The Fairleigh Dickinson women's volleyball team, winner of six of its last seven matches, will take on instate-rival NJIT on Wednesday, Sept. 14, at the Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center in Newark, NJ, at 7 p.m.

The Knights (7-3) went 2-1 over the weekend with wins over Norfolk State and UMBC at the Maddie Bingaman Memorial Tournament in Baltimore, MD. 

Senior Sarah Berkland (Newton, MA/Newton North) took home MVP honors with 33 kills, seven block assists and a .368 hitting percentage over the three-match tournament. Junior Meaghan Wheeler (Chatsworth, CA/Chaminade College Prep) was also recognized as an All-Tournament Team selection after piling up 40 kills over the weekend. Wheeler had a season-best 21 digs in the Knights' 3-2 win over UMBC in the tournament finale on Saturday. 

The Highlanders (3-6) are one victory away from matching their win total from last season when they went 4-22, including a 1-7 record at home.  

Their last time out, the Highlanders went 1-3 at the West Point Challenge hosted by Army. NJIT suffered setbacks against Army, Marist and Arkansas, but took down Dartmouth in their final match. Junior outside hitter Janet Snell, who tied a match-high with 22 kills against Dartmouth, leads the NJIT offense with 115 kills on the season.

The Knights and Highlanders have matched up seven times since 2006. FDU has won four of those matches over that stretch, including a 3-1 victory last season in Hackensack, NJ. In the Sept. 1, 2010 meeting, Wheeler had 16 digs and a match-high 19 kills, while Sarah Willey (Abingdon, MD/Bel Air) passed out 45 assists and had four block assists to give the Knights their first win of the year. 

This season, NJIT won its only other home match to date, a 3-1 win over Lehigh on Sept. 6.

In their other contest versus an NEC opponent this season, the Highlanders, of the Great West Conference, took down the St. Francis NY Terriers by a 3-0 final on Aug. 26, in Brooklyn, NY.

After Wednesday's match, the Knights have a week of practice before playing the Rider Broncs on Wednesday, Sept. 21, at 7 p.m. in Hackensack, NJ for the team's first home match of the season.