, Ohio

The Colonial Chapter - For the second time in as many road tournaments this season, the Colonials will take on the host school in the first match on Friday evening.  The match will be just the third meeting between the two teams, and the first since 2008.  RMU has yet to claim a victory over the Raiders, losing the two previous matches.  Robert Morris opens up the second day of the Wright State Invitational with the third-ever meeting against Indiana State.  Each team has won one of the previous two meetings although the two teams have not met since 2006.  The Colonials claimed the most recent meeting, sweeping the Sycamores at the Pittsburgh Tournament.  The only other time the two squads met was back in 1991 at the Marshall Tournament when Indiana State swept RMU.  The final match of the invitational will see RMU take on Murray State for just the second time in program history.  The only other meeting between the two teams occurred in 1996 at the Xavier Tournament.  In that match, the Colonials would be swept in straight sets by the Racers.  

Scouting Wright State - Wright State finished the 2012 season with a record of 2-30 but the Raiders have already eclipsed their win total from last year with their current 3-7 record.  Victories over USC Upstate, Saint Peter's , and Fairleigh Dickinson have kickstarted the season for Wright State who was picked to finish last in the Horizon League.  Heidi Splinter leads Wright State with 130 kills while Miranda Puthoff has a team-high 130 digs.  Marisa Aiello and Haley Garr lead the blocking defense for the Raiders as the each of them has recorded at least 20 total blocks.

Scouting Indiana State - The Sycamores finished the 2012 season with a 4-24 record but already have four wins in the seven games played this year.  Indiana State has beaten SIU Edwardsville, Chicago State, Georgetown, and North Carolina Cental before this weekend's tournament.  The Sycamores were selected to finish ninth in the Missouri Valley Conference this season with four starters returning for Indiana State.  Morgan Dall leads the Sycamores with 123 kills in seven matches while Molly Murphy has recorded 157 digs over the same timeframe.  The Indiana State players have recorded at least 20 total blocks; Kynedi Nalls paces the Sycamores with 25 total blocks.

Scouting Murray State - After a disappointing 6-20 season in 2012, Murray State is off to a 4-3 start in 2013.  Early season victories against NC Central, UNC Greensboro, Alabama State, and North Carolina A&T allowed the Racers to capture the Ashford Suites Spartan-Aggie Invitational just a week ago in Greensboro, N.C.  Picked to finish sixth in the West Division of the Ohio Valley Conference, Murray State has been led offensively by Alyssa Lelm who has recorded 75 kills while teammate Taylor Olden has recorded 71 kills.  Defensively, the Racers have been paced by Katlyn Hudson who has 103 digs while Lelm is the only player with ten or more total blocks, having recorded 16 in the seven matches for Murray State this season.

Looking Ahead - After traveling to the Wright State Invitational, Robert Morris will hit the road again for its final early-season tournament.  The Colonials will head south for the Carolina Classic hosted by the University of South Carolina.  RMU will take on Presbyterian, South Carolina, and Western Carolina.

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.

Looking for a Victory - Starting the 2013 season 0-7, the Colonials are still searching for their first win of the year.  The next victory for Robert Morris would give head coach Dale Starr his 50th win while at RMU.  The last time that the Colonials started this poorly was in 1995 when the Robert Morris also started the season 0-7 before its first victory.  The worst start to a season in program history came in 1994 when the team dropped its first 11 games before earning a victory.

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 - Three freshmen on the squad this season made their debuts at the Indiana Invitational.  Arden Fisher led all Colonials at the invitational with 24 kills and 25 digs.  Fellow freshman April Krivoniak tallied 17 kills in the three matches while also recording nine total blocks en route to being named to the All-Invitational Team.  Leah Dunivan also made her collegiate debut with one kill and two block assists in three sets played.

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 whileUna 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 fourth on the career assists list with 2,293.  Jay has entered herself into the defensive section of the record books as her 208 block assists currently have here ranked sixth 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.