Stephen F. Austin
Texas Southern University
Ladyjacks Make 2017 Home Debut by Hosting Holiday Inn Express SFA Invitational
9/7/2017 11:02:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
SFA returns to Shelton Gym hoping to extend a seven-match winning streak
Holiday Inn Express SFA Volleyball Invitational | Tournament Central | SFA Match Notes
Stephen F. Austin (7-1) vs. Texas Southern (0-1) | Friday, Sept. 8 | 1:30 p.m. | Live Stats | Watch (ESPN3/ESPN App)
Stephen F. Austin vs. Tulsa | Friday, Sept. 8 | 6:30 p.m. | Live Stats | Watch (ESPN3/ESPN App)
Stephen F. Austin vs. Colgate | Saturday, Sept. 9 | 1:30 p.m. | Live Stats
Stephen F. Austin vs. Little Rock | Saturday, Sept. 9 | 6:30 p.m. | Live Stats
THE FIRST SERVE
• Armed with the nation's third-longest active winning streak, the Stephen F. Austin volleyball team returns to its home state - and its home venue - following two weeks worth of road matches to begin the 2017 campaign. Beginning on Friday afternoon and extending through Saturday evening, the Ladyjacks will host the Holiday Inn Express SFA Volleyball Invitational at Shelton Gym, welcoming Texas Southern, Tulsa, Colgate and Little Rock to east Texas.
• Only two NCAA Division I volleyball teams - Notre Dame and UC Irvine - boast longer active winning streaks than the Ladyjacks. Both of those squads are winners of eight matches in a row while SFA is one of six teams from around the land who have won seven straight.
• In addition to their seven-match winning streak, the Ladyjacks are also in possession of a seven-match winning streak at their home court of Shelton Gym. Last season SFA posted an impressive 11-1 record inside the facility with their sole setback coming at the hands of Big 12 opponent Baylor.
• Against the teams that comprise the field for the Holiday Inn Express SFA Volleyball Invitational, SFA has put together an all-time record of 18-6 (.750 winning percentage) against them.
• SFA's 7-1 start is the team's best over the first eight matches in over a decade. The Ladyjacks last started 7-1 in 2005 - a season in which they posted a 28-3 overall record and ran the table in Southland Conference play to capture the league's regular season title.
SCOUTING TEXAS SOUTHERN | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Record vs. Texas Southern | 11-1
• In Nacogdoches, Texas | 6-0
• In Houston, Texas | 1-0
• At neutral sites | 4-1
• Humphreys vs. Texas Southern | 11-1
• When the Lady Tigers arrived in Nacogdoches, it was expected that the squad would have nearly 10 matches under its belt. Hurricane Harvey, however, had other plans as it forced the cancellation of two of the tournaments Texas Southern was scheduled to play in. Thus, the Lady Tigers come in having played just one match so far in 2017 - a non-conference tilt at Southland Conference opponent Houston Baptist two weeks ago.
• In that tilt - which ended with Houston Baptist cruising to a 3-0 win - Nicole Robinson led the Tigers in both kills (seven) and total blocks (five). Preseason All-SWAC Second Team choice Nia Stone finished with one block assist in the setback while 2016 All-SWAC Second Team member Asia Howard dished out nine assists to go along with four digs.
• According to the pundits around the SWAC who voted in the conference's preseason poll, the league's title will belong to Alabama State. Texas Southern was chosen to finish as the league's runner-up, gathering 176 points in the preseason poll.
• In the last matchup between the Lady Tigers and Ladyjacks, SFA walked away with a 3-0 win in a match played at Rice on September 19, 2014. Kelsi Bartlett and Jill Ivy combined for 20 kills in SFA's sweep while Paige Holland dished out 34 assists.
SCOUTING TULSA | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Record vs. Tulsa | 2-5
• In Nacogdoches, Texas | 1-1
• In Tulsa, Okla. | 1-2
• At neutral sites | 0-2
• Humphreys vs. Tulsa | 2-4
• Few in the nation have been better back-row defenders than Taylor Horsfall, who secured the title of American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week Monday afternoon following the latest fine stretch of volleyball of her sophomore season.
• In three matches at the Cougar Classic at SIU Edwardsville last week, Horsfall averaged 6.18 digs per set to secure a spot on the Cougar Classic All-Tournament Team after helping the Golden Hurricane post a 3-0 record in the tournament. This season, Horsfall ranks second in the AAC and 27th nationally with an average of 5.30 digs per set.
• On offense, Emily Thorson has accumulated almost 30-percent of the Golden Hurricane's kill total by slamming down 86 in the team's first six matches of the season. Her 3.74 kills per set average is the fifth-best in the American Athletic Conference and last weekend she was named the MVP of the Cougar Classic.
• Both Callie Cook and Emily Hubbard average 2.35 kills per set to supplement Thorson's team-leading offensive attack.
• Shifting to front-row defense, Ebony Carter (0.87) and Cook (0.83) are the team's leaders in terms of blocks per set. Each one of those players have totaled 19 or more blocks through the team's first six matches of the season.
• Picked to finish in ninth place in the 12-team American Athletic Conference when the league's preseason poll was unveiled in August, the Golden Hurricane represent the third and final team out of the AAC that the Ladyjacks will face in 2017. SFA has gone 2-0 against representatives from that conference through its first two weeks of the season, picking up four-set wins against both South Florida and Tulane while at the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational last weekend.
SCOUTING COLGATE | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Record vs. Colgate | 1-0
• In Nacogdoches, Texas | 0-0
• In Hamilton, N.Y. | 0-0
• At neutral sites | 1-0
• Humphreys vs. Colgate | 1-0
• Colgate's first-ever trip to Nacogdoches signals the endpoint of a nine-match road trip to begin the Raiders' 2017 campaign. Although they have not set foot on their home court this year, that hasn't stopped the Raiders from winning as they defeated Niagara, Siena and Syracuse to win the Syracuse Tournament on the opening weekend of the season. Following that showing, Colgate headed to Albany, N.Y., where it registered a runner-up finish in the Albany Invitational.
• Before falling to St. John's in their final match of the Albany Invitational, the Raiders had won all five of their matches to begin the season. That represented the team's best start since 1991 - a season in which Colgate reeled off 12-straight victories to start the campaign.
• Throughout the first two weeks of their season, the Raiders have been playing complete volleyball, stifling opponents on defense while bringing the heat on the attack. Opponents are hitting just .100 against Colgate this season, giving the Raiders the best opponent hitting percentage ranking in the Patriot League and the fourth-best ranking in the nation.
• On offense, the Raiders have one of the nation's bet set-up threats present to direct the offense in Lauren Sanderson. The Patriot League's leader in assists per set, Sanderson ranks 21st nationally in that category by passing out an average of 11.50 in each frame. Colgate attackers have excelled from there, spiking down a Patriot League-leading 14.75 kills per set while generating a league-best 39.35 attacks per set. Both of those aforementioned offensive figures rank among the top-20 nationally.
• Mirroring the Ladyjacks' varied offensive attack, the Raiders hurt their opponents from all angles. Katie Stansbury (3.35 kills/set) and Alli Lowe (3.20 kills/set) are Colgate top two termination generators, but Amanda Smith (2.60 kills/set) and Jaelah Hutchison (2.15 kills/set) provide added punch on offense.
• In the back row, Peighton McRobie leads the way by diving for 4.75 digs per set - the second-best average in the Patriot League. Up front, Hutchison, Stansbury and Taylor Flaherty have each totaled 13 or more blocks through the team's first six matches.
• The meeting between the Raiders and Ladyjacks will be just the second time the two teams have crossed paths on the volleyball court. Back in Fort Worth, Texas, on September 17, 1999, SFA cruised to a 3-0 victory over Colgate while competing on TCU's campus. Colgate is the only team from the Patriot League that SFA has faced in the history of its program.
SCOUTING LITTLE ROCK | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Record vs. Little Rock | 4-0
• In Nacogdoches, Texas | 2-0
• In Little Rock, Ark. | 2-0
• At neutral sites | 0-0
• Humphreys vs. Little Rock | 4-0
• Led by 30th-year head coach Van Compton - who secured her 500th career victory a little less than two weeks ago with a 3-0 triumph over Jackson State - the Trojans come to Nacogdoches with a roster boasting a distinct international flavor. Seven of the team's 13 players hail from outside the United States and none of those players have had brought more to the table so far this season than Romanian Veronica Marin.
• Through Little Rock's six matches in 2017, Marin is the squad's - and the Sun Belt Conference's - leader in blocks per set (1.43), hitting percentage (.455) and total blocks (33). Her totals in each of those statistical categories have lifted her into the nation's top 40.
• Along with Marin, both Marina Avram (2.35) and Mya Robinson (2.09) average north of 2.00 kills per set for the Trojans on offense. Defensively, Daisha Gillard has also proven to be a strong presence at the front of the net by averaging 0.96 blocks per set. Stationed in the back row, Sydnee Martin leads the team in digs per set, scooping up an average of 4.00 per frame.
• Picked to finish fourth out of six teams in the west division of the Sun Belt Conference in 2017, Little Rock is in search of its first win ever against SFA. Last season in Nacogdoches, Texas, the Ladyjacks kept their all-time record against the Trojans perfect with a 3-0 sweep of their adversaries from the Natural State to clinch the 2016 Holiday Inn Express SFA Volleyball Invitational title.
THE GAUNTLET
• All of the Ladyjacks' first eight matches of the season were in states other than Texas - Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi to be specific - forcing SFA to put a total of just over 2,200 miles behind them to get to where they need to be by the time that stretch was complete.
• In their most recent action, SFA emerged as the champions of the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational by winning all four matches they took part in. Haley Coleman was named the MVP of the invitational while Makenzee Hanna and Danae Daron each earned a spot on the all-tournament team.
ANY WHICH WAY YOU CAN
• If there's one thing that SFA opponents have learned while scouting the Ladyjacks in 2017, it's that the team has a multitude of different weapons it can go to to generate kills.
• Although junior Haley Coleman is the only person on SFA's roster who resides among the top ten kill per set generators in the Southland Conference (10th, 2.96 kills per set), sophomores Corin Evans (2.70 kills per set) and Danae Daron (2.39 kills per set) both average 2.00 kills per set or more to round out the top three offensive threats for the Ladyjacks.
• Of the eight matches the Ladyjacks have taken part in, they have had five different players lead the team in kills. Tops among that group is Coleman who has produced team-highs in kills during four of SFA's matches.
• On the list of the top ten players in terms of hitting percentage in the Southland Conference, SFA is the only team in the league to boast three players on that list. Sophomore Shayla Eagleton ranks third in the conference with a .407 attack percentage while junior Makenzee Hanna (.364) and sophomore Danae Daron (.350) rank seventh and eighth on respectively on that list.
EVERY WHICH WAY BUT LOOSE
• A strong and tight defense - both in the front row and in the back line - has been another component of the Ladyjacks' successes to begin the 2017 season.
• Sophomore Shayla Eagleton and leads SFA in terms of blocks per set by averaging 1.12 rejections per set. That makes her one of seven Southland Conference players who are averaging at least 1.00 block per set so far this season. Makenzee Hanna isn't far behind Eagleton as she averages 0.96 blocks per set.
Strengthening SFA's back row is the Ladyjacks' lone senior - Lexus Cain. Replicating her fine play from last season as the team's libero, Cain ranks third in the Southland Conference in both digs per set (4.50) and total digs (126) through the early stages of 2017. With just 10 more digs, Cain will up her career total to 1,206 which would be the 10th-most career digs in the history of the program.
• Three other players who have been in SFA's regular rotation - Corin Evans (2.70), Haley Coleman (2.69) and Ann Hollas (2.46) - are all averaging at least 2.40 digs per set as well.
• Added all together, that SFA defense has held opponents to a hitting percentage of just .144 - the second-best opponent hitting percentage figure in the Southland and the 34th-best nationally.
A FISTFUL OF ACES
• Bringing a great deal of pressure from the service line is always a goal of the Ladyjacks, but they have been especially successful in that department through the first eight matches of the season.
• Three players - Corin Evans, Makenzee Hanna and Ann Hollas - have each racked up 10 aces so far this season. That puts them in a tie for the third-highest ace total in the Southland Conference and the 82nd-highest total on the national scene.
• As a team, SFA has racked up 48 service aces compared to only 23 by their opponents. That total is the second-highest in the Southland Conference and the 12th-most in the nation. The Ladyjacks' aces per set average of 1.71 also stands as the fourth-best in the Southland Conference.
• Tulane bore the brunt of a massive service attack by the Ladyjacks on Saturday, Sept. 2. SFA racked up 11 aces in that four-set victory - the most by the team in a match this season. Evans swung for four of those aces and in all four Ladyjacks racked up multiple aces in the victory.
WHERE EAGLES DARE
• Sophomore middle blocker Shayla Eagleton secured the first Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week award of her career Monday afternoon after putting together a highly impressive stretch through SFA's five matches last week.
• Opposing attackers didn't stand a good chance of generating kills with Shayla Eagleton stationed at the front of the net last week. The Richmond, Texas, product racked up 20 total blocks, upping her team-leading blocks per set average to 1.12 in the process - the fourth-highest average in the Southland Conference.
• Offensively, Eagleton averaged 1.29 kills per set on the strength of a .329 attack percentage. As a team, SFA averaged 2.06 blocks per set through its perfect 5-0 week which helped hold its adversaries to a collective .092 attack percentage.
THE ENFORCER
• The other half of SFA's first sweep of the Southland Conference volleyball weekly award since the 2015 season was junior Haley Coleman who collected the league's Offensive Player of the Week on Monday afternoon.
• All Coleman did during her second week as an upperclassman was help the Ladyjacks extend the Southland's longest winning streak to seven matches while claiming the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational title in the process. Hailing from Rockwall, Texas, Coleman upped her season kill total to 77 - the second-highest termination total among all Southland players - by racking up 49 in a perfect 5-0 week for SFA.
• Coleman was named the tournament MVP on the heels of a four-match stretch that saw her hit .348 and average 3.00 kills per set. Through the week, she turned in a pair of double-double performances and averaged 2.67 digs per set. Her six aces were the third-most among SFA's ranks through its five-match week as well.
COMING UP NEXT
• SFA wraps up its five-match home stand by welcome former Southland Conference member Texas State to Shelton Gym Tuesday evening at 6:30 p.m. The match between the Ladyjacks and Bobcats is SFA's last non-conference home match of the 2017 season.
-SFA-
