Friday, September 23
Hattiesburg, Miss.
6 p.m.
Southern Miss
vs
South Alabama
Photo by: Joe Harper/bgnphoto.com
Volleyball to Host South Alabama in Sun Belt Opener
9/22/2022 2:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
HATTIESBURG, Miss -Â The Southern Miss volleyball team will open Sun Belt Conference play on Friday night when it hosts rival South Alabama (6-6, 0-0 Sun Belt). The Golden Eagles (8-4, 0-0 Sun Belt) will tangle with the Jaguars at 6 p.m. on Friday, followed by a 2 p.m. contest on Saturday at the Southern Miss Wellness Center. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.Â
Follow Along
- The match will be streamed on ESPN+ at 6 p.m., with Garrett Greene on the call.Â
- Follow @SouthernMissVB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for updates.
Southern Miss Bits
The Golden Eagles will play their first Sun Belt contest in program history a week after going 1-2 at the JSU Invitational. Southern Miss fell to a pair of undefeated teams in Jacksonville State and Auburn before edging out Jackson State to pick up a four-set win in its Saturday contest. Wesley paced the Golden Eagles once again as the two-tine Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week tallied 54 kills across the three matches. Redshirt senior setter Kenzie Smith picked up her sixth double-double with 48 assists and 10 digs against Jackson State. Freshman Cailin Demps went to 10-plus kills in back-to-back matches for the first time in her career, doing so against Jacksonville State and Jackson State.Â
Middle blocker Cara Atkinson enjoyed a nice weekend as the sophomore poured in 11 kills against the Gamecocks. Sophomore Megan Harris went for a career-high 29 digs against the Tigers on Saturday. Wesley leads the Sun Belt in attacks per set (13.70), kills per set (5.25), points per set (6.02) and total kills (231). Nationally, she ranks fifth in kills per set, second in points per set and fourth in total kills.
Scouting the Jaguars
South Alabama heads to Hattiesburg sporting a 6-6 overall record. The defending Sun Belt Tournament champions own notable wins against Ole Miss and South Florida. Both South Alabama and Southern Miss have losses to Stephen F. Austin. The Black and Golf lost in five sets, while the Jaguars fell in four. Similarly, Southern Miss owns a three-set win over McNeese, while South Alabama bested McNeese in five sets. Outside hitter Hannah Maddux -- who has 151 kills -- was named the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday morning. Offensively, Maddie Sobeleski leads the team with 161 kills. Setter Kaile Keeble ranks third in the conference is assists per set at 10.32.Â
The Series History
Friday's meeting will mark the 48th of a series that dates back to 1980. South Alabama leads the series, 20-27, and has won the last four meetings. The Golden Eagles last picked up a win in 2015 when Southern Miss won a five-set thriller in Reed Green Coliseum.Â
Follow Along
- The match will be streamed on ESPN+ at 6 p.m., with Garrett Greene on the call.Â
- Follow @SouthernMissVB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for updates.
Southern Miss Bits
The Golden Eagles will play their first Sun Belt contest in program history a week after going 1-2 at the JSU Invitational. Southern Miss fell to a pair of undefeated teams in Jacksonville State and Auburn before edging out Jackson State to pick up a four-set win in its Saturday contest. Wesley paced the Golden Eagles once again as the two-tine Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week tallied 54 kills across the three matches. Redshirt senior setter Kenzie Smith picked up her sixth double-double with 48 assists and 10 digs against Jackson State. Freshman Cailin Demps went to 10-plus kills in back-to-back matches for the first time in her career, doing so against Jacksonville State and Jackson State.Â
Middle blocker Cara Atkinson enjoyed a nice weekend as the sophomore poured in 11 kills against the Gamecocks. Sophomore Megan Harris went for a career-high 29 digs against the Tigers on Saturday. Wesley leads the Sun Belt in attacks per set (13.70), kills per set (5.25), points per set (6.02) and total kills (231). Nationally, she ranks fifth in kills per set, second in points per set and fourth in total kills.
Scouting the Jaguars
South Alabama heads to Hattiesburg sporting a 6-6 overall record. The defending Sun Belt Tournament champions own notable wins against Ole Miss and South Florida. Both South Alabama and Southern Miss have losses to Stephen F. Austin. The Black and Golf lost in five sets, while the Jaguars fell in four. Similarly, Southern Miss owns a three-set win over McNeese, while South Alabama bested McNeese in five sets. Outside hitter Hannah Maddux -- who has 151 kills -- was named the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday morning. Offensively, Maddie Sobeleski leads the team with 161 kills. Setter Kaile Keeble ranks third in the conference is assists per set at 10.32.Â
The Series History
Friday's meeting will mark the 48th of a series that dates back to 1980. South Alabama leads the series, 20-27, and has won the last four meetings. The Golden Eagles last picked up a win in 2015 when Southern Miss won a five-set thriller in Reed Green Coliseum.Â
Players Mentioned
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