October 22, 2004
The 16th-ranked Texas A&M volleyball team begins the second half of Big 12 Conference play Saturday as the Aggies take on Texas Tech in Lubbock. First serve is set for 1 p.m. at United Spirit Arena.
The Aggies are riding a three match winning streak, including a 3-1 victory at Colorado on Wednesday to improve to 11-5 overall and 7-3 in the Big 12. A&M is tied with Missouri and Kansas State in the Big 12, one game behind second-place Texas.
Texas Tech (7-9, 3-7 big 12) is tied with Kansas and Baylor for seventh place in the league after falling at Missouri, 3-1, on Wednesday.
Laura Jones, a junior outside hitter who was named the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week after outstanding performances against both Oklahoma and No. 9 Texas last week, leads the Aggies and is second in the Big 12 with 4.62 kills per game. She also leads A&M with 5.38 points per game.
Middle blocker Melissa Munsch leads the Aggies and is ranked ninth in the nation and second in the Big 12 with 1.71 blocks per game. She also posts a team-leading 3.36 digs per game.
Senior outside hitter Kelly Johnson is averaging a team-high 4.03 kills per game for the Red Raiders, and junior middle blocker Brianna Florus sports a team-best 1.26 blocks per game to rank ninth in the Big 12.
As a team, A&M is hitting .241 for the full season and .226 in Big 12 matches only, while opponents are hitting .168 overall and .194 in league matches. Tech ranks last in the conference, hitting .134 for the full season and .117 in Big 12 action.
A&M leads the series against the Red Raiders, 42-23, and has won the last three meetings. The teams met earlier this season, with the Aggies holding off Tech, 27-30, 30-22, 26-30, 30-22, 15-10, on Oct. 1 in College Station. Jones led the Aggies with 28 kills, and Munsch, who moved from the middle to the left side for the match, added 20 kills and 21 digs.
Johnson led Tech with 22 kills and Kiley Lyons added 19, but the pair was held to a combined .132 hitting percentage as A&M outhit the Red Raiders, .218 to .147.
Tech's most recent victory over A&M was Nov. 23, 2002, in Lubbock. The Red Raiders defeated unranked A&M, 3-1, at United Spirit Arena.