Pirates Welcome DePaul, Marquette This Weekend

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - Walsh Gymnasium

SETON HALL (12-4, 3-1) vs. DE PAUL (6-10, 2-2)
Date	Time	Live Video	Live Audio	Live Stats	Twitter
Friday, Oct. 7	7:00 PM				@SHUVolley

SETON HALL (12-4, 3-1) vs. MARQUETTE (13-1, 4-0)
Date	Time	Live Video	Live Audio	Live Stats	Twitter
Sat., Oct. 8	4:00 PM				@SHUVolley

PREVIEW
Seton Hall returns to the friendly confines of Walsh Gymnasium this weekend when it welcomes a pair of BIG EAST Conference opponents. The Pirates will host DePaul on Friday, Oct. 7 at 7:00 p.m. and then Marquette on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 4:00 p.m.

MEDIA
Both matches this weekend will be streamed live by the Pirate Sports Network and available to FloSports subscribers. WSOU FM will also cover both contests and both will be available via Live Stats.

PROMOTION
This weekend is "Youth Team Weekend" and youth teams in attendance will be invited to post-match autograph signings.

LAST WEEK
Seton Hall went on the road for the first time in BIG EAST play last weekend and came back with a split. Sophomore Jenna Walsh (Foothill Ranch, Calif.) erupted for a career-high 24 kills, but the Pirates fell in five sets to Georgetown, 3-2 (25-19, 23-25, 12-25, 25-19, 14-16), on Friday.

The Hall came out of the gates strong with a convincing victory in the first set, but struggled mightily in sets two and three before being outlasted in set five. It's the first match this season that the Pirates have lost despite winning the first set. Walsh erupted for 24 kills, by far the highest total for any Pirate this season, to go with nine digs and two blocks. It's the highest kill total of any player in a BIG EAST match so far this year.

The following night, Walsh had a match-high 22 kills and both Bianca Bucciarelli (Carate Brianza, Italy) and Taylor Jakubowski (Lake in the Hills, Ill.) had double-doubles as the Pirates downed Villanova, 3-1 (25-21, 20-25, 25-22, 25-17), on Saturday.

Walsh was brilliant, topping 20 kills for a second straight match. She finished with a match-best 22 kills, only four attack errors, a .419 attack percentage, nine digs and two blocks. Bucciarelli had 13 kills, only one attack error, a .414 attack percentage and 10 digs. Jakubowski notched 23 assists and 12 digs. It was the fourth-straight double-double for both Pirates.

SCOUTING DE PAUL
Seton Hall and DePaul will meet for the 25^th time in history on Friday. Historically, the series has been dominated by the Pirates as they won the first 14 contests, but lately the Demons have flipped the script. DePaul has won the last four meetings and swept the season series last year, a sweep in Chicago and a five-set win in Walsh Gym.

The Blue Demons are coming off a successful 2021 campaign that featured a 19-12 final record and a 12-6 mark in BIG EAST play. DePaul qualified for the BIG EAST Tournament, but was swept by eventual champion Creighton in the semifinals. Donna Brown, Jill Pressly and Emma Price were all named to the All-BIG EAST Team.

This year, DePaul was picked to finish third in the 11-team BIG EAST Conference according to the preseason coaches' poll. Pressly was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Although they return Pressly, the Blue Demons lost both Brown and Price to graduation. DePaul brings back libero Rac hel Krasowski and setter Ashley Cudiamat.

The Blue Demons have stumbled a bit out of the gate in 2022, but that may be due to some stiff competition. DePaul enters the weekend with a 6-10 overall record and a 2-2 mark in conference play. They started the year with six straight losses, but bounced back with impressive victories over Virginia Tech, Saint Louis and Loyola Chicago in non-conference play. Most recently, DePaul collected a pair of four-set victories at home against Providence and Connecticut last weekend.

SCOUTING MARQUETTE
Seton Hall and Marquette will meet for the 26^th time in history on Saturday. The Golden Eagles have dominated the all-time series with wins in 20 of 25 prior meetings. Marquette has won 11 straight matches against the Pirates, including a pair of four-set victories last year.

Marquette is coming off another spectacular season in 2021 with a final record of 26-6 and a remarkable 16-2 mark in BIG EAST Conference play. Both of the Golden Eagles' losses in conference play came at the hands of Creighton, a team they also lost to in the BIG EAST Championship match. Marquette earned an at large bid to the NCAA Tournament, but fell in four sets to Dayton in the opening round.

This year, Marquette was picked to finish second in the 11-team BIG EAST Conference the preseason coaches' poll and even garnered a pair of first-place votes. Junior Carsen Murray was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. In addition to Murray, the Golden Eagles return talented libero Carly Skrabak. Marquette did lose, however, All-BIG EAST performers Taylor Wolf, Hope Werch and Savannah Rennie.

Marquette enters this weekend once again as one of the top teams in the country. They currently rank No. 18 in the nation in the AVCA Poll with a 13-1 record overall and a perfect 4-0 mark in BIG EAST play. The Golden Eagles' only loss came at No. 6 Wisconsin back on Sept. 2. They've registered wins over No. 11 Kentucky, No. 25 Illinois and LSU. In four BIG EAST matches, Marquette has only dropped one set. They're coming off a pair of sweeps last weekend against Connecticut and Providence.

UP NEXT
Next week, The Hall will head back out on the road. The Pirates will make the short trip to Queens for a contest against St. John's on Wednesday, Oct. 12, before traveling to Indianapolis to face Butler on Friday, Oct. 14.