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HACKENSACK, N.J. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson women's volleyball team returns to the Stratis Arena for a 7 p.m. contest against in-state rival NJIT this Wednesday. The winless Knights will look to get a boost from the home crowd in hopes of picking up their first victory of the season. 

Last Time Out
FDU was a participant in the Bucknell Invitational this past weekend, going 0-3. The Knights started the tournament against Canisius and were beaten in straight sets. Senior Violeta Slabakova (Shelby Township, Mich./Utica) led FDU with nine kills, while junior Deborah Hong (Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford) recorded 19 digs on defense. Sophomore Allison Butler (Plano, Texas/Plano) dished out 27 assists and added 10 digs for a double-double.

The second match was against host Bucknell, where the Knights almost claimed their first victory this season. FDU won two sets and at one time held a 2-1 lead in the match but ultimately fell in five sets, 3-2.  Freshman Courtney Kovensky (Highland, Calif./Citrus Valley) led the Knights with a season-high 16 kills. Butler also had a season-high in assists with 43. Junior Hanifa Addi (Springdale, Md./Charles H. Flowers) had one solo block, as well as a team-high six block-assists. 

The finale for FDU was a rematch against Rider, who had beaten FDU in straight sets in Stratis Arena Sept. 4. Unfortunately for the Knights, it was the same
story, with Rider winning in three sets. Sophomore Maddie Gibbons (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview Heights) led FDU with seven kills, while senior Taylor Roland-Buohl (Lancaster, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg) had a team-high eight digs. 

NJIT
2013 Season: 2-6
When: Wednesday, September 18 – 7 p.m.
Where: Hackensack, NJ. (Stratis Arena)
Recent Series History:  FDU leads 5-4 (since 2005)
Last Meeting: Sept. 19, 2013 – NJIT 3 FDU 1
What You Need To Know: Sophomore Danica Vukotic leads the Highlanders with 62 kills, while Grace Gao has a team-high 126 assists. NJIT has a number of viable attacking options, with six players having over 20 kills. 

Up Next
The Knights finish off a three-game homestand with two weekend matches against Northeast Conference opponents at Stratis Arena. On Saturday, Sept. 28 FDU will take on Robert Morris at 1 p.m and host Saint Francis University the following day at 1 p.m.