Ladyjack Volleyball Opens SLC Play Friday In Conway
9/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 24, 2008
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - With a six-match win streak in tow, the Ladyjack volleyball team will open up the Southland Conference season this weekend when it travels northeast to take on Central Arkansas and Northwestern State.
The Ladyjacks (8-3) will battle UCA (9-3) on Friday and were originally scheduled to play Northwestern State (4-5) on Saturday, however the match has been rescheduled for Monday at 7:00 p.m.
Last week saw SFA pick up four wins, including three at the "Spike Ike Classic" hosted by the University of North Texas. Each of the teams in Denton had their schedules affected by Hurricane Ike, but it was SFA that was the only team that left Denton with three wins, including one over Big 12 foe Texas Tech. That particular win was especially sweet for head coach Debbie Humphreys considering that it was her alma mater and she was winless in two previous matches with the Red Raiders.
So far this year the Ladyjacks have received a nice mix of youth and experience on the court as seniors Lauren Railey and Shelly Swendig have each provided consistent play from their spots while freshman MC Bottles has made a splash in the last two weeks. She recently earned her first SLC Defensive Player of the Week honor on Monday after averaging 1.21 blocks per set last week and hitting over. 640 twice. She is the first Ladyjack freshman to earn the honor since Stephanie Figgers earned it in Sept. 2003.
Southland Conference play has been where the Ladyjacks have excelled in recent years, having won the past four SLC titles and 65 of their past 66 regular season conference matches.
A Look At The Opponents
Central Arkansas: The Sugar Bears were picked second in the SLC East before the season and have the early lead in the standings after opening up the SLC season with a win over Northwestern State last week. UCA has won its last five matches overall, including a sweep through its own tournament last weekend. Friday's match will also feature a matchup of the reigning SLC players of the week, as in addition to SFA's MC Bottles, UCA's Emily Gordon was named offensive POTW. The Sugar Bears bring plenty of offense in addition to Gordon, as five overall players are averaging at least two kills per set. As a team, UCA enters SLC play leading the league in hitting percentage, opponents hitting percentage, kills and assists.
Northwestern State: SFA got three looks at the Demons last season and have them on the schedule at least two more times this year. That's a good thing for the Ladyjacks as they have never lost to the Demons in 32 tries under Debbie Humphreys. Northwestern State currently leads the league in blocks per set, and had won three out of its last four before falling Tuesday night to Louisiana Tech in Ruston, La. Yelena Enwere will be the go-to player offensively for head coach Brittany Uffelman's Demons, as she is hitting .278 from her outside hitting slot. Enwere currently leads the SLC with nearly four kills per set, helping her setter Megan Dockery register second in the league with nearly 10 assists per set.
What To Watch For:
• Debbie Humphreys has never lost to either opponent on the docket this week, going 32-0 all-time against Northwestern State and 2-0 versus Central Arkansas.
• Senior Lauren Railey is 14 kills away from tying Aubrey Duncan for seventh all-time at SFA and 18 kills away from tying Brittany Burton for sixth in the Ladyjack record books.
• The Ladyjacks have won 65 of their last 66 Southland Conference regular season matches.
• SFA has been led by its middle blockers during its six-match win streak, with Ashley Bailey and MC Bottles each averaging over two kills per set. The duo is hitting a combined .368 over that span with each also averaging a block per set. During this streak opponents are only hitting .146 against the Ladyjacks while SFA is hitting .227.
-SFA-
