Bearkats head west for Southland matches
10/7/2015 12:06:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Sam Houston volleyball team heads west this week looking to get back on the winning track in the young 2015 Southland Conference race.
After winning their first three league matches, the Bearkats took a heart-breaking loss Saturday in Huntsville as McNeese State rallied from two sets to none for a 17-15 victory in the decisive final set.
Sam Houston plays University of the Incarnate Word Thursday at 7 p.m. in San Antonio. Then the Bearkats travel to Abilene to face the Wildcats of Abilene Christian at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
The Bearkats' 3-1 record ranks them fourth in the league's standings. A&M-Corpus Christi and Stephen F. Austin both stand atop the Southland with perfect 4-0 records. Central Arkansas is in third place with a 5-1 mark.
Sophomore Brooke White and freshmen Taylor Cunningham and Madison Wallace continue to provide the offense for the Bearkats. White ranks second in the Southland Conference with 230 total kills. She is averaging 3.48 kills per set and has posted double figure kills in all both three matches (all three setters). Her top performances include 19 kills against both UL-Lafayette and Bryant and 18 in the McNeese State match last Saturday.
Cunningham has totaled double figure kills in four consecutive matches including a season best 22 in the come-from-behind win at Northwestern State last week. The freshman has 126 kills for the season.
Wallace had a season best 19 kills against McNeese Saturday and 14 in both the victories over Lamar and Northwestern State. She has totaled 59 kills in 32 sets this year.
Junior setter Michelle Griffith ranks second in the Southland Conference in assists with 673, an average of 10.20 per set. Griffith has also provided outstanding defense for the Bearkats with 169 digs.
Junior libero Claire Kilpatrick stands fourth in the league in digs with an average of 4.13 per set. She has totaled 277 digs for the season.
Incarnate Word brings a 3-10 season mark and 1-3 Southland slate into Thursday's match. Abilene Christian stands 2-15 for the year and 2-2 in league play.
The two games this week are part of a three-match road swing for Sam Houston. The Bearkats play a return match with Lamar Tuesday night in Beaumont before hosting Central Arkansas on Saturday, October 17, at 2 p.m.
