University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Southern Miss
Central Arkansas
Volleyball Heads to Oxford for Rebel Volleyball Classic
9/4/2026 11:28:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss (3-0) continues its 2026 season this weekend at the Rebel Volleyball Classic in Oxford, Miss. The Golden Eagles will face Central Arkansas (0-3) at 12 p.m. CT on Saturday before closing out the weekend against host Ole Miss (3-2) at 6 p.m. CT at the Gillom Athletics Performance Center.
Entering the weekend Southern Miss is the only remaining undefeated team in the Sun Belt Conference, as they look to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2021 and 5-0 for the first time since 2015. The Golden Eagles have been led by their offense as they're currently hitting .331 as a team to lead the SBC, with 147 kills (13.4 per set), 134 assists (12.2 per set), and 17 aces (1.6 per set). Senior setter Allie Hazelwood's conference leading 10.3 assists per set mark has not gone unnoticed, as she earned Sun Belt Setter of the Week honors following week one, as well as making the All-Tournament Team alongside fellow senior Sadie McAda at the Gamecock Classic. Middle blocker Elly Stewart is off to a hot start to the season as well, hitting .532 on the season, the eighth highest mark in the country.
Last Time Out:
Southern Miss opened the 2026 season with a perfect 3-0 weekend at the Gamecock Classic in Jacksonville, Ala., earning the tournament championship. The Golden Eagles opened the weekend with a 3-0 sweep of Southern before defeating Jacksonville, 3-2, and closing the tournament with a 3-0 sweep of Jacksonville State.
Opponent Scout:
Central Arkansas will be the first opponent of the weekend for Southern Miss. The two programs have met twice previously, with the Sugar Bears holding a 2-0 advantage in the series. The Golden Eagles and Sugar Bears last met on Aug. 25, 2012, with Central Arkansas earning a 3-0 victory in Hattiesburg. Central Arkansas enters Saturday's match at 0-3 after dropping all three contests at the Buffs Classic in Boulder, Colo. The Sugar Bears fell to Denver, Colorado and CSUN during the opening weekend, including a 3-1 loss to CSUN in their most recent match.
Southern Miss will close out the weekend against host Ole Miss on Saturday evening. The Golden Eagles and Rebels last met on Sept. 2, 2018, with Ole Miss earning a 3-2 victory in Oxford. Ole Miss leads the all-time series, 4-0. The Rebels enter the weekend with a 3-2 record after splitting a pair of matches at the Allstate Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge in Norman, Okla. Ole Miss opened the event with a 3-1 victory over Ohio State before falling to Washington, 3-2. Shayla Meyer leads the Rebels offensively recording a team leading 80 kills through the first five matches, while Cameron Bradley has anchored the defense with 5.55 digs per set to lead the SEC.
Watch Southern Miss at Ole Miss live on SEC Network+ smttt.info/SMissatOMiss
Live stats for each game:
Central Arkansas - smttt.info/UCAvsUSM
Ole Miss - smttt.info/USMatUM
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