CONWAY, Ark. – No. 7-seeded Southeastern Louisiana faces No. 2-seeded Stephen F. Austin in the opening match of the 2016 Southland Conference Volleyball Tournament at 11 a.m. Friday at the University of Central Arkansas' Farris Center.
The single-elimination tournament runs Friday through Sunday, with the opening and semifinal rounds streamed live on the Southland Digital Network. The championship is available exclusively on ESPN3. Live stats will also be provided by the conference for all matches.
Southeastern (7-22, 6-10 Southland) is making its fourth tournament appearance in the last five seasons, earning its highest seed during the current run. Last season, the Lady Lions fell in the first round to eventual champion Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Chloee Holden (2.15 kills per set), a freshman from Alvin, Texas,
Landry Bullock (2.05 k/s), a senior from Spring, Texas,
Elyssa Purcell (1.79 k/s, 3.99 assists per set), a redshirt freshman also from Alvin, and
Parrie Hartley (1.78 k/s), a senior from Columbus, Texas, pace the Lady Lion offense with a helping hand from
Haley Baker (5.44 a/s), a sophomore from Elkton, Maryland.
Bullock, now with 898 career kills, ranks 10th on Southeastern's all-time kills list. She needs 11 more kills to move into ninth place.
Defense has been the backbone for the Lady Lions this season. Southeastern enters the tournament as one of the top overall defensive teams, ranking fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.180).
Rachael Bunn (0.58 blocks per set), a senior from San Juan Capistrano, California, and
Savannah Alcazar (0.57 b/s), a freshman from League City, Texas, are the team's top blocking threats.
Bunn is now tied with Courtney Donald and former teammate
Veronica Turk for ninth in solo blocks (41). She is also third in both block assists (271) and total blocks (312).
Monica Ramon (3.81 d/set), a sophomore from San Antonio, Texas,
Madi Odom (3.09 d/s), a senior from Kingwood, Texas,
Macey Stock (2.51 d/s), a sophomore from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Purcell (2.39 d/s) anchor the defense along the back line.
Purcell enters the tournament tied for the national lead in triple-doubles, recording eight this season.
Southeastern compiled a 3-6 record this season against their fellow tournament participants, including a 3-set loss at SFA (19-10, 12-4 Southland) on Nov. 5.
The Ladyjack defense has also been the backbone of their impressive performances this season. SFA ranks comfortably in first place in opponent hitting percentage, holding league foes to a .149 average.
Senior Justice Walker (77 blocks, 1.45 b/s) paces an imposing net presence for the Ladyjacks that ranks first in blocks with 160 total and 2.27 average blocks per set.
Walker has made it happen on both sides of the ball this season, also ranking second with a .375 hitting percentage (128 total kills). Abby McIntyre (2.47 k/s), KK Payne (2.18 k/s) and Ann Hollas (8.35 a/s) help lead the SFA offensive attack.
Lexus Cain (5.28) and Haley Coleman (3.24) are among five players averaging at least a pair of digs per set for the Ladyjacks.
The winner of the Southeastern-SFA match advances to play the winner of No. 3-seeded Sam Houston State (16-13, 10-6 Southland) and No. 6-seeded Northwestern State (12-19, 7-9 Southland) Saturday at 12 p.m. The championship match is scheduled for Sunday at 3:05 p.m.
Single-day and all-tournament passes are available through the Central Arkansas Athletic Ticket Office by calling (501) 852-2234. Students from any Southland Conference institution (with a proper school ID), as well as children age 5 and under, will be admitted free.
Admission
All-Tournament Pass, Adult: $20
All-Tournament Pass, Youth (under 18): $10
Single-Day Pass, Adult: $10
Single-Day Pass, Youth: $5
Southland Student (with ID): Free
Children 5 and Under: Free
Schedule
Friday, Nov. 18
11 a.m. – No. 2 Stephen F. Austin vs. No. 7 Southeastern Louisiana (SLCDN)
1:30 p.m. – No. 3 Sam Houston State vs. No. 6 Northwestern State (SLCDN)
4 p.m. – No. 1 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs. No. 8 McNeese State (SLCDN)
6:30 p.m. – No. 4 Houston Baptist vs. No. 5 Central Arkansas (SLCDN)
Saturday, Nov. 19
12 p.m. – SFA-SLU winner vs. SHSU-NWST winner (SLCDN)
2:30 p.m. – AMCC-MCN winner vs. HBU-UCA winner (SLCDN)
Sunday, Nov. 20
3:05 p.m. – Championship Match (ESPN3)
