JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman volleyball (8-8, 2-5 SAC) has gone 3-1 on its current stay away from Holt Fieldhouse. However, the Eagles will need to rebound from a three-set loss to Lincoln Memorial to finish out the trip in style against Catawba (6-9, 3-4 SAC) Friday night and Wingate (14-2, 5-2 SAC) Saturday afternoon.

Carson-Newman head coach Shannon Mincey said the time away from Jeff City has allowed her team to grow.

"It's fun for our freshman to get on the road and spend the night somewhere," Mincey said. "It gives us the opportunity to enjoy one another and focus on volleyball."

Catawba features the SAC's leading attacker in Kaitlyn Whitmir.  The 5-11 outside hitter leads the conference in kills/set with 4.24 to go along with a .267 attack percentage.

"We have to prepare for her," Mincey said. "She's solid and hits shots from all angles."

Wingate had its 82-match conference win streak snapped earlier this season at the hands of Tusculum. But after dropping two in a row, the Bulldogs have run off five consecutive victories, including a sweep of Catawba. 

Wingate is holding opponents to a .082 hit percentage while leading the conference on the offense side of the coin at .240. 

"I think it's going to be a really fun match because we're nearly even in most stats." Mincey said of playing a Bulldog team that eliminated the Eagles from the SAC tournament in five sets last season. "I hope it's something we use to gather ourselves in and hope that we turn it up and start from the beginning."

The Bulldogs run a 6-2 and can boast of four players who are blasting 2.5 k/s or more.  Anna Hilton has the high mark at 3.16 kill/set. 

The Eagles square off at Catawba at 7 p.m. Friday before making the trip to Wingate, N.C. to battle with the Bulldogs at 2 p.m.