Governmental Hatters
Stetson & Austin Peay Face Off in the Hatters’ Second Weekend Match
The Stetson Hatters (9–10, 4–3 ASUN) fell to the undefeated Lipscomb Bisons (12–5, 7–0 ASUN) 3–1 in the first of two games this weekend at the Edmunds Center. Nothing really went the Hatters’ way as they could not produce either offensively or defensively. None of Stetson’s players went over a 30% hitting percentage or scored more than 14 points. It was also a mistake-prone night for the offense, as four players had 3 or more attacking errors. Lipscomb dominated possessions with long scoring rallies and were able to take advantage of wide gaps in Stetson’s defense. No Hatter reached 2 total blocks tonight, and there was a glaring lack of digs compared to what we have become used to seeing from this team, with Sugimoto only getting 9 digs. Stetson suffered arguably its most frustrating loss yesterday, but cooler heads must prevail if they want to bounce back versus the Austin Peay Governors (9–11, 2–5 ASUN).
*Stats & conference rankings are as of October 12th*
Austin Peay is one of the newer ASUN rivals the Hatters now have, arriving at the conference in 2018. The Governors have only played against Stetson on two occasions: in 2018 when they handed Stetson a 3–0 loss and in 2022 when Stetson took them down in 5 sets. Austin Peay poses a decent threat offensively, ranking 4th in points (1108.5) and 5th in both assists (802) and kills (863). Stetson only ranks 9th in kills (795) and 10th in assists (722) and points (1022). Even with this disparity, both teams share a nearly identical hitting percentage, with Stetson having a 20.1% and Austin Peay having 20.0% (8th & 9th in the ASUN). Defensively, the Governors and Hatters rank similarly in various statistics. Both are among the top three blocking teams in the conference, with Stetson having 154.0 total blocks (54 solo, 200 assisted) and Austin Peay having 156.5 (45 solo, 223 assisted). Both teams are also in the top four in digs, with Stetson leading the way with 1102 digs and Austin Peay not far behind with 1044 digs. One wrinkle in the Governors’ defense is that of allowing the 3rd most hitting percentage with 23.7%. Comparatively, Stetson only allows a 19.9% hitting percentage- the 3rd least in the conference. With both teams being equal in hitting percentage, this flaw of Peay’s defense can tip the scales in the Hats’ favor. It will be important for Stetson to get their outside hitters like Anabelle Standish and Amaris Carter rolling early to place the pressure on Austin Peay.
Hatter Spotlight: Amaris Carter (5th YR, 5’8”, Outside Hitter, Dallas, TX)
Amaris Carter arrived at Stetson after playing her first four years of college athletics at Seattle University. Carter quickly hopped into a starting role for this Hatters squad, providing another dual-threat player to complement the team’s top lineup. Among her peers, she ranks: 2nd in attacks (450); 3rd in kills (138), points (158.0), and solo blocks (7); and 4th in digs (156), total blocks (27.0), and assisted blocks (20). With numbers like these, Carter cements herself as a Swiss army knife for the Hatters. Coming off of last week’s SUN action versus UNA, Carter finished second in attacks (26), hitting percentage (46.2%), kills (12), points (14.5), and digs (14), while leading the team in total blocks (4.0) alongside Sophia Groom. She has demonstrated consistency all around the court, marking it another successful transfer portal acquisition along with Haruka Sugimoto for coach Yang Deng. Look for Carter to continue making splashes this as the Hatters continue this ASUN home weekend stretch facing Austin Peay.
