The Aggies will look to continue to build off of their strong performance against Auburn as they are set to host a two game home stand against Arkansas on Friday Oct. 20 and close out the weekend with Ole Miss, Sunday Oct. 22 at Reed Arena.
A&M freshman opposite hitter Samantha Sanders had a career-high 13 kills and a hitting percentage of .312 against the Tigers, while senior outside hitter Kiara McGee was also dominant in the match, notching 12 kills.
Much of these kills came as a result of well-placed sets by freshman setter Camille Conner, who had 41 assists in the match, her second highest this season.
A&M head coach Laurie Corbelli said she was really proud of how her team played against the Tigers — especially in the third and fourth sets.
“The fact that everyone did their job the way that helps us get into Aggie volleyball was so much fun to watch and to see ‘Wow, they do practice every day for hours,’” Corbelli said. “You can see it now. Here’s what we really can do. It’s coming. We’re not halfway done with what we’re going to put on the floor.”
Arkansas comes into the match riding a sweep of South Carolina, which lifted them to their current rank of No. 40 in the NCAA RPI. Arkansas has found much success setting to senior outside hitter Pilar Victoria who has 425 kills on the year and is averaging 5.74 kills per set.
The Razorbacks currently rank third in the SEC in hit percentage. Junior middle blocker Kelly O’Brian has been a major contributor to that, and poses danger at the net, with a hit percentage of .316.
The Aggies will take on No. 53 in the NCAA RPI Ole Miss on Sunday. Ole Miss enters the match after a 2-3 loss to LSU in a marathon match on Wednesday night. Senior Lexi Thompson leads the Rebels in kills per set with 3.17. Ole Miss has also seen very accurate sets from freshman setter Lauren Bars who has 492 assists on the season.
The weekend will be pivotal for a very talented Aggie volleyball team that has struggled to find their groove. The Aggies are currently in a three-way tie for seventh place in the SEC but could jump all the way up to fourth place with the two wins this weekend.
The Aggies will host Arkansas at 6:30 p.m. on Friday night and Ole Miss at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. The Aggies will be holding a canned food drive for the Sunday game, and free admission can be obtained by donating a minimum of four canned goods at the door.