BOONE, N.C.- Appalachian State University volleyball returns to the comfy confines of the Holmes Center after posting a stout 2-1 record on the road in their past three matches. The Mountaineers have two must-win matches in order to qualify for the 2009 Southern Conference Tournament, with the first test coming Wednesday November 11 at 7 p.m. against a strong UNCG squad.

About the Apps: Appalachian has earned wins in three of its past four contests, with the team's lone loss coming at the hands of Samford. The Mountaineers are 12-16 on the season and hold an 8-6 league record, including an impressive 7-3 record on their home floor. The Black and Gold's only conference loss in the Holmes Center was to SoCon leader Furman who defeated ASU in a 3-2 thriller.

On the offensive front, junior outside hitter Lauren Swecker has been strong in the past four matches. She tallied double-figure kills against both College of Charleston and Chattanooga, recording a season-high 17 against Chattanooga one off of her career-high.

Overall, senior Maja Jechorek averages a team-best 2.49 kills per set, while sophomore setter Kasey Sauls has 976 assists on the season, averaging 9.38 per set.

The Mountaineer defense has been anchored by senior libero Cassie Engelgau. Engelgau is second in the league in digs with a 4.39 per set average and has totaled 435 on the season. The 435 put her at eighth on the all-time single season dig list. The California native is exactly 200 digs away from tying school-record holder Kali Rumberger on the all-time career digs list.

At the net it has been all junior Caroline Sedon. Sedon averages and impressive 1.31 blocks per set and has 136 on the season. She is currently 1st in the league in the category and 26th in the NCAA. She also is eighth on the single season block assists list with 115.

Win and They Are In: The motto is simple for the Apps, win and they are in. ASU has to defeat UNCG Wednesday and Elon Saturday in order to clinch a spot in the league tournament. If Furman captures a win Wednesday against Wofford, the Paladins will grab the overall number one seed and host the tournament. FU won the 2008 SoCon Tournament.

The last time ASU made an appearance in the tournament was in 2007 when the Mountaineers suffered a 3-1 loss to UNCG in the semi-finals. As a program, Appalachian has won just four conference tournament championships, with the last one coming in 1994.

About the Spartans: UNCG is 16-13 overall and has the same SoCon record as the Mountaineers at 8-6. The Spartans are coming off a 3-2 loss to Furman at home and all of their past three matches have been decided in five sets. UNCG dropped a 3-2 decision to Samford on November 1, beat Elon 3-2 on November 4 and fell to the Paladins on November 6.

Three Spartans average two plus kills per set, with Caley Redden having a team-best 2.65 kills per set. Also valuable to the Spartan offense, is Ari Lysacek who averages 9.65 assists per set.

On the defensive end, Catherine Hanners averages 4.11 digs per set.

The Series: The two team's last met on October 3 when ASU fell 3-0 in UNCG's Fleming Gym. Two of the three sets were hotly contested, with Appalachian falling in the firset set 27-25 and in the third set 25-21.

ASU holds the overall series lead at 24-19, with the Black and Gold's last win over UNCG coming on October 28, 2007 winning 3-1.

Live Stats and Live Video: Live stats for Wednesday's match will be available as soon as the match begins. To view live stats click here. GoASU TV will also be web-streaming the contest with Ran Northam doing live play-by-play announcing. To view the live video web stream click here.

Up Next: Appalachian returns to action for their final home and regular-season contest of the 2009 campaign, as the Apps host Elon, Saturday November 14 at 7 p.m. in the Holmes Center. Before the match begins, the ASU volleyball program will honor seniors Cassie Engelgau, Maja Jechorek and Becca Norris in a senior night presentation.