VILLANOVA, Pa. - The Villanova volleyball team plays their first home match of the season this weekend in the Villanova Classic. The Wildcast host Siena on Friday, Sept. 11 at 7:00pm before playing Howard at 1:00pm and James Madison at 7:30pm on Saturday, Sept. 12.

This weekend will be special for the Wildcats starting middle blocker Gabby Pethokoukis (Western Springs, Ill./Benet Academy). Friday vs Siena will be Pethokoukis' first game back in the Jake Nevin Field House since she missed all of last year after her bout with cancer. She will also see a familiar face when looking through the net Friday night. Gabby's younger sister, Samantha, plays for the Saints at middle hitter.

This season Pethokoukis is second on the team in both kills (58) and blocks (22). She trails team leaders Allie Loitz (Bonita, Calif./Bonita Vista) who has 93 kills and Amanda Pedersen-Henry (Murrieta, Calif./Vista Murrieta High) who has 24 blocks. Emma Pettit (Ft. Collins, Colo./Fossil Ridge) has recorded 280 assists while Michelle Adams (Sugar Land, Texas/William P. Clements) leads the defense with 111 digs.

The Wildcats (4-3, 0-0 BIG EAST) started the season with a 2-1 performance in the Penn State Classic, defeating Stony Brook and Buffalo before falling to No. 1 Penn State. Villanova then flew to the Denver Classic where the Wildcats went 1-2, defeating Air Force but dropping matches to UT Arlington and Denver. The volleyball team got back above .500 with a win on Tuesday (Sept. 8) at Lehigh.

Howard (2-7 overall) started the season on a four game losing streak before earning their first win over Western Carolina on Sept. 5. The Bison dropped three matches in a row following their win but snapped the losing streak with a win over UMBC on Tuesday (Sept. 8).

The Bison are led by kills leader Khaila Donaldson who has 109 kills and is second on the team with 79 digs. Howard is coach by first year head coach Shaun Kupferberg.

James Madison (5-2 overall) started the season with a three game winning streak and a pair of straight set wins. The Dukes were defeated by No. 4 Florida, earned a pair of wins against UMBC and Bryant and were defeated by Connecticut in the team's last four games.

The Dukes are led by Janey Goodman who has a team-high 79 kills and 70 digs which is second highest on the team. Lauren Steinbrecher is in her sixth season as head coach of the James Madison volleyball team.

Siena (2-4 overall) dropped its first three matches of the season but have won two of its last three matches, including wins over UT Martin and Hartford.

The Saints are led in kills by Briana Flagg who has recorded 82 kills in six matches. The younger Pethokoukis is third on the team with 40 kills and leads the team with 22 blocks.

After the Villanova Classic the Wildcats will play in the Big 5 Challange where they will play Penn on Sept. 18 and a Lasalle/Temple double header on Sept. 19. Following the Big 5 Challange the BIG EAST schedule will begin with a road trips to Georgetown and Creighton.

Villanova Classic

Sept. 11

5:00pm - James Madison vs Howard

7:00pm - Siena vs Villanova

Sept. 12

11:00am - James Madison vs Siena

1:00pm - Howard vs Villanova

5:00pm - Siena vs Howard

7:30pm - James Madison vs Villanova