CONWAY, Ark. – The University of Central Arkansas volleyball team is set to head south this weekend to take on the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles. The Sugar Bears sit at 6-11 overall and 0-5 in ASUN play, so to say that this is a critical test for the Sugar Bears to get back on track is an understatement.
Caylan Koons somewhat hummed along despite the two defeats, totaling 37 and 36 assists over the course of the weekend. Koons brought her season total to 633 assists, which is still first in the ASUN conference and 11th at the division one level. Mackenzie Vernon breezed past her previous season high in kills on Friday against Bellarmine with 20. Laci Bohannan had one of her better matches of the season, totaling 14 kills in the match against Eastern Kentucky. Senior libero Lexie Gregory has moved up to ninth in the conference in digs with 207 for the season, averaging 3.18 per set.
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles come into this weekend at 11-5 with an impressive 4-0 conference mark. FGCU already has a fantastic win over Ole Miss at home, and conference wins against Jacksonville, North Florida, Queens, and Kennesaw State. Alexandria Zakutney Shelby Kent lead the Eagles with 154 and 144 kills respectively. Junior outside hitter Skylar English is also a name to watch since she is third on the team with 103. Lily Tessier, a 6-3 grad senior setter, leads the Eagles offense in assists with 487, which is seventh in the conference. Last season, the Sugar Bears defeated FGCU at home in a five-set thriller. In that match, the Sugar Bears went off, with Jamiryana Hall setting her career-high in kills with 20, Caylan Koons putting up 36 assists and five aces, and Alexis McDaniel set her career high in digs with 32. Overall, the Sugar Bears lead the all-time series 2-1, but it's been an even split since UCA joined the ASUN.
The Sugar Bears and Eagles square off on Saturday, October 7th at 5:00 p.m. The match will be televised on ESPN+ and, as always, fans can keep up with the match on Twitter/X at @UCAVball.
