Kats To Open Up Weekend Swing At HBU
10/26/2016 4:03:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Matches 23-24
Thursday, Oct. 27 • 7 p.m. • Houston, Texas • Sharp Gym
Sam Houston State (11-11, 5-4 SLC) at Houston Baptist (16-10, 7-3 SLC)
Live Stats • Watch • @BearkatsVB on Twitter
Saturday, Oct. 29 • 1 p.m. • Beaumont, Texas • McDonald Gym
Sam Houston State (11-11, 5-4 SLC) at Lamar (5-17, 5-5 SLC)
Live Stats • @BearkatsVB on Twitter
HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Sam Houston State volleyball will try to keep to its winning ways this week when it travels to Houston Baptist and Lamar for a pair of matches, opening up Thursday night at HBU.
The Kats surged up the league standings last week with home wins over Northwestern State and Central Arkansas and now find themselves just 1.5 games back of the Huskies for the No. 3 spot in the Southland Conference with seven matches remaining in SLC play.
Taylor Cunningham averaged 3.25 kills per set and hit .360 in matches against the Demons and Sugar Bears, while setter averaged 11.00 assists per set and directed the Bearkats to .225 hitting as a team. In all the Kats had four players average at least 2.00 kills per set in the two wins and stepped up their game at the net, averaging 2.56 blocks per set.
Setter Michelle Griffith's 88 assists over the weekend gave her 3,168 for her career and moved her into a tie with Rachel McFarland for sixth all-time at Sam Houston.
The Huskies come into Thursday's match having also swept through last week with wins at McNeese and Nicholls, both coming in five sets. In fact, each of the last three matches HBU has played has gone the full five sets.
They rank in the top three in the Southland in both attack percentage and opponent's attack percentage while Bailey Banks' 3.65 kills per set is second in the league individually. Setter Kayla Armer posted a career-best 62 assists on Saturday at Nicholls and leads the league in assists per set, ranking second in conference-only matches behind the Kats' Michelle Griffith.
Meanwhile Lamar split their matches last week, sweeping Nicholls on Thursday before falling in five sets to McNeese in Lake Charles on Saturday. The Cardinals did not pick up a non-conference victory, but has cracked the win column five times in Southland play and at 5-5 stands just a half game behind the Kats.
The Cardinals do sport one of the Southland's top offensive threats in senior outside hitter Chelsea Grant, whose 3.69 kills per set paces the league. She is coming off a stellar week that saw her garner Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors after averaging 5.64 kills per set and hitting .331 in wins over Abilene Christian and Nicholls and Saturday's loss to the Cowgirls.
THE SERIES
vs Houston Baptist
The Kats 10-2 all-time against Houston Baptist, including 3-1 since the Huskies joined the Southland Conference for the 2013 season. Sam Houston will be looking to avenge the last meeting between the teams when HBU snapped a four-match Bearkat win streak in Houston a year ago.
vs Lamar
Saturday will be the 64th meeting between the Bearkats and Cardinals with Sam Houston holding a 38-25 advantage all-time. Sam Houston has won seven of the last nine matches, and has split the season series with the Cardinals each of the past two years.
