FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern University volleyball team will set out on the road for its second two-match road trip this weekend. On Friday, the Sharks will face off against fellow Sunshine State Conference member, Rollins, followed by a battle in Daytona Beach against Embry-Riddle on Saturday.

The Sharks currently hold a 6-6 overall record and are 1-3 in conference play after dropping a pair of games at home this past weekend. On Friday, NSU fell to the 21^st-ranked Moccasins of Florida Southern (3-1) before a tough five-set loss to Eckerd College.

Head coach Jennifer King is ready to get the team back on the court and turn things around. "Rollins and Embry Riddle are both playing great this year, so we have to come in prepared for a fight," King explained. "This week at practice we've focused on our game, our system, and the areas we need to improve the most. I'm very happy with the growth I've seen, and I'm excited to get back at it!"

At 7 p.m. on Friday, the Sharks will take on Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla. The 7-5 (1-2 SSC) Tars also dropped a pair of conference matches over the weekend, 3-2 to Saint Leo and 3-0 to No. 19 Tampa. After a seven-game win streak, Rollins is now on a three-game slide.

The Tars have two powerhouse offensive threats in Shannon McDonough and Bri Civiero. McDonough is currently averaging 4.60 kills per set, which puts her atop the SSC leaderboard and eighth in the nation. Civiero adds 3.98 kills per set. As a team, the Tars are hitting .197, but are holding opponents to a .194 hitting percentage this season.

On Saturday, the Sharks will travel to face off against SSC provisional member, Embry-Riddle at 4 p.m. The Eagles are currently 6-5 and will take on No. 15 Palm Beach Atlantic on Friday evening in the ICI Center.

As a team, the Blue and Gold are currently hitting a .177, and are led by newcomer Paola Virella, who is averaging 2.32 kills per set. McKenna James is also a primary hitter for ERAU, with a team-leading hitting percentage of .277 and 2.00 kills-per-set average.

Throughout the season, the Sharks have been led offensively by Denvyr Tyler-Palmer and Jessica Ronyak. Tyler-Palmer currently has 176 kills and a 4.09 kills/set average, putting her at fourth in the overall Sunshine State Conference rankings, while Ronyak boasts a 2.96 kills/set average with her 154 total kills. Maddie Uilk has acted as a wall at the net, tallying 58 total blocks, good enough to rank her second in the SSC and 17^th in the nation. Uilk also holds a 1.23 blocks per set average, and is also No. 2 in that category for the conference and 14^th nationally.

Defensively, Megan Burns has tallied 264 digs, which when compared, would top all SSC defensive players by 26 digs. She is also ranked nationally, and sits at No. 17 in total digs.

The Sharks as a whole lead the SSC in multiple categories, including team digs (835), team kills (651), team aces (92) and team blocks (114.5). Their high total blocks and ace count also rank the Sharks nationally, at 15^th and 23^rd, respectively.

Both matches will have live stats and video streaming available on the respecting host team's websites. To follow the Sharks live, please visit www.NSUSharks.com for more details.