Following two straight losses on the road, Marshall University’s volleyball team looks to get back on track as it faces the University of Alabama at Birmingham Friday at the Cam Henderson Center. 

The contest will be the first of two home matches for the Herd before going back on the road. 

Mitch Jacobs, head coach for the Herd, said the Blazers have several players that can make a difference for the team. 

“They’ve got one of the best outside hitters in the league,” Jacobs said. “(Gabby) Deshotel gets up high and cracks it all over the place, so we’ve got to key in there.”

Deshotel leads the Blazers in multiple categories, including kills with 318, which ranks third in Conference USA. Deshotel also leads her team in digs with 156.

The Herd’s Allie Kellerman, who has a league-leading total of 342 digs on the season, said she has great respect for the Blazers. 

“UAB’s got a good team,” Kellerman said. “They’ve given us good matches in the past. They have good blockers, and they’re going to be a team that really tries to get into us. We can’t let that happen, we’ve got to stay solid and stick to the fundamentals.”

The match is set for 11:30 a.m. and is the sixth conference match of the season for Marshall. 

Ishmael Witten can be contacted [email protected].