GREENVILLE, N.C. - The East Carolina volleyball team has clinched a spot in the Conference USA Tournament next weekend but will first look to win the final two regular season matches this weekend, as they host DePaul on Friday and Marquette on Saturday. Both matches are set for 7 p.m.

EAST CAROLINA PIRATES (10-16, 4-7 C-USA)
The Pirates will try to rebound at home this weekend after losing the last two on the road to the top teams in Conference USA, nationally-ranked Louisville and Cincinnati.

ECU is hitting .189 as a team and is led by junior outside hitter Erica Wilson who leads the Pirates with 2.91 kills per game. Middle blockers Paige Howell (2.69) and Jaime Bevan (2.59) rank second and third on the Pirates in kills per game.

Junior libero Johanna Bertini continues to lead the Pirate defense, collecting 31 digs in two matches this past weekend. Bertini is five digs shy of becoming only the fourth player in school history to reach 400 digs in a season.

DEPAUL BLUE DEMONS (12-16, 5-6 C-USA)
DePaul is currently in a tie for sixth in the C-USA standings with a record of 5-6 in conference play after defeating Southern Miss (3-1) and Tulane (3-2) this past weekend.

The Blue Demons are hitting .201 as a team and are led offensively by Janet Goreham and Mandy Moorberg. Goreham leads the team with 372 kills on the season while Moorberg is close behind with 369. Amie West leads the offense with 769 set assists.

Six Blue Demons have recorded over 100 digs led by Ellen Hayes who has 463 this season (4.45 per game). Goreham averages 1.48 blocks per game with 154 total blocks.

MARQUETTE GOLDEN EAGLES (18-6, 8-3 C-USA)
Marquette has won nine of their last 10 and currently has a three-match winning streak. The Golden Eagles defeated Tulane and Southern Miss this past weekend, 3-0 in each contest.

As a team, Marquette hits .214 and has held their opponents this season to just a .146 attack percentage. Theresa Coughlin leads the team with 3.95 kills per game while Sarah Vernon leads Marquette with a .295 attack percentage.

Vernon leads the Golden Eagles with 981 set assists, 21 service aces and is third on the team with 220 digs. Erin Freer leads the defense with 333 digs (4.06 digs per game) this year.

Pirates vs. DePaul in '03:
DePaul middle blockers Janet Goreham and Lara Marks combined for 19 kills and 12 blocks as the Blue Demons knocked off East Carolina in three-games 30-23, 30-28, 30-20 at the DePaul Athletic Center. Freshman middle blocker Jaime Bevan led ECU with a match-high 14 kills hitting .321 on 28 attempts. She also added six block assists giving her 17 points on the night. However, the Lady Pirates hit .076 as a team. Pam Ferris added seven kills and 10 digs for ECU. Junior setter Jessica Vick recorded 32 set assists while Sarah Vick chipped in eight kills on offense.

The Blue Demons held the advantage in kills, 52-37. As a team the Blue Demons recorded a .284 hitting percentage and saw five players hit over .200. Defensively, DePaul out dug the Pirates, 42-38; the two-some of Janet Cotter and Amy Holmes lead the team with 10 digs a piece.

Pirates vs. Marquette in '03:
Theresa Coughlin put down a match-high 23 kills to lead three Golden Eagles in double figures as Marquette held off the East Carolina in four games, 30-20, 24-30, 30-20 and 30-25.

Sophomore outside hitters Erica Wilson and Pam Ferris led ECU. Ferris recorded a double-double with 13 kills and 10 digs. Wilson chipped in 12 kills for the Pirates. Freshman middle blocker Jaime Bevan added a career-high 11 blocks with nine block assists and two solo blocks as ECU outblocked the Golden Eagles, 12-10, but Marquette out-hit the Pirates, .312-.236 putting down 77 kills to ECU's 47 kills.

Freshman setter Heidi Krug added 31 set assists and 10 digs for her first career double-double. The Golden Eagles held a 48-41 advantage in digs.

C-USA Tournament
ECU has clinched a berth into next weekend's Conference USA Tournament in Louisville, Ky. This marks the second time in four years for the Pirates in Conference USA that the team has reached the C-USA Tournament. Seeding will be determined after the conclusion of Saturday's games. The Pirates are currently tied with Charlotte and Tulane with a 4-7 conference record while four teams sit one match up on ECU with 5-6 records in C-USA play. Louisville, currently undefeated in C-USA play (12-0), has claimed the regular season C-USA title.