Match Preview: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

Friday, December 4

College Station

6:30 PM

Texas A&M

A&M-Corpus Christi

Buy Tickets

Dec 03, 2015 | Volleyball

By: Texas A&M Media Relations

NCAA Championship - First & Second Rounds
Friday-Saturday, Dec. 4-5
Reed Arena, College Station, Texas
ESPN3
Tickets | Complete Match Notes (PDF)

Schedule:
Friday, Dec. 4
4:30 p.m. No. 7 Hawaii (26-1) vs. TCU ((19-9)
6:30 p.m. No. 15 Texas A&M (23-6) vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (31-4)

Saturday, Dec. 5
6:30 p.m. Hawaii/TCU winner vs. Texas A&M/Texas A&M-Corpus Christi winner

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Fifteenth-ranked Texas A&M (23-6, 16-2 SEC) received an automatic berth to the 2015 NCAA Volleyball Championship by winning the Southeastern Conference and will host first and second rounds, Friday and Saturday at Reed Arena. The Aggies, who received an all-time high No. 10 seed in the 64-team tournament, open against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (31-4) on Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Reed Arena. The Islanders are the automatic qualifier from the Southland Conference. The match follows a 4:30 p.m. first-round match-up between No. 7-ranked Hawaii (26-1), the automatic qualifier from the Big West Conference, and TCU (19-9), an at-large selection from the Big 12 Conference. The two first-round winners will meet in the second round, Saturday at 6:30 p.m. at Reed, with the winner earning a berth into the Des Moines Regional at Wells Fargo Arena, Dec. 11-12.

All three matches played at Reed Arena will be aired on ESPN3 with Casey Richardson and Chelsea Reber calling the action.

Tickets: Texas A&M students who show their student ID at the door will be admitted free, courtesy of the 12th Man Foundation. All-session tickets for the first two rounds at Reed Arena are available for purchase in advance at 12thManFoundation.com, during business hours at the 12th Man Foundation Ticket Office located in the north end of Kyle Field and on match day at Reed Arena beginning one hour before the match. Each day is a session and is ticketed accordingly.

All-session reserved tickets are $16. All-session general admission is $12 for adults and $5 for non-A&M students. Single-day tickets go on sale Friday and are $9 for reserved seating, $7 for adult general admission and $3 for non-A&M student general admission. Children under age two are admitted free to all matches.

A&M, which is 12-1 in home matches this season and enters the tournament riding an overall 14-match win streak, is making its fifth consecutive and 23rd overall appearance in the NCAA tournament. This marks the Aggies' 19th appearance under 23rd-year head coach Laurie Corbelli, making A&M one of only 13 teams in the nation that has made at least 19 NCAA tournament appearances since she was hired in 1993.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (31-4) is making its inaugural appearance in the NCAA tournament, earning an automatic berth after defeating Houston Baptist, 3-1, in the championship match of the Southland Conference Tournament on Nov. 22. The Islanders enter the NCAA tournament riding a 21-match win streak.

Hawaii (26-1), which won the national championship in 1982, 1983 and 1987 and was the runner-up in 1988 and 1996, is the automatic qualifier from the Big West Conference. The Rainbow Wahine are making their 23rd consecutive and 34th overall appearance and are 75-30 all-time in NCAA matches. Hawaii, which has been eliminated in the second round each of the last three years, enters the 2015 tournament riding a 21-match win streak.

TCU received an at-large bid and is making its second NCAA appearance since the program began in 1996. The Horned Frogs, who tied for fourth with Kansas State in the Big 12 Conference, made their only other postseason appearance in 2009 and fell in the first round to Texas in Austin.

TEXAS A&M TOURNAMENT NOTES

A&M is making its 23rd overall appearance (1981, '82, '85, '86, '93, '94, '95, '96, '97, '98,' 99, 2000, '01, '02, '03, '04, '05, '09, '11, '12, '13, '14, '15) since the inception of the tournament in 1981.
The Aggies' No. 10 seed is the highest in program history. The previous high was a No. 11 seed in 2001, when the Aggies advanced to the Elite Eight.
The Aggies are 9-4 this year against teams in the NCAA tournament field.
A&M is 15-2 in first-round matches under Corbelli -- A&M had a first-round bye in 1995 -- and 17-4 all-time in NCAA first-round matches.
A&M is 15-1 all-time in NCAA home matches, including 1-1 in NCAA matches played at Reed Arena.
A&M last hosted NCAA tournament matches in 2011, defeating Lipscomb, 3-1, in the first round at Reed Arena and then falling to future SEC-foe Kentucky, 3-0, in the second round.
Last year A&M fell to 22nd-ranked Arizona State, 3-1 (22-25, 25-20, 25-26, 25-22) in the first round at Gregory Gym in Austin, where the Aggies were sent for a third consecutive year.
A&M sports a 25-22 (.532) all-time record in the NCAA tournament, including a 23-18 (.561) mark during Corbelli's A&M tenure.
Only 12 programs have made more NCAA appearances than A&M. Penn State and Stanford have appeared in every NCAA tournament (35) since the first championship was held in 1981.
A&M's best finish in an NCAA tournament was a regional final appearance in both 1999 and 2001.
The Aggies, who finished with a two-game lead in the Southeastern Conference standings en route to their first-ever conference championship, are one of four teams from the SEC to be participating in the postseason tournament, as league-foes Florida, Kentucky and Missouri all received at-large bids.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP NOTES

Thirty-two conferences were awarded automatic qualification, and the remaining 32 slots were filled with at-large selections to complete the bracket.
The top 16 teams were seeded nationally and placed within four regions. (The NCAA began the 16-team seeding in 2000).
Sixteen first-and second-round matches will be played Dec. 3-4 or 4-5 on the campuses of participating institutions.
Second round winners will advance to four predetermined regional sites: Austin, Texas, Des Moines, Iowa, Lexington, Ky., or San Diego, Calif.
The four regional winners will meet at the Final Four, to be held at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Neb., Dec. 17 and 19.
Southern California is the No. 1 seed in the 64-team bracket, followed by No. 2 Minnesota, No. 3 Texas and No. 4 Nebraska.
Penn State is the two-time defending national champion.

TEXAS A&M-TAMU-CC ALL-TIME SERIES

The Aggies are 2-0 all-time against the Islanders since the teams first met in 2007.
Both meetings have been in College Station. The teams first met at G. Rollie White Coliseum in 2007 with the Aggies winning, 3-0 (30-18, 30-11, 30-27).
In the second and most recent match-up, the teams faced off Sept. 22, 2014, at Reed Arena, where No. 22 Texas A&M overcame a sluggish start and got key contributions from the bench to pull away for a 21-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-18 victory.
Shelby Sullivan had then-career highs with 19 kills and 20.5 points to lead the Aggies to the victory at Reed. A&M also received a huge boost from senior outside hitter Sydney Wilhelm who typically subbed in as a defensive specialist but came off the bench and finished with a career-high 11 kills and also tallied 11 digs to post the first double-double of her career. Aggie starting sophomore outside hitter Emily Hardesty completed a double-double, recording 12 kills and 18 digs, tying sophomore libero Victoria Arenas for the team lead in digs.
The Aggies outhit the Islanders, .295 to .198, for the match and led in kills, 62-52. A&M freshman setter Stephanie Aiple finished with 54 assists as the Aggies led in assists, 60-47. A&M held a narrow 82-81 edge in digs, although A&M-Corpus Christi had five players in double figures, including Hailey King, who led all players with 22 digs. Sullivan and Jazzmin Babers tied for match-high honors in blocks with three apiece as the Aggies led in blocks, 6-5.
A&M's all-time record/results vs. TAMU-CC

H: 2-0    A: 0-0    N: 0-0
Aug. 24, 2007     H     W         30-18, 30-11, 30-27
Sept. 22, 2014    H     W         21-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-18

SCOUTING TAMU-CC

TAMU-CC, which began playing volleyball in 2000, is making its first NCAA appearance.
The Islanders rank third in the nation for opponent hitting percentage (.139) and are 13th in the nation in digs per set (17.51).
Sophomore Kate Klepetka, the SLC Libero of the Year, is third in the nation with 6.05 digs per set.
Sophomore Kristyn Nicholson was named the SLC Setter of the Year. She is averaging 10.86 assists per set.
TAMU-CC has broken 13 school records, including most wins (31) and fewest losses (4) in a season, as well as consecutive wins (21).
The match against the No. 15 Aggies will be the Islanders' first match against a ranked opponent this season.
The only common opponent TAMU and TAMU-CC have faced this season is Abilene Christian. Both the Aggies and the Islanders defeated the Wildcats, 3-1.
Tony Graystone is 125-103 in his seventh season as head coach of the Islanders. He is 640-164 in the 17th year of his head coaching career.

AGGIES COLLECT TOP SEC HONORS

Texas A&M setter Stephanie Aiple was voted the SEC Player of the Year, and the Aggies' Laurie Corbelli was tabbed the SEC Coach of the Year, according to a vote of the SEC head volleyball coaches. In addition, Texas A&M middle blockers Jazzmin Babers and Shelby Sullivan join Aiple on the 18-member All-SEC team.
Aiple is the first A&M player to be named SEC Player of the Year since the Aggies joined the league in 2012. She becomes the second player in A&M program history and the first as a sophomore to earn conference player of the year accolades, joining former Aggie setter Suzy Wente, who was named Southwest Conference Player of the Year as a senior in 1995. Aiple is a six-time SEC Setter of the Week and two-time SEC Player of the Week honoree this season.
Corbelli collects her third coach of the year distinction in 23 years at the helm of the Aggies, after directing A&M to its first-ever conference championship despite the Aggies being picked to finish fourth in the preseason SEC coaches poll. She previously was named SWC Coach of the Year in 1994 and 1995. Corbelli is 487-227 at A&M and 587-333 in 30 years as a head coach.
Babers, a redshirt junior who was named the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week on Nov. 24 following A&M's victories over both Kentucky and Florida, is making her second consecutive appearance on the all-conference team and was a member of the SEC All-Freshman team in 2013. Sullivan, a senior, is making her A&M-leading third consecutive appearance on the All-SEC team.
Babers, Aiple, Sullivan and sophomore outside hitter Kiara McGee received a combined 18 SEC weekly honor citations this season.
Senior outside hitter and co-captain Angela Lowak, who has missed most of the season with a knee injury, was named to the SEC Volleyball Community Service Team for a third consecutive year.

TEXAS A&M QUICK HITS

The Aggies are 12-1 in home matches in 2015 and have won eight of their last nine home matches in three-set sweeps. The one loss was against Arkansas in the SEC season opener on Sept. 27.
This is the first time since coach Laurie Corbelli was hired in 1993 that the Aggies have won 14 consecutive matches in a single season. A&M's previous longest win streak under Corbelli was 11 in 1996.
The last time A&M won more than 14 straight matches was 1982 when they had a school-record 20-match win streak.
A&M has reached the 20-victory milestone for the 16th time under Corbelli and the 27th time in program history. Its 23 wins is the most since going 25-6 in 2012.
A&M climbed four spots to No. 15 in this week's AVCA Top 25 Poll. The last time the Aggies were ranked as high as 15 was a No. 15 showing on Sept. 12, 2005.
A&M has steadily ascended in the weekly NCAA RPI and is believed to be at an all-time high No. 6 this week. The Aggies were 38th in the first RPI of the season, released on Oct. 2. A&M was No. 22 in the 2014 final RPI.
A&M moved up two spots to No. 11 in this week's PrepVolleyball.com (PVB) College Top 50 Rankings, and the Aggies climbed three spots to No. 13 in PVB's Top 25 Composite Poll.
A&M is ranked 16th in the nation with a .272 hitting efficiency.
A&M leads the SEC and is 31st in the nation with 13.17 assists per set. The Aggies also led the SEC with 13.46 assists per set in conference matches only.
During its 14-match win streak, A&M is outhitting its opponents, .272 to .182, while averaging 14.44 kills per set to opponents' 12.29 kills per set. A&M also is outdigging its opponents 14.00 to 11.46 per set and outblocking its opponents, 2.63 to 2.56 during the 14-match stretch.
In home matches only, A&M is outhitting its opponents .291 to .172, while averaging 14.51 kills per set to opponents' 12.00 kills per set. A&M also is outdigging its opponents, 14.66 to 12.45 and outblocking them, 2.12 to 2.00 at Reed Arena.
A&M is 21-0 when leading its opponent in attack percentage, 18-0 when leading in points, 17-0 when leading in blocks and/or kills and 9-0 when leading in aces.
A&M defeated Kentucky (Oct. 30) and Florida (Nov. 22) despite being outhit in both matches. Kentucky outhit A&M, .230 to .194, and the Gators outhit A&M, .255 to .230. A&M is 2-6 when being outhit.
A&M is 7-0 in five-set matches and 8-0 when winning the fourth set
The Aggies are 19-1 when winning the first set, with the only loss coming against Arkansas on Sept. 27 at Reed Arena in College Station.
A&M, which hit above .400 only once in 2014, has hit above .400 six times overall this season, including a season-high .500 at Florida A&M, marking the third highest hitting percentage in school history. A&M hit .481 at Auburn and .470 against Wichita State, which also rank in the top 10 in program history.
After using 10 different starting lineups over the first 12 matches, A&M has used basically the same starting lineup over the last 17 matches with the only differences being a defensive specialist – either Katelyn Labhart or Victoria Arenas, both juniors, or freshman Amy Houser – starting in the back row for sophomore opposite hitter Ashlie Reasor, or sophomore defensive specialist Gabby Litwin starting in the back row for sophomore outside hitter Kiara McGee. Setter Stephanie Aiple, outside hitter Emily Hardesty and middle blockers Jazzmin Babers and Shelby Sullivan have all been in the starting lineup in each of the last 17 matches.
A&M is 7-3 against teams in this week's AVCA Top 25, including two victories each against current No. 22 Kentucky and No. 25 Missouri, as well as single wins against No. 4 Minnesota, No. 13 Colorado State and No. 16 Florida. A&M also has a win against Wichita State, which is receiving votes.
A&M's regular-season schedule included 10 matches against teams that reached at least the second round of the NCAA Championship tournament and were ranked in the top 25 or received votes in the final 2014 AVCA Division I Coaches Poll.

TEXAS A&M PLAYER QUICK HITS

Jazzmin Babers is 10th in the nation and third in the SEC with a .423 hitting percentage. She is on pace to crush the school record for hitting percentage in a full season of .400, first set by former two-time All-American Sherri Brinkman and tied by Babers last year.
Babers also is ranked 19th in the nation and third in the SEC with 1.41 blocks per set for the full season.
Babers led the SEC with a .441 hitting efficiency in conference matches only, and she finished second in blocking with 1.46 blocks per set. Babers also was sixth in points (4.20) and seventh in kills (3.38) per set in SEC matches only.
Babers, whose mother, Susan, played volleyball at Hawaii for coach Dave Shoji, and whose dad played football for the Rainbow Warriors, has started every match of her career (90) and is hitting .375 for her career.
Babers, who has posted double-figure blocks three times this season including 10 in the 3-2 victory against Florida, has led or tied for the team lead in blocks in 21 of 29 matches this season.
Babers ranks sixth in the A&M all-time career records with 377 block assists. She ranks eighth in the career records for total blocks with 430, and she is 10th in career points with 1,094.5.
Babers has 131 block assists this season, tying former Aggie All-American Amber Woolsey (1997) for fifth in the A&M all-time season records. Babers needs five more block assists to move into sole possession of fourth place in the Aggie records.
Babers has 152 total blocks for the season, ranking ninth in the A&M season records.
Sophomore setter Stephanie Aiple is ranked 16th in the nation and third in the SEC with 11.43 assists per set for the full season. Aiple, who is averaging 11.74 assists during A&M's 14-match win streak, finished third in the SEC with 11.48 assists per set in league play.
Aiple had a career-high 62 assists in the win against Missouri, including 14 assists in the 15-10 win in the fifth set, pushing her over the 1,000 assist mark for the season. She enters the NCAAs with 1,074 assists.
In the home match against Missouri, Aiple set an A&M Reed Arena record for assists in a three-set match with 47.
After missing two matches with a foot injury suffered against No. 15 Colorado State on Sept. 15, Aiple returned to the court in the second set against Arkansas on Sept. 27. Aiple returned to the starting lineup in the sweep against Auburn on Sept. 30, directing the Aggie offense to a .481 hitting percentage, the fifth highest team hitting percentage in program history and setting an A&M record for highest hitting percentage in a three-set SEC match.
Aiple leads A&M with seven double-doubles, including four in the last 10 matches. Junior outside hitter Emily Hardesty has three double-doubles.
Senior middle blocker Shelby Sullivan is hitting .381 this season–fifth best in the SEC–and .380 for her career, putting her on pace to shatter the A&M record for career hitting percentage (.342) held by former two-time All-American Sherri Brinkman (1983-85).
Sullivan is one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award for volleyball. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. Voting goes through Dec. 7 at http://bit.ly/20MT88z
Sophomore libero Amy Nettles, who had a career-high and team season-high 30 digs in the win at Missouri, needs nine more digs to give her 426 digs for the season and move her into 10th place in the A&M all-time season dig records. She will surpass former two-time All-American and three-time Olympian Stacy Sykora, who posted 425 digs as a junior in the 1997 season.
Nettles has led or tied for the team lead in digs in all but two matches this season. She is averaging a team-high 3.83 digs per set for the full season, ranking 10th in the SEC. She averaged 3.82 digs per set in conference matches only, also ranking 10th.
Nettles has posted double-figure digs in a team-leading 27 matches this season, including a career-high 14 consecutive double-digit dig performances entering the NCAA tournament.
Nettles is the only player to have appeared in all 109 sets this season, all at the libero position, and Babers is the only player to have started all 29 matches. Meanwhile, sophomore setter Stephanie Aiple (foot), senior middle blocker Shelby Sullivan (knee) and senior outside hitter Angela Lowak (ankle, knee), all returning starters from last year, have missed multiple starts at some point in the season due to injuries.
Sophomore outside hitter Kiara McGee, who is second on the team with 3.29 points and 2.98 kills while hitting .191 in all matches, is hitting .251 and averaging 3.41 kills and 3.82 points per set in home matches only.
The athletic and versatile Kaitlyn Blake has started seven matches as either an opposite hitter or middle blocker and also has subbed in as an outside hitter. The freshman, who has appeared in 21 matches, was clutch for the Aggies in the win against Florida, coming off the bench to play the outside hitter position and hit .316 with nine kills and two blocks. She had seven kills at Missouri from the outside hitter position. Blake is hitting .254 and averaging 1.86 kills and 0.62 blocks per set for the season.
Junior setter Kaysie Shebeneck made her first three starts of the season at No. 18 Florida State, at Florida A&M and at home against Arkansas after Aiple suffered a foot injury in the second set against Colorado State. Shebeneck, who led the Aggies to a 3-2 victory against the Rams, is averaging 8.39 assists per set and directed the Aggie offense to a .500 hitting percentage against Florida A&M, marking the third highest hitting percentage in program history. Shebeneck started four matches at setter last season. As a freshman, she started five at the opposite hitter position.
Outside hitter Angela Lowak has returned to practice after suffering a knee injury (dislocated patella) at Florida State on Sept. 19. The senior co-captain posted double-figure kills in four consecutive matches leading up to the FSU match, and she was leading the team with 3.22 kills per set before suffering the injury.

TEXAS A&M RECENT RESULTS

No. 19 Texas A&M avenged its only home loss of the season with a 25-27, 25-16, 25-23, 25-23 victory over Arkansas at Barnhill Arena in Fayetteville in both teams' regular season finale Saturday, Nov. 28. It marked the sixth time in seven all-time meetings between the two programs that the team that won the first set ends up losing the match. The Razorbacks had delivered the Aggies' only loss with a 3-1 victory in A&M's SEC season opener at Reed Arena on Sept. 27.
Sophomore outside hitter Kiara McGee led A&M with 15 kills, and junior outside hitter Emily Hardesty and redshirt junior middle blocker Jazzmin Babers also posted double-digit kills with 13 and 10, respectively, as sophomore setter Stephanie Aiple dished out 47 assists. Babers took match-high honors in blocks with nine, and sophomores Amy Nettles and Gabby Litwin led in digs with 14 and 10, respectively.
A&M outhit Arkansas, .291 to .185 for the match and led in kills, 65-54. A&M also led in assists (61-52), digs (59-55) and blocks (13-11).
Razorback outside hitter Pilar Victoria, the league leader in kills and points per set, led all players with 19 kills and 15 digs. Arkansas ended the season 17-13, including 7-11 in SEC play.

Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M volleyball. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M volleyball team on Facebook and on Twitter and Instagram by following @AggieVolleyball.

VOTE here for Texas A&M's Shelby Sullivan for the Senior CLASS Award