DAYTON, Ohio - The University of Dayton volleyball team returns to Penn State for the second-consecutive year Friday for its NCAA Tournament First Round match against Villanova. First serve between the Flyers and the Wildcats is set for 5 p.m. at PSU's Rec Hall. The match will be video streamed by Penn State but without commentary. Dayton will be providing a free audio stream as well.

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About Dayton
The University of Dayton secured an automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Tournament with a three-game sweep over Saint Louis in the Atlantic 10 Championship on Nov. 22. The Flyers extended their active winning streak to 24 matches, the second-longest streak in the nation (Arkansas State, 25) after sweeping Mid-American Conference champion Ohio on Nov. 27 in Athens. 2015 A-10 Player of the Year and A-10 Championship Most Outstanding Player senior Alaina Turner leads UD with 4.20 kills/set (2nd A-10, 42nd NCAA) and 0.41 aces/set (3rd A-10, 34th NCAA). Sophomore Amber Erhahon, a First Team All-Conference selection, boasts the A-10's best hitting percentage (.391, 32nd NCAA) and averages 1.20 blocks/set (2nd A-10) for the Flyers.

Scouting Villanova
Villanova (25-8) is playing in the NCAA postseason as an at-large bid, making its first appearance in the tournament since 1997. VU is one of three Big East teams in the tournament, joining conference champion Creighton and Marquette. The Wildcats are led offensively by sophomore Allie Loitz with 3.41 kills/set and Gabby Pethokoukis with a .328 hitting percentage. On defense, Pethokoukis is also tough at the net with 1.09 blocks/set and Emma Pettit averages 11.23 assists/set.

Series Stuff
This is the first meeting between Dayton and Villanova.

RPI Rankings
As of Nov. 28, Dayton holds a Rating Percentage Index (RPI) ranking of 22 according to ncaa.com, up three spots from last week's rating. Villanova comes in at 41.

Flyer Facts
• Tim Horsmon is in his seventh season overall, and second since 2007, as head coach of the Flyers in 2015. His record at Dayton is 183-54 and his career win-loss mark sits at 359-218 in 17 seasons as a head coach.
• With 13.85 kills/set (48th NCAA) as a team, Dayton leads the Atlantic 10. The Flyers also lead the A-10 in hitting percentage (.268, 22nd NCAA), opponent hitting percentage (.162, 23rd NCAA) and assists/set (12.82) and rank second in digs/set (14.37) and third with 1.45 service aces/set.
• Individually, sophomore Amber Erhahon ranks first in the league with a .386 hitting percentage (36th NCAA) and senior Janna Krafka is first in the A-10 with 4.28 digs/set. Also among the top 10 in the league are: senior Alaina Turner, 4.20 kills/set (2nd, 38th NCAA); Erhahon, 1.17 blocks/set (2nd); Turner, 0.39 aces/set (3rd, 38th NCAA); sophomore Jane Emmenecker, 10.09 assists/set (4th); senior Jenna Jendryk, .313 (8th).
• Over the last seven seasons (2009-2015), the Flyers have recorded an 92-9 mark in Atlantic 10 Conference play, including a perfect 14-0 mark in 2012 and 2015 and a 15-0 record in 2010. UD suffered only one conference loss in 2014, 2011 and 2009.
• For the second-consecutive season, Dayton claimed four year-end A-10 honors in the 2015 Atlantic 10 Player of the Year Alaina Turner, the A-10 Setter of the Year Jane Emmenecker, the A-10 Libero of the Year Janna Krafka and the co-Coach of the Year Tim Horsmon
• Dayton has won the Atlantic 10 Regular Season title 12 times (2015, 2014, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2001, 1998). The Flyers have won the A-10 Championship title a league-record 10 times (2015, 2014, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2007, 2005, 2004, 2003) and will be making their 11th NCAA appearance in program history in 2015.

Moving up the Ranks
With 1,467 career kills, senior Alaina Turner is moving up the ranks in UD's record book. She's just 34 kills away from usurping former Flyer All-American Rachel Krabacher who currently holds the number-five slot with 1,500 kills. Currently in second place on the all-time career digs list (2,044), senior Janna Krafka is only 27 digs away from becoming Dayton's new career digs record holder, replacing Adrienne Green (2,070). Also on her way up is sophomore Jane Emmenecker. With 2,470 career assists, Emmenecker is 138 assists away from replacing Nicole Schott (2,607) in fifth place.

You "Kill" Me (through matches on Nov. 27)
With 4.20 kills/set, senior Alaina Turner ranks 38th in the NCAA while scoring 4.92 points/set which comes in at 23rd in the nation. For her career, Turner ranks 21st among active NCAA DI players with 1,467 career kills. Oh, and did we mention the two-time A-10 Player of the Year serves up 0.39 aces/set which is good for 38th nationally.

2015 Atlantic 10 Coach, Player, Libero and Setter of the Year ...
The Flyers claimed four of the five yearly awards given out by the Atlantic 10, for the second-consecutive year, as announced by the league office on Nov. 19: Tim Horsmon - co-Coach of the Year, Alaina Turner - Player of the Year, Janna Krafka - Libero of the Year and Jane Emmenecker - Setter of the Year. This is the second end-of-the-year award for each student-athlete and the third time coach Horsmon (2005, 2014) has been recognized.

13th to 1,000
With two wins at the 2014 Bowling Green Hampton Inn Invitational, Dayton surpassed the 1,000-win mark as a program and is just the 13th NCAA DI team to attain that level of success. The Flyers currently rank 13th all-time in the Division I record book with an overall program tally of 1,053-562 (.652) over 46 seasons (1970).

Graduation Success Rate
As announced by the NCAA on Nov. 4, Dayton's overall Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 95 ties UD for the 25th-highest rating in the nation. This year's score of 95 is tied with last year's score for the department's second-highest rate since the inception of the GSR reporting system in 2005.  Over the 11 years the GSR has been compiled, the Flyers have never rated below a 94 and have ranked 27th or better nationally.

Follow the Flyers on Social Media
Fans can follow the official UD Volleyball social media outlets by liking Facebook.com/udaytonvb, on Twitter by following this handle: @DaytonVB and udaytonvb on Instagram. Hashtags for Flyer Volleyball include UDVB and GoFlyers.

Just Flyers Please
When referring to the University of Dayton volleyball team (or any other Dayton women's athletic team), we ask that you refer to us simply as "Flyers." Not "Lady Flyers". Thank you.

2015 A-10 Championship All-Tournament Team
For the second time in as many seasons, senior Alaina Turner was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Atlantic 10 Championship after Dayton's 3-0 win over Saint Louis on Nov. 22 to win the tournament title. She was joined on the All-Tournament team by senior Jill Loiars and sophomore Jane Emmenecker as recognition for their stellar performances in the championship.

Up Next
With a win against Villanova on Friday, Dayton will square off against the winner of the Penn State/Howard match-up. That game is set for Saturday, Dec. 5 at 7:30 p.m. at Penn State's Rec Hall.

Ticket Info
All-session tickets for the 2015 NCAA tournament first and second rounds at Penn State will go on sale to the general public Monday, Nov. 30 at 10 a.m. Current Penn State women's volleyball season ticket holders and NLC members will have the option to purchase all-session tickets now through account manager, by clicking here. All-session tickets are priced at $12 for adults and $10 for students and youth ages 12 and under. Groups of 20 or more may purchase tickets at a discounted rate of $8. Fans can purchase tickets by calling 1-800-NITTANY or by visiting the Athletics Ticket Office in the Bryce Jordan Center from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Single-match tickets will only be sold at the door the night of each match. Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for students and youth ages 12 and under. Doors will open at 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 4th and 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5th.