CHARLESTON, W. Va – The University of Charleston Men's Volleyball team (2-2, 1-1 EIVA) returns to action this weekend as they host Fort Valley State in a non-conference matchup on Saturday (7 p.m.) and Sunday (1 p.m.).
 
After a disappointing five-set defeat last Friday, the Golden Eagles responded well, taking the second match on Saturday in straight sets from the visiting Terriers of St. Francis College of Brooklyn. They will look to ride the momentum from the Saturday night win into this weekend and take down the first-year program in Fort Valley State.
 
The Golden Eagles have struggled to stay consistent so far in the young season as they have split their first two weekend series. Head coach Luke Reynolds stated the following regarding his team's early season performance:
"The first two weeks have lacked some consistency, so we will be looking to put together our first complete weekend from a focus and performance standpoint."
 
The two weekend matches will be the first ever contests between the two schools as Fort Valley State Men's Volleyball just introduced their program in 2022.  
 
The Wildcats are led by former Charleston Men's Volleyball assistant Larry Wrather. Wrather was an assistant under former head coach Mike Iandolo from 2018-2020 before taking the head coach position at Fort Valley.
 
The Golden Eagles currently sit tied for third in the EIVA standings with St. Francis Brooklyn, just behind undefeated St. Francis (Pa.) and preseason favorite Penn State.
 
UC's C.J. Raines was named the Off the Block's National Libero of the Week honors last week after his performance against St. Francis. The freshman recorded 22 digs (2.75 per set) and passed 2.33 (3-point scale) on 52 attempts with only one reception error in eight sets. He will look to lead the Golden Eagle defense this weekend while senior Lachlan Bray will look to continue his strong offensive year. Bray currently sits as the kill leader for UC with 51 kills and 4.25 kills per set. His .394 hitting percentage is second on the team behind ultra-efficient Ismael Sneed. Snead currently holds a team high .548 hitting percentage on the year and leads the Golden eagles with 10 blocks.
 
The matches will be held in the H. Bernard Wehrle Arena at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and 1 p.m. on Sunday. There will be no charge for admission and both games will be live streamed on the Mountain East Conference network.
 
Video: https://mountaineast.tv/charleston
Stats: https://ucgoldeneagles.com/sidearmstats/mvball/
 
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