The Hobart volleyball team fell one spot in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) national poll this week. The Statesmen land at No. 14, marking their sixth-straight week in the top-20 in their inaugural season.

Hobart is coming of a 1-1 weekend at the CVC Tri-Match that saw the Statesmen defeat Eastern Mennonite 3-1 before falling in five sets to No. 8 Juniata College. First-year Daniel Sappia was named the United Volleyball Conference's Rookie of the Week after tallying 25 kills, 13 digs, two service aces and two assists. He recorded his second double-double of the season, recording 15 kills (.127) and 10 digs against the Eagles. It was Sappia's third UVC weekly accolade.

The Statesmen will be back in action Wednesday, March 20, when they travel to Cambridge, Massachusetts, for a crucial UVC matchup with No. 20 MIT. First serve between the Statesmen and the Engineers is set for 7 p.m. at the Rockwell Cage. Fans who can't make it to Cambridge can follow all the action with live stats and video on mitathletics.com.

Hobart will conclude this week's action on Saturday, March 23, when it takes on Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York. First serve between the Statesmen and the Valiant's is set for noon in Kennedy Gymnasium. Fans who can't make it to Purchase can follow all the action with live stats and video on govaliants.com

ABOUT THE STATESMEN

• Hobart (15-9, 2-3) is ranked No. 14 in the AVCA poll.
• Graduate student Andrew Kim leads the nation in kills per set (5.52) and points per set (6.23). Sappia ranks sixth in the conference in kills per set (3.51).
• First-year setter Zack Farren runs the Statesmen offense, averaging a league-leading 9.81 assists per set, which is sixth in the nation.
• Kim's .389 hitting percentage ranks second in the UVC and 20th in the nation.
• Hobart leads the league in digs per set (9.95) and is led by first-year libero Gavin Meador (2.47) who ranks fourth in the UVC. Kim chips in 1.79 digs per set which is eighth in the conference.
• First-year Nate Magni makes his presence known at the net and has recorded a team-leading 54 blocks this season.
• Kim (3rd, 0.49) and Sappia (10th, 0.35) both rank in the top-10 in the conference in service aces per set and have combined for 66 aces on the season.
• As a team, the Statesmen rank second in the conference and fifth in the nation in assists per set (11.67) and second in the UVC and seventh in the nation in kills per set (12.42).
• Hobart leads the conference in opponent kills per set, keeping their opposition to just 9.74 per set.  

ABOUT THE ENGINEERS

• MIT (13-6, 2-2) is ranked No. 20 in the AVCA poll and is coming off a 3-1 conference loss to then No. 14 NYU.
• Nick Gustafson ranks third in the UVC and 13th in the nation in kills per set (4.23). He also is third in the conference and 14th in the nation in points per set (5.00).
• Riley Oh runs the Engineers offense from the setter position. He averages 9.45 assists per set which is second in the conference and 16th in the country.
• Oh averages a team-leading 2.13 digs per set which is sixth in the UVC. Kevin Windisch follows closely behind in seventh with 2.05.
• Michael Rini leads the Engineers with 48 blocks this season. He is ninth in the conference in that category.
• Phillip Johnson's .429 hitting percentage ranks second in the conference and eighth in the nation.
• As a team, MIT leads the nation in kills per set (12.88). The Engineers lead the UVC and are second in the nation in assists per set (11.91).

ABOUT THE VALIANTS

• Manhattanville (8-12, 4-6) is in its inaugural season and will take on Yeshiva University and New Jersey City University in Skyline Conference action before taking on Hobart on Saturday.
• Wilton Martinez leads the team with 2.80 kills per set. He also has recorded a team-leading 43 service aces this season.
• Pedro Barros Machado runs the Valiant's offense from the setter position. He averages 5.50 assists per set.
• Manhattanville averages 10.39 digs per set as a team and is led by Emil Morban Medrano with 2.46 per set.
• Jacob Fletcher leads the team in blocks with 30.