Women's Volleyball | 9/1/2021 11:00:00 AM

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The RIT women's volleyball team opens the 2021 campaign tonight hosting Alfred at 7:00 p.m. in Clark Gymnasium. Here are six things you need to know about the Tigers this season.
 
WELCOME BACK!
RIT returns to the court following a year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Tigers will be in the hunt for their second conference championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in three seasons after capping 2018 with the program's first Liberty League title and an appearance in the Regional Semifinals en route to a 29-5 record. RIT ended the 2019 campaign with an 18-12 record, including a 5-2 conference mark to earn the third-seed for the Liberty League Tournament.  
 
DEPTH PERCEPTION
Seventeenth-year head coach Jim Lodes is excited about the makeup of his 2021 squad. The 2018 AVCA New York Region Coach of the Year will count on six experienced returners, including senior captains Brianna Ellis (Wayne, PA/Radnor), Taylor Higgins (Peru, NY/Peru), Katie Hobler (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) and Kiana Walker (Lloydminster, Alberta/Lloydminster Comprehensive), along with senior Calista Gasper (Sarver, PA/Freeport) and junior Emelia Mislan (Avon, NY/Avon), to anchor a team that also features nine players who will make their first appearance in an RIT uniform this fall.  
 
HERE COMES THE BOOM
Senior outside hitter Katie Hobler (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) returns as one of the region's top players. She closed the 2019 campaign with American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Honorable Mention All-America honors and her second-straight First-Team All-Liberty League nod after finishing 14th nationally with 4.26 kills per set and second in the conference with 469 kills. She also completed one of the most decorated seasons by a Tiger first-year player in 2018 with Third-Team All-America recognition after finishing fourth in the country with 530 kills and seventh with 4.42 kills per set. She enters the 2021 campaign one short of 1,000 career kills.
 
TAYLOR MADE
Senior outside hitter Taylor Higgins (Peru, NY/Peru) joins Hobler as one of RIT's two AVCA All-New York Region selections returning in 2021. Also a 2019 First-Team Liberty League all-star after garnering second-team honors in 2017 and 2018, Higgins finished fifth in the conference with 352 kills and sixth with 3.20 kills per set during the 2019 season. Higgins leads all returning Tigers with 1,062 kills and is 25 digs short of 1,000 for her career.    
 
HISTORY LESSON
RIT is one of the winningest women's volleyball programs in NCAA Division III history. The Tigers enter 2021 season tied for 13th on the all-time list with a 1,060-668 record (.613 Win %) since their first season in 1974. Only Cortland (2nd, 1,426-544-9) and Ithaca (6th, 1,300-537-7) rank ahead of RIT among New York institutions.
 
2021 SCHEDULE             
RIT's 29-game schedule includes nine home appearances as well as dates with six teams listed in the AVCA Preseason National poll, along with matchups opposite its seven Liberty League foes. After hosting the Saxons on Wednesday, the Tigers head across town to play four matches at the University of Rochester Tournament on Friday and Saturday (Sept. 3-4). RIT will then head to Connecticut for three matches at the Wesleyan Invitational (Sept. 10-11), before returning to Rochester for three contest at Nazareth's Woodcliff Hall of Fame Tournament, including a date with No. 12 Juniata (Pa.). The Tigers will host Rochester (Sept. 22) before hosting Clarkson (Sept. 24) and heading to St. Lawrence (Sept. 25) to open Liberty League action. After opening October with two matches at the Keene State (N.H.) Invitational (Oct. 2), the Tigers will play six-consecutive home matches, starting with conference rivals Union (Oct. 8), Skidmore (Oct. 9) and Ithaca (Oct. 13) before hosting St. John Fisher, Nazareth and Medaille during the RIT Invitational (Octl. 15-16). Seven road matches fill out the rest of the regular season slate, including trips to Cortland (Oct. 19) and Brockport (Oct. 26), before three matches at the Nazareth NY Regional Challenge (Oct. 29-30). The top-four Liberty League squads qualify for the conference tournament (Nov. 5-6), hosted by the top-seeded team.