Corpus Christi, Texas – The second round of the Southland Conference Tournament gets under way today, and the top-seeded Central Arkansas Sugar Bears will face off against the tournament's host, the fifth-seeded Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders. The two squads met once in the regular season, with Central Arkansas getting the 3-1 (25-20, 25-22, 20-25, 26-24) victory in Conway on October 26^th.

Central Arkansas (27-3, 18-0 SLC) picked up its 17^th straight-set victory of the season in the first round, defeating no. 8 Stephen F. Austin 25-20, 25-19, 25-17. The Sugar Bears got double-digit kills from Heather Schnars (12) and Jessica Nagy (10), and double-digit digs from Shelbee Berringer (19), Marissa Collins (13), and Scout Brooks (10). Collins picked up 37 assists for the double-double, and Schnars stuffed the box, adding seven digs, three blocks, and two aces to her 12 kills. Nagy and Paige Gantar each tallied six blocks.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (20-11, 13-5 SLC) who has gone 10-3 at the Dugan Wellness Center this year, took down no. 4 Sam Houston State 3-1 (25-23, 25-27, 25-23, 25-21) in the first round. The Islanders got double-digit kills from Brianna Brink (16), Ashley Phelps (14), Sarah Sanchez (13), and Ivy Baresh (10), while Logen Bourque dished out 54 assists. Defensively, the Islanders got double-digit digs from Shayla Maldonado (23), Hailey King (20), and Baresh (12), while Bourque, Sanchez, and Shaquinn Parker each had two blocks.

The winner of today's match, will move on to the SLC Championship Match against the winner of the match between no. 2 Northwestern State and no. 6 Houston Baptist. The championship match is set to begin at 2:05 tomorrow afternoon, with the winner receiving the SLC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.