CONWAY, Ark. - The University of Central Arkansas volleyball will put their 23-match Southland Conference winning streak on the line when they host Sam Houston State and Stephen F. Austin at the Prince Center this weekend. The Sugar Bears and Bearkats will hook up on Thursday night at 7 p.m. The SFA Ladyjacks come to town on Saturday for a 2 p.m. start.
Starting Thursday night, Smoothie King will give away free smoothies to the first 50 fans before each home match the rest of the season.
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• Central Arkansas will try to continue their 23-match winning streak in Southland Conference play. The Sugar Bears won their last six league matches of 2008, went 16-0 in 2009, and have won their one and only Southland match this season. The longest streak was set by Stephen F. Austin when they won 62 consecutive Southland matches from 2004 to 2007. UT Arlington had a streak of 58 from 1982-91.
• Last weekend, UCA won the Sugar Bear Classic by defeating Northwestern State, Memphis and Jackson State. The tournament saw the two biggest crowds in Prince Center history with 432 fans against Northwestern St. and 423 to view the Memphis match.
• Sophomore middle blocker Taylor Hammonds was named the Sugar Bear Classic MVP. She hit .467 with 2.50 kills and 0.80 blocks per set during the three matches.
• Joining Hammonds on the all-tournament team were freshman setter Marissa Collins and senior right side Chloe Smith. Collins averaged 11.80 assists per set and hit .421 with nine kills. Smith averaged 3.80 kills and 0.70 aces and hit .299.
• The Sugar Bears lead the Southland in several categories – junior outside hitter Jessica Hays in kills (3.53) and service aces (0.55), and freshman setter Marissa Collins in assists (10.80). Freshman middle blocker Jessica Nagy ranks second with a .357 hitting percentage and junior Cristin Curl is third with 4.56 digs per set.
• Nationally, Hays ranks 14th in aces. She also moved into eighth place on UCA’s career list with 110 aces. As a team, the Sugar Bears are tied for 11th in the country with 2.04 aces per set.
• Collins ranks 37th in the country in assists. She already ranks 16th on UCA’s career list with 540 assists.
• Sam Houston State has started the year with a 6-9 record. They were predicted to finish fifth overall in the preseason coaches poll and sixth in the sports information directors poll.
• The Bearkats have lost thier last four matches, but won four straight prior to that. They have wins over Prairie View A&M, Marist, East Carolina, Texas Southern, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Texas Southern.
• Junior Carli Kolbe ranks third in the Southland with 3.21 kills per set. Junior setter Kym Loving is fourth with 10.80 kills per set and junior middle blocker Kim Blacks is second in aces (0.46) and fifth in blocks (1.02).
• The Sugar Bears have a 3-1 all-time record against the Bearkats and have won the last two.
• Stephen F. Austin enters the weekend with a 7-8 record. They were picked third in both of the Southland preseason polls.
• The Ladyjacks have won three of their last four matches, picking up wins against North Texas, Samford and Arkansas State and losting at Rice.
• Junior middle blocker Mary Caitlin Bottles ranks fourth in the league in hitting percentage (.306) and fifth in kills (3.06). Freshman setter Allison Gideon is seventh in assists (8.52) and sophomore libero Madison Hanlan is fifth with 4.38 digs.
• UCA and SFA are tied 3-3 in the all-time series. The Sugar Bears have won the last three meetings.
• Central Arkansas have won 19 straight home matches, dating back to 2008. Since 2005, the Sugar Bears are 57-10 in the Prince Center for a .851 winning percentage.
