LEXINGTON, Ky. -- No. 21 Texas A&M (10-3, 2-0 SEC) aims to end No. 13 Kentucky's seven-match win streak and improve to 3-0 in SEC play for the first time as the Aggies battle the Wildcats in a Top-25 showdown Sunday in Lexington, Ky. First serve is at 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. CT) at Memorial Coliseum.
The match will be televised live on SEC Network with Paul Sunderland calling the play-by-play and Nell Fortner providing commentary.
The Aggies won their third consecutive match and improved to 10-3 overall and 2-0 in SEC matches only with a 25-14, 25-21, 25-15 victory against Tennessee, Friday at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville. Kentucky, 13-2 overall and 3-0 in SEC play, extended its win streak to seven with a 3-1 (25-20, 25-15, 23-25, 25-22) victory against Alabama on Friday in the Wildcats' SEC home opener.
TEXAS A&M QUICK HITS:
- In its third year as a member of the SEC, A&M is 2-0 in league play for the first time since its inaugural season in 2012. In their first season as a member of the SEC, the Aggies opened conference play by defeating both Ole Miss and Auburn before falling to Kentucky in a hard-fought 3-2 (25-23, 24-26, 25-18, 20-25, 15-12) loss at Reed Arena in College Station. The loss snapped a nine-match win streak by the Aggies.
- A&M is 2-2 against teams ranked in the top 15 this season, having defeated both No. 6 USC and No. 13 San Diego at the USC Classic, Sept. 11-12, and falling in back-to-back matches against No. 6 Florida State at Reed Arena, Sept. 19-20.
- Texas A&M broke into the AVCA Top 25 Poll at No. 21 on Sept. 15, marking the Aggies' first top-25 ranking since a No. 21 showing in the 2009 final poll. A&M had dropped one spot to No. 22 in the Sept. 22 rankings after suffering back-to-back losses to sixth-ranked and undefeated Florida State but returned to No. 21 this week following wins against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Auburn.
- Junior middle blocker and team co-captain Shelby Sullivan has been nearly unstoppable as of late. The preseason All-SEC selection posted back-to-back career-highs in kills last week, tallying 19 while hitting .410 in the 3-1 victory against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and then posting 20 kills while hitting a blistering .826 in a 3-0 win against Auburn on Sept. 28. For the week, Sullivan hit a combined .565, averaging 5.57 kills, 1.43 blocks and 6.50 points per set. Sullivan played in only the third set at Tennessee, posting two kills in three attempts for a .667 hitting percentage.
- Texas A&M made several changes to its starting lineup in the sweep against Tennessee, marking the fourth unique lineup of the season. Sophomore Emily Hardesty, who had started every match this season at outside hitter, played libero for the first time in her career. Sophomore middle blocker Darby Graff drew the first start of her career, as did senior outside hitter Sydney Wilhelm.
- Texas A&M, which tied for sixth place in the SEC standings last season with a 10-8 mark, is picked to finish sixth this year, according a preseason poll of the league's head coaches.
- Texas A&M head coach Laurie Corbelli is in her 22nd season at the helm of the Aggies and the 29th year of her head coaching career. The 1984 Olympic silver medalist is 553-321 overall and 453-215 at A&M, where she has directed the Aggies to 17 NCAA appearances.
- Corbelli returns four starters -- juniors and team captains Angela Lowak (6-0, OH) and Shelby Sullivan (6-2, MB) and sophomores Jazzmin Babers (6-2, MB) and Emily Hardesty (6-3, OH) -- and five other letterwinners from last year's team that went 19-12 and made a third consecutive appearance in the NCAA second round before being eliminated by Texas for the second straight year.
- There are eight newcomers on the A&M roster, including a six-person freshman recruiting class that was recognized by both Volleyball Magazine and PrepVolleyball.com. High school All-Americans Stephanie Aiple (6-1, S/OPP), who joined the team in January, and lefty Ashlie Reasor (6-1, OPP), as well as Kiara McGee (5-11, OH), Amy Nettles (5-4, L/DS), Olivia Thorpe (5-11, OH) and Uche Ukadike (5-11, MB) make up the freshman class.
- The 2014 season marks the 40th season of volleyball as an intercollegiate varsity sport at Texas A&M. The Aggies are 942-518-2 all-time.
RECENT RESULTS:
#21 Texas A&M def. Tennessee, 3-0 (Friday, Oct. 3)
- No. 21 Texas A&M got a sweep in its first SEC road match of the season, cruising to a 25-14, 25-21, 25-15 victory against host Tennessee at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville on Friday.
- Thirteen of 15 A&M players contributed in the victory as the Aggies won their third consecutive match and improved to 10-3 overall and 2-0 in SEC play. Tennessee, playing its SEC home opener, suffered its third straight loss and dropped to 7-10, 0-3.
- A&M led in every positive statistical category: kills (38-28), hitting percentage (.333 to .159), assists (35-23), aces (7-0), digs (32-24), blocks (5-2) and points (50-30).
- A&M's Angela Lowak led all players with 13 kills while hitting .370. Freshman setter Stephanie Aiple dished out 31 assists as eight different A&M players had at least one kill. Sydney Wilhelm and Ashlie Reasor tied for match-high honors in digs with nine apiece. Darby Graff and Aiple tied for match-high honors in blocks with three each.
A&M SERIES RECORD VS. KENTUCKY:
- Kentucky has won the last six matches against A&M to take a 6-5 lead in the all-time series.
- A&M is 0-3 against the Wildcats in SEC matches only.
- A&M also is 0-3 all-time in matches played in Lexington.
- The Aggies' most recent victory against the Wildcats was Oct. 4, 1985, in College Station.
- Last year, then-No. 16 Kentucky ended A&M's five-match win streak, winning all three sets by the minimum two points in a 26-24, 25-23, 26-24 contest at Memorial Coliseum.
- Sierra Patrick led A&M with 10 kills and 12 points. Heather Reynolds had a match-high 18 digs, the most digs by an A&M player in a three-set match in 2013. Lefty setter Allie Sawatzky added 15 digs and also recorded 26 assists to tally her league-leading 18th double-double of the year. Victoria Arenas also reached double figures in digs with 10. Jazzmin Babers took team-high honors in blocks with five, and Shelby Sullivan, who had eight kills while hitting at a .412 clip, had two aces to finish with 11.5 points.
- Kentucky, which outhit A&M .171 to .161 for the match, was led by Whitney Billings' 15 kills. Alexandra Morgan added 10 kills and led all players with eight blocks.
SCOUTING KENTUCKY:
- The Wildcats, who climbed one spot to No. 13 in this week's AVCA Top 25 Poll, are riding a seven-match win streak and are 13-2 overall and 3-0 in the SEC.
- On Friday, Kentucky handed Alabama its first SEC loss with a 25-20, 25-15, 23-25, 25-22 victory in the Wildcats' SEC home opener at Memorial Coliseum.
- Kentucky is 8-1 at Memorial Coliseum this season, with the only loss being against then-No. 6 USC on Sept. 5. Texas A&M defeated USC, 3-1, the following week in Los Angeles.
- Both of Kentucky's losses have been against ranked opponents. In addition to the USC loss, the Wildcats fell, 3-2, at No. 17 North Carolina on Sept. 12. A&M is the third ranked opponents the Wildcats will have faced.
- Kentucky leads the SEC with 13.00 assists and 14.23 kills per set for the full season.
- The Wildcats have three players averaging more than 3.0 kills per set: Shelby Workman (3.36), Lauren O'Conner (3.19) and Anni Thomasson (3.04). Workman had a match-high 19 kills while hitting .459 against Alabama, and O'Conner and Thomasson added 15 and 10 kills, respectively.
- Libero Jackie Napper is averaging 4.79 digs per set for the full season, ranking second in the SEC.
- The Wildcats were picked to finish second in the SEC, according to a preseason poll of the league's head coaches. Junior setter Morgan Bergren was named preseason All-SEC.
TEXAS A&M: BY THE NUMBERS:
- A&M is 2-2 against ranked opponents with wins against No. 6 USC and No. 13 San Diego and two losses to No. 6 Florida State.
- A&M is 3-0 in road matches this season.
- A&M is 9-0 when winning the first set and 1-3 when dropping the first set. The win against TAMU-CC was the first time this season A&M came back to win after dropping the opening set.
- Shelby Sullivan leads the Aggies' attack and ranks fourth in the SEC with a .389 hitting percentage. She also leads A&M with 3.95 points and 3.17 kills per set, ranking with seventh and 11th, respectively, in the SEC. She is second on the team and eighth in the league with 1.13 blocks per set.
- Leading into the Tennessee match, Sullivan had posted back-to-back career-highs in kills and points (19 kills, 20.5 points. TAMU-CC; 20 kills, 25.0 points vs. Auburn). She has posted double-figure kills in a team-leading eight matches.
- Over the last seven matches -- which included four matches against Top 15 teams -- Sullivan is hitting a combined .471 with 3.79 kills, 1.21 blocks and 4.58 points per set.
- Jazzmin Babers entered the week ranked 34th in the nation with 1.33 blocks per set and currently ranks sixth in the SEC with 1.26 for the full season. Earlier this season, the redshirt sophomore set a school record with 13 block assists against UTSA (Aug. 30). Her 14 total blocks against the Roadrunners ties for second in the A&M record books.
- Stephanie Aiple entered the week fifth in the SEC and 42nd in the nation with 10.78 assists per set. The freshman had a career-high 56 assists in the 3-2 victory at No. 6 USC on Sept. 11 and had a 54-assist performance in the four-set victory over TAMU-CC. In the SEC opening sweep against Auburn, Aiple dished out 35 assists and directed the Aggie offense to a season-high .440 hitting percentage.
- Libero/defensive specialist Victoria Arenas has tallied double-digit digs in a team-best eight matches, including three matches in which she has posted 20 or more digs. She had a career high and a team season-high 28 digs in a 3-2 loss to UTSA. Arenas leads the Aggies and is seventh in the SEC with 3.77 digs per set for the full season.
- Babers has made 44 consecutive starts dating back to the 2013 season opener. Sullivan has played in 44 consecutive matches, having started 43 of them.
UP NEXT:
The Aggies return to Reed Arena Friday, Oct. 10 to host Alabama. First serve is at 6 p.m. In a quick turnaround, A&M then hits the road to face No. 9 Florida in Gainesville on Sunday, Oct. 12. The match begins at 1 p.m. CT, and will be televised on SEC Network.
RANDOM NOTES:
A&M Celebrates 40 Years of Women's Athletics
The 2014-15 academic year marks the 40th season of women's varsity athletics at Texas A&M. As part of a year-long celebration, numerous recognitions and activities will be held leading up to the official 40th anniversary date on June 15, 2015.
Although some Aggie women's sports teams were already participating in intercollegiate competitions as early as 1971, it wasn't until the Texas A&M Athletic Council's milestone decision on June 15, 1975, that women's athletics were brought under the umbrella of the Texas A&M Athletics Department. Individual women's sports celebrating their 40th seasons under the Athletics Department are golf, swimming and diving, softball, tennis, track and field and volleyball.
Over the past 40 years, Texas A&M's women's sports have accounted for 19 national titles, 44 conference championships and four Olympic medals. Volleyball has made 24 postseason appearances and won one conference divisional title
Aiple Named ESPNW National Player of the Week:
Texas A&M freshman setter Stephanie Aiple was named the espnW national volleyball player of the week on Sept. 17 for her performances in the Aggies' back-to-back victories over then-No. 6 USC and then-No. 13 San Diego at the USC Classic in Los Angeles. Aiple, the first Texas A&M player to earn the espnW national honor, also was named to the USC Classic all-tournament team following the victories over the favored Trojans and Toreros, and is a two-time SEC Freshman Volleyball Player of the Week.
Freshman Recruiting Class Recognized:
Texas A&M volleyball's freshman class received honorable mention in Volleyball Magazine's list of the nation's top 10 recruiting classes. A&M is the only Texas school mentioned in the listing, which recognized 15 classes as honorable mention in addition to the top-10 ranked teams. High school All-Americans Stephanie Aiple (6-1, S), and Ashlie Reasor (6-1, OPP) headline the Aggies' six-member freshman class, which was ranked 17th in the nation by Prepvolleyball.com earlier this year. Kiara McGee (5-11, OH), Amy Nettles (5-4, L), Olivia Thorpe (5-11, OH) and Uche Ukadike (5-11, MB) complete the heralded class.
SEC Preseason Poll:
Texas A&M, which tied for sixth place in the SEC standings last season with a 10-8 mark, is picked to finish sixth this year, according to a preseason vote of the league coaches. Florida is picked to win the team championship, having received the maximum 12 first-place votes for 144 points. Kentucky is projected to finish second, having received 129 points. Defending SEC champion Missouri received the only other first-place vote and is picked to place third with 114 total points, followed by LSU (105 points) and Alabama (102 points). A&M received 89 points and Arkansas is seventh with 87 points. Georgia (65 points), Auburn (54), Ole Miss (50) and Tennessee (33). South Carolina (29) and Mississippi State (13) round out the 13-team poll. Vanderbilt does not sponsor volleyball.
Sullivan Named to Preseason All-SEC Team:
Texas A&M junior middle blocker Shelby Sullivan was named to the 2014 Preseason Volleyball All-SEC Team. Sullivan, who earned All-SEC Team honors as a sophomore after hitting .386 and averaging 2.75 kills per set, is one of nine members on the star-studded team, which was voted on by the league's 13 head coaches. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own players. Preseason league-favorite Florida led all schools with three selected to the team: Alex Holston, ?iva Recek and Taylor Unroe. Others named to the preseason team are Carly Kan and Whitney Little of Missouri, Krystal Rivers of Alabama, Brianna Holman from LSU and Kentucky's Morgan Bergren, who is the only player on the 2014 preseason team who was not on the 2013 season-ending All-SEC Team.
Preseason Success:
The Aggies played in three pre-conference tournaments. They won the season-opening Texas A&M Invitational, August 29-30 at Reed Arena. A&M tied Iowa and UTSA with a tournament-best 2-1 record but was awarded the championship based on sets won-lost ratio. A&M also won Ohio's Baymont Inn & Suites Invitational, Sept. 5-6 in Athens, Ohio. A&M went 2-0 at the USC Classic, but a tournament champion was not crowned.