DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Bethune-Cookman welcomes Marshall and The Citadel to Richard V. Moore Gymnasium for the season-opening Bash at the Beach taking place August 25-26. The two-day event begins Friday, Aug. 25, with Marshall and The Citadel kicking things off at 10 a.m.
 
Under the direction of Brittany Williams, ready to begin her eighth season at the helm in Daytona Beach, the Wildcats will take on Marshall on Friday at 1:30 p.m., followed by The Citadel at 7 p.m. Bethune-Cookman concludes the weekend event with a second match against Marshall on Saturday at noon.
 
MATCH #1: Bethune-Cookman Wildcats vs. Marshall Thundering Herd
WHEN: Friday, Aug. 25, at 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: Richard V. Moore Gymnasium (Daytona Beach, Fla.)
LIVE STATS: Click Here
 
MATCH #2: Bethune-Cookman Wildcats vs. The Citadel Bulldogs
WHEN: Friday, Aug. 25, at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Richard V. Moore Gymnasium (Daytona Beach, Fla.)
LIVE STATS: Click Here
 
MATCH #3: Bethune-Cookman Wildcats vs. Marshall Thundering Herd
WHEN: Saturday, Aug. 26, at Noon
WHERE: Richard V. Moore Gymnasium (Daytona Beach, Fla.)
LIVE STATS: Click Here
 
IN THE RANKINGS
▪ Bethune-Cookman is not ranked in this week's AVCA Division I Coaches Poll Top 25
▪ Marshall is not ranked in this week's AVCA Division I Coaches Poll Top 25
▪ The Citadel is not ranked in this week's AVCA Division I Coaches Poll Top 25
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
Keep up with everything Bethune-Cookman Volleyball this year by following the Wildcats on all their social media platforms. You can follow @BCUVolleyball on Instagram and @BCUVolleyball on Twitter.
 
NEWS & NOTES
▪ Jasmine Moore returns after leading the Wildcats a season ago with 262 kills (2.50 per set) and registering 33 blocks (0.31 per set).
▪ Three players return from last season that amassed 140 or more digs – Alisha Callender (230), Madison Coates (149) and Mecca Freeman (147).
▪ Callender led BCU with 602 assists (6.08) and has been named to the 2023 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Preseason First Team.
▪ Ktyal Price finished with 63 total blocks (44 assisted) last year, averaging 0.94 per set across the season.
▪ Bethune-Cookman finished the 2022 season sixth in the league with 1,463 points as a team.
▪ The Cats also ended the 2022 campaign fifth in the SWAC with a .155 hitting percentage.
 
BCU VS. MARSHALL SERIES
▪ Bethune-Cookman and Marshall are meeting for the first time in volleyball.
 
BCU VS. THE CITADEL SERIES
▪ The Citadel owns a 6-4 record against Bethune-Cookman in all competitions dating back to 2000.
▪ The Wildcats have dropped the last four matches consecutively to the Bulldogs, including a 3-0 decision in Charleston, South Carolina back on Sept. 11, 2021.
▪ The Maroon and Gold registered a pair of wins against the Bulldogs in 2005 and '06, respectively.
▪ Jasmine Moore posted a pair of kills last time out against The Citadel, while Ktyal Price added a kill and Madison Coates provided 10 assists and two digs.
 
NOTES FROM THE SWAC
▪ Florida A&M's Brooke Lynn Watts was tabbed as the Preseason Player of the Year while Alabama State's Taila Gaines was named Preseason Blocker of the Year.
▪ Florida A&M's Brooke Hudson was named Preseason Libero of the Year and Grambling State's Ana Calderon was selected as the Preseason Setter of the Year rounding out the list of preseason individual award selections.
▪ In the league's preseason poll, Florida A&M was selected to finish first, followed by Alabama State (2nd), Jackson State (3rd), Bethune-Cookman (4th), Grambling State (5th) and Texas Southern (6th) to round out the top six preseason poll team selections.
▪ Alabama A&M was tabbed to finish in seventh place, while Prairie View A&M (8th), Southern (9th), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (10th), Alcorn State (11th) and Mississippi Valley State (12th) were selected to finish 7 through 12, respectively.
 
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE WILDCATS
No. 4 seed Bethune-Cookman fell to in-state foe top-seeded Florida A&M by a score of 3-0 in the semifinals of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Tournament in Houston. The Wildcats fell on scores of 25-13, 25-20 and 25-13, respectfully. Madison Coates finished the match with nine digs and six assists for the Maroon and Gold, while teammate Alleah Dallas registered four blocks. BCU would end the match with 14 kills as a team. The Cats concluded the 2022 campaign with a 9-21 record, after turning in an even 8-8 record in SWAC play.
 
UP NEXT
Bethune-Cookman travels to the Pirate Invitational hosted by East Carolina in Greenville, North Carolina, taking place September 1-2. The Cats will be joined by teams from Appalachian State, Campbell and host ECU.
 
Follow Bethune-Cookman Volleyball on Twitter (@BCUVolleyball) and Instagram (@BCUVolleyball) for all of the latest news and updates. For all Bethune-Cookman Athletics news, follow us on Twitter (@BCUAthletics), Instagram (@BCU_Athletics) and BCUathletics.com.