The Opponent:Texas Woman's (20-6, 9-4 LSC) | Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. |
Live Stats |
Live Video Texas A&M-Commerce (14-11, 6-7 LSC) | Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. |
Live Stats |
Live Video Looking back: Cameron snapped a six game skid with a 3-2 win over West Texas A&M (24-26, 25-18, 25-23, 25-27, 15-12) on Oct. 27. The win marked the first time since 1998 that the Aggies have defeated West Texas A&M with the last victory dating back to CU's LSC Tournament title. The Aggies kept their momentum as they would sweep Midwestern State (25-17, 25-20, 25-13) on Oct. 30. CU ended the match with 46 kills, a .319 attacking percentage and 61 digs, while MSU had 38 kills, a .157 hitting percentage, and 52 digs.
Freshman
Jenna Gillean had a perfect game with 17 kills and no errors and recorded 20 straight kills without an error in CU's 2-0 week. Gillen's performance earned her Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week after she recorded 35 kills in two matches, averaging 4.38 kills per set.
Setting the stage: The Aggies will make their final road trip of the regular season where they hold a 2-4 away record. Cameron is in fifth place in Lone Star Conference standings with a 6-6 record and is 15-6 overall.
Regionally Ranked: The Aggies made their first appearance in the NCAA South Central Regional poll since the 2006 season coming in at number-9. A total of five Lone Star Conference programs appeared in the top-10 with Angelo State and Tarleton State coming in at one and two. Texas Woman's and Texas A&M-Kingsville also appeared ahead of CU. The tournament champions from the Heartland, Rocky Mountain Athletic, and Lone Star all get automatic bids into the field of 64 teams leaving five at large spots in-play. Cameron would need to either win the LSC Tournament or finish inside of the top-8 to make their first NCAA appearance since the 2001 season.
About Texas Woman's: This will be a revenge match for the Aggies, as the Pioneers tarnished Cameron's 13-0 season opening record on Oct. 3, defeating the Aggies 3-1. Against Texas Woman's the Aggies trail the series 25-28 and are 9-15 in Denton. The Aggies have dropped their last six matches in Denton with the last win occurring in 2006. The Pioneers currently sit in third place in LSC standings and have won five out of their last six matches, with Angelo State bringing the loss on Tuesday. TWU has three with over 200 kills on the year, and senior Hillary Shaffer holds the top spot in league hitting percentages, notching a .314 clip.
About Texas A&M Commerce: The Lions have dropped their last three matches and will play Midwestern State prior to the Aggies on Friday. In their last match-up with the Aggies on Oct. 2 Cameron swept Texas A&M-Commerce after errors plagued the Lions as they would end the match with a .090 attacking percentage compared to CU's .270 hitting clip. The Aggies hold a slight edge over the Lions, leading the series 25-23 but are at an even 10-10 on the road. Junior Taryn Driver leads the Lions in kills with 252 on the season, averaging 2.80 per set.
The rest of the league: Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M will make the journey to Wichita, Kan. for a non-conference slate while Texas A&M Kingsville will travel to Angelo State and Tarleton State for an LSC matchup. Midwestern State will play Cameron's weekend schedule in reverse.
By the numbers:1 –
Kat Evans is the lone senior on the Aggie squad and is one of nine CU volleyball players to surpass 1,000 kills. The Pearland, Texas native has played in 113 matches and has 1,279 kills, which is sixth highest all-time at Cameron.
12 – Youth is the theme of the 2015 season for the Aggies with 12 freshmen on the roster
13 – Cameron opened the season with their best start since the 1998 season where they opened the year 22-0.
15 – Cameron's roster consists of players from two states and one international, with 15 out of the 17 hailing from the state of Texas.
27 – On Oct. 27 the Aggies beat West Texas A&M for the first time since the 1998 LSC Tournament Championship.
37 – This is the 37th overall season for the Aggie volleyball program which ran from 1972-81, and was reestablished in 1987.
45 –
Cristina Viera broke the school record for digs in a match on Saturday, Sept. 26 against Southern Nazarene.
51 – The number of assists
Tori Luckenbill had in three sets during a victory against Harding; that number is tied for second highest for a match this season in NCAA Division II volleyball.
246 – Head Coach
Qi Wang's number of wins in 11 seasons
On the horizon: Cameron closes out the regular season at home on Nov. 13-14 with matches against Angelo State and Tarleton State.