TAMPA, Fla. – Valdosta State volleyball (1-6) will travel to Florida to take on the third-ranked team in the country this Friday, Sept. 19^th at 7 p.m. ET in the University of Tampa Spartans (6-0). This is the first of two matches VSU will play at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center this weekend. The Blazers will shift their focus to Florida Southern (5-1) on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.

Tampa has won all six matches they have participated in this season, not yet needing more than four sets to secure a victory. The Spartans are hitting at a .345 clip as a unit this season. Sophomore Connor Rahn leads the offense with 62 kills at another team-high rate of 3.44 per set. The Spartans have six players who have both 25+ kills and a hitting percentage of .320 or greater. Senior middle blocker Rachel Gregg leads the defense with 21 total blocks. She is equally effective on offense, adding 26 kills at a .413 clip so far this season.

Tampa is the third nationally ranked opponent the Blazers have faced so far this season. VSU will look to defeat Tampa for the first time in program history this weekend. The teams last met in 2024 at the Complex, where the Spartans secured a 3-1 victory. Prior to 2024, the two programs had not met since September of 2019, a match Tampa also won.

The Blazers battled through the VSU Fall Tournament last weekend, sweeping Shorter in their home opener before dropping two competitive matches against Palm Beach Atlantic and Georgia College.

The Florida Southern Mocs are another strong opponent . Sophomore Nako Sasaki won Sunshine State Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors a week ago. She leads both the team and conference with 148 digs so far this season. Sophomore Bali Coles leads the Mocs with 77 kills this season. Setter Brielle Mullen has 135 assists, a tally good for eighth in the SSC. VSU volleyball is searching for their first win over Florida Southern. The teams last met at the Complex in 2024, where the Mocs secured a 3-0 victory.

The Blazer attack has several key arms contributing so far this season. Senior Katie Callenberger leads the team with 52 kills. Her 19 total blocks are also a team high. Senior Sabrina Oncins (46), freshman Madison Kilmer (41), and graduate Macy Brown (36) follow closely on the kill leaderboard. Senior Ava Young's 13 total blocks are the second most by a Blazer. Oncins' 13 service aces are the most by any player in the GSC this season. Junior Eimy Negron Domenech leads the defense with a team-best 86 digs and 4.30 digs per set, the third highest rate in the GSC. Sophomore Avery Mullins' 124 assists pace the team and are the seventh most recorded by a player in the GSC. 

Valdosta State volleyball wraps up their trip to Tampa Saturday evening. They will be back in action Tuesday, Sept. 23^rd at the Complex for their first match of 2025 GSC play against another nationally ranked opponent in No. 19 West Florida (6-2).

Stay up to date on all Blazer news by following @VState_Blazers on Instagram and X and by liking the "Valdosta State Blazers" Facebook page. The Blazer Athletics Mobile App is available on iTunes and Android featuring exclusive content, the latest news and updates, schedules, rosters, gameday notifications, and more.