Conway – The Central Arkansas Sugar Bears will make their seventh-straight Southland Conference Tournament appearance on Friday when they take on the fourth-seeded Houston Baptist Huskies at 6:30 PM tomorrow night.

Central Arkansas (15-13, 9-7 SLC) earned the fifth-seed and enters the tournament with an 11-4 record over their previous six appearances, good for the best tournament winning percentage in Southland Conference history, while the two SLC Tournament Championships the Sugar Bears have won are tied for the third-most among active Southland schools. The Sugar Bears are led by All-Southland Conference first team honoree Megan Nash, who finished the regular season ranked third in the league in blocks per set (1.14) and fourth in hitting percentage (.282) while averaging 2.31 kills per set and 0.22 aces per set. Sophomores Samantha Anderson and Haley Tippett, who both earned All-Southland honorable mention, lead the Central Arkansas attack. Tippett was a key contributor for the Sugar Bears in both the offensive and defensive phases of the game, leading the team with 2.81 kills per set and finished eighth in the Southland with 0.30 aces per set, while ranking finishing second on the team with 3.14 aces per set. Anderson  also contributed in a number of ways for Central Arkansas, finishing second on the team with 2.67 kills per set while adding 0.90 blocks and 0.33 digs per set.

Houston Baptist (18-14, 9-7 SLC) is 2-2 in a pair of SLC Tournament appearances, thanks to a run to the finals in last season's tourney. On the year, the Huskies feature a pair of All-Southland first teamers in setter Kayla Armer and outside hitter Bailey Banks. Armer led the Southland with 10.14 assists per set on the year, while Banks ranked in the top ten in the league in both kills (2^nd, 3.66) and digs (10^th, 3.29). Central Arkansas holds a 6-2 lead in the all-time series with the Huskies, though HBU won this season's only meeting by a tally of 3-1. Friday marks the first time the teams will meet in the postseason.

The winner of Friday night's match will advance to a semifinal match-up against the winner of the first round meeting between no. 1 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and no. 8 McNeese State at 2:30 PM on Saturday afternoon.