SMU Volleyball Hosts #10 Kentucky For A Weekend Tournament
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SMU (5-2) vs. #10 Kentucky (5-2)
Friday, Sep. 13 | 7 PM CT
Moody Coliseum – Dallas, Texas
Match day in the Lone Star State 🤠🤠 pic.twitter.com/TdrLghjaNW
— Kentucky Volleyball (@KentuckyVB) September 13, 2024
Setting Up The Opponent (SMU)
- SMU Volleyball is set to host their second consecutive weekend tournament, as they welcome #10 Kentucky, #7 Purdue, and Houston to Dallas for the SMU Doubletree Invitational on Friday and Saturday.
- The Mustangs are coming off a sweep over #18 Baylor Tuesday night, their second-ranked win of the season, and now turn their attention to another quality opponent in the #10 Kentucky Wildcats Friday night. The Wildcats will then face either #7 Purdue or Houston on Saturday afternoon.
- Naya Shime earned her 1,000th career kill on Tuesday night. Shime had a season-high 19 kills while hitting .452 Tuesday night. Shime leads the team in kills with 86 this season, which ranks 5th in the ACC. She also ranked 3rd in the conference in points with 101.5 through seven matches this year.
- SMU middle blocker Nnedi Okammor has been named Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Defensive Player of the Week, announced by the conference Monday.
- Natalie Foster has been a weapon at the service line. She has 17 aces so far this year, the second most in the ACC and 6th in the country. Her 0.65 aces per set is good for 27th best in the nation.
- The Mustangs also swept the #2 Nebraska in Moody Coliseum earlier this month. The Wildcats lost to the Huskers in the season opening AVCA First Serve event.
- The win over Nebraska was also the first time an unranked team has swept the powerhouse program in a decade.
- SMU hit .242 against the Huskers in an all-out team effort.
𝙒𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪
— SMU Volleyball (@SMUVolleyball) September 13, 2024
🗓️ Sept., 13th
⏱️ 7 PM CT
🆚 Kentucky
🏟️ Moody Coliseum
🎟️ For Free
📺 ACC Network X#PonyUpDallas | @DoubleTreeDCC pic.twitter.com/nUtKEaX1Uq
Kentucky Wildcats Volleyball
- The Wildcats are 5-2 this season, with their two losses coming to #2 Nebraska and #7 Penn State.
- They bring a two-game winning streak into Friday’s matchup, both sweeps over James Madison and Ball State.
- Kentucky has been ranked in the top 25 of the American Volleyball Coaches’ Association (AVCA) Top 25 poll in 118 consecutive weeks.
- Kentucky has reached the NCAA Regional Final round in the last two seasons and won the 2020 NCAA National Champion.
- They are led by Head Coach Craig Skinner, who is in his 20th season in Lexington.
- Under Skinner, UK has reached the NCAA Tournament in 19 of those 20 seasons and has won seven-straight SEC Championships.
- Friday’s matchup will be the first meeting between the two programs since 2003.
- SMU is 0-3 against Kentucky in the all-time series.
- The Wildcats are led by Sophomore Outside Hitter Brooklyn DeLeye with 99 kills, 116 points, and 15 service aces.
- All-American setter Emma Grome has 261 assists through seven games.
- Erin Lamb (60), Megan Wilson (49), and Brook Bultema (42) add opposite side kills to their rotation.
Off to the races 🐎 🐴 pic.twitter.com/sNDB72X9v6
— Kentucky Volleyball (@KentuckyVB) September 13, 2024
Possible Saturday Matchup
#10 Kentucky vs. #7 Purdue (6-0) or Houston (3-2)
Saturday, Sept. 14 | 4 PM CT
Moody Coliseum – Dallas, Texas
Purdue
- The undefeated Purdue Boilermakers enter the week as the #7 ranked team by the AVCA.
- They are coming off two road sweeps against Utah and Utah State last weekend.
- Last season, the Boilermakers went 23-9, 15-5 in the Big Ten, falling to No. 2 Seed Oregon in the Round of 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
- They are led by two-time Big Ten Coach of the Year Dave Shondell, who is in his 22nd year as the Boilermaker volleyball coach.
- The Boilermakers have only lost two sets this season.
Bounce Back Wins For Kentucky Volleyball This Weekend » Greenville Sports Media #WVB #BBN #SEC
— Brad Harvey (@BradCSCast) September 8, 2024
@KentuckyVB @CSCast_ @drinklocalbham @jhspors @GreenvillSMedia @JacobsTalk @therealfreshcha https://t.co/vc8EZXT3Do
Houston
- Houston brings a 3-2 record into the weekend, with their two losses coming to #6 Texas and Louisiana.
- The Cougars went 19-10 last season and 11-7 in the Big 12 in 2023.
- They earned an NCAA Tournament bid and won their first match with UC Santa Barbara before falling in five sets to No. 1 seed Stanford in the second round.
- Houston entered the season receiving votes in the AVCA preseason poll.
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