Kats to host UIW, Islanders at home
10/18/2017 11:11:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Matches 21-22
Thursday, Oct. 19 • 6:30 p.m. • Huntsville • Johnson Coliseum
Dig Pink presented by Huntsville Memorial Hospital
Sam Houston State (11-9, 7-0 SLC) vs UIW (4-12, 3-6 SLC)
Live Stats • ESPN3 • @BearkatsVB on Twitter
Saturday, Oct. 21 • 12:00 p.m. • Huntsville • Johnson Coliseum
Sam Houston State (11-9, 7-0 SLC) vs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (9-11, 6-3 SLC)
Live Stats • @BearkatsVB on Twitter
HUNTSVILLE – The Sam Houston State Bearkats will look to maintain hold on first place in the Southland Conference this week when they host a pair of matches against UIW and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at Johnson Coliseum.
Thursday's match against UIW will be aired on ESPN3 with Matt Pedersen on the call, while each match will also be available for follow via live stats and by following @BearkatsVB on Twitter. The Kats will also host their annual Dig Pink match against UIW on Thursday, presented by Huntsville Memorial Hospital.
The Bearkats ran their overall win streak to eight matches in a row last week with wins at Houston Baptist and at home against Prairie View, the longest win streak for the program since a 13-match win streak during the 2012 season. The Kats' 7-0 mark to open Southland Conference play is the best start for the program since joining the league.
Sam Houston comes into the week after having dominated the league's weekly honors with Brooke White being named SLC Offensive Player of the Week and Taylor Cunningham named Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. White did most of her damage with 26 kills and a career-high 24 digs in a five-set win over HBU on Thursday, while Cunningham averaged 2.00 blocks per set in the victories.
The Bearkats have been outstanding on the defensive side of things since the beginning of conference play, holding its league foes to .129 hitting in seven matches and lowering its season mark for opponent's hitting percentage to .168 which ranks in the top 40 in the NCAA.
White and Jordyn Vaughn continue to pace the Kats offensively, ranking second and third in the league in kills per set; however, setter Jaclyn Ward has also taken advantage of the switch to league play, leading the league with 11.35 assists per set against SLC opponents.
The Cardinals come into Thursday on the heels of a 3-0 win over Lamar on Saturday that snapped a three-match losing streak, while the Islanders enter having dropped three of their last four. The defending champion Islanders had their 43-match SLC win streak snapped on October 5 at Central Arkansas before having their home league streak snapped over the weekend in five sets against Stephen F. Austin.
INSIDE THE SERIES vs UIW
Thursday will mark the fifth meeting in the series between the Kats and the Cardinals, but just the second time UIW has come to Huntsville. The Cardinals picked up a five-set win in the first match in the series in 2013, but have lost each of the last three, including a 3-1 Bearkat win in San Antonio in 2016.
vs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
The Bearkats lead the all-time series with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi by a 19-14 margin, but have not been able to solve the Islander riddle of late, dropping the last six meetings dating back to 2014. The Kats dropped three matches to the Islanders in 2016, including a 3-1 loss in the championship of the SLC Tournament; however, in the team's meeting in Corpus Christi, the Kats became the only team in the SLC in 2016 to take the Islanders to five sets.
