Crucial road matches await CU volleyball

For Immediate Release

November 14, 2019

Cameron University Athletics

Kenton Means – Sports Information Director

 

LAWTON, Okla. – The Cameron volleyball team’s postseason hopes are on the line this weekend as they wrap up the regular season at Texas Woman’s and Midwestern State.

Match Information:
11/15 – Cameron at Texas Woman’s | 6 p.m. in Denton, Texas | Live Video | Live Stats
11/15 – Cameron at Midwestern State | 2 p.m. in Wichita Falls, Texas | Live Video | Live Stats

LSC Tournament:
The Aggies are in a unique situation heading into their final weekend of the regular season. The top four in each of the three regions in the Lone Star Conference make the postseason tournament, and CU is just a game back of the fourth spot in their division. Ahead of them are MSU, who they play on Saturday, and UT Tyler, who is ineligible from postseason play as they are making the transition from Division III to Division II. Unless Midwestern State beats UAFS and CU loses to TWU on Friday, the playoff spot will be decided by Saturday’s match. If the Aggies win, they hold the tiebreaker and would jump MSU in the standings.

Against the Opponents:
After falling in four sets to Texas Woman’s earlier this season, the Aggies are now 25-36 all-time against their opponent from Denton, Texas. They have won just one match in the last 10 meetings, and that came back in 2014 at the LSC tournament. CU is 9-19 when playing TWU in Denton. Cameron’s only division win of the 2019 season so far came against MSU in their conference opener. CU is now 36-21 all-time against the Mustangs and are 6-4 in the last 10 contests. However, they are just 14-12 when playing at Ligon Coliseum.

Last Time Out:
Cameron had a rough ending to this season’s home slate. Last weekend, the Aggies could not hold on to a 2-0 lead and fell in five sets to a tough UT Permian Basin squad. CU totaled 17 kills in both the first and second sets, but had just 21 in the final three. Walia Franklin led CU with 12 kills, while both Desiree Marmolejo and Katherine Manning had double-doubles at the setter position. The next day, the Black and Gold lost a three-set match to Western New Mexico. Cameron recorded just three blocks and three aces in the match while hitting .112 on the attack. Manning and Marmolejo combined for 26 assists while Peyton Little led the squad with 12 digs on Senior Day.

About the Aggies:
The Aggies enter the final weekend of the regular season with a 6-21 overall record, a 2-14 conference mark, and a 1-7 record against the division. They are averaging 11.3 kills and 10.7 assists per set while hitting .164 on the attack. Arianna Navarrete (219) and Shantalle Demirjian (216) are up over the 200-kill plateau, while Sarah Wright and Franklin are tied for third with 152 kills each. Manning and Marmolejo are both over 400 kills on the season now and have combined for 37 service aces from the setter spot. Defensively, freshman Caitlyn Henderson leads a CU team that averages 1.8 blocks per set with 76.0 on the season, while Riana Blount, Franklin, and Demirjian have all totaled over 40 blocks this year. Libero Peyton Little averages a team-high 3.80 digs per set.

Scouting the Pioneers
Texas Woman’s sits in the third spot in the division rankings heading into the final weekend of the regular season. They own a 14-13 overall record and are 10-6 against LSC opponents and 5-3 against the division. TWU is balanced a team with a 12.4 kills per set averaged and a 2.2 blocks per set clip. A trio of Pioneers have over 200 kills on the season, led by Tabitha Spray, who has notched 226 on a .203 hitting percentage. TWU runs a two setter system that sees Katy Ranes averaging 5.68 assists per set and Bailey Wozniak averaged 3.69; Ranes also leads the team with 31 service aces. Trixie Oche is the powerhouse in the middle, recording 1.18 blocks per set, which is second in the Lone Star Conference. Courtney Noel has been strong on both offense and defense, recording 2.35 kills and 0.83 blocks per frame.

Scouting the Mustangs:
Midwestern State is just ahead of the Aggies when it comes to records, as they are 7-19 overall, 4-12 in the LSC, and 2-6 in the division; their two division wins came against UT Tyler. Statistically, the two teams are very similar, as MSU averages 11.2 kills and 10.4 assists while hitting .163 on the attack. They also record just under 2.0 blocks per set and 1.3 service aces per frame. Sarah Eakin leads the team with 2.44 kills per set, while hitting .319 on the attack. The senior also leads the team with 95.0 blocks on the season, while sophomore Lauren Honeycutt is second with 68.0. Honeycutt is one of four Mustangs, besides Eakin, that have over 100 kills this year. That group is assisted by Sarah Glawe and Kaitlyn Masseth, who both have over 400 assists and 25 service aces on the season.

 

Kenton Means

Sports Information Director – Cameron University

2800 W. Gore Blvd., South Shepler 512

Lawton, OK 73505

Office – (580) 581-2303

Cell – (580) 583-2210

Fax – (580) 581-5537

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