No. 16 Texas A&M, No. 2 Texas Renew Longtime Rivalry

Wednesday, September 14

Austin, Texas

7:00 PM

Texas A&M

Texas

Sep 13, 2016 | Volleyball

Complete Match Notes (PDF)

By: Texas A&M Media Relations

No. 16 Texas A&M (6-3) vs. No. 2 Texas (7-1)
Wednesday, Sept. 14, 7 p.m.
Gregory Gym, Austin, Texas
TV: Longhorn Network (Paul Sunderland, play-by-play; Kevin Barnett, analyst)
Stats: 12thMan.com/live
Updates: follow @AggieVolleyball on Twitter

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Former conference foes Texas A&M and Texas renew their rivalry Wednesday as the 16th-ranked and defending Southeastern Conference champion Aggies (6-3) travel to Austin to battle the second-ranked and defending Big 12 Conference-champion Longhorns (7-1) at Gregory Gym at 7 p.m. It marks the first regular season match-up between the two programs since Texas A&M departed the Big 12 following the 2011 season, although the teams did meet in NCAA second-round matches in 2012 and 2013 in Austin.

TEXAS A&M QUICK HITS

Texas A&M extended its win streak to four matches by going 3-0 at the Borderline Invitational last weekend. A&M swept all three opponents, defeating Arizona of the Pac-12 and co-host and defending Western Athletic Conference champion New Mexico State on Friday in Las Cruces, N.M., and defeating co-host UTEP, Saturday in El Paso, Texas.
The match at Texas marks the Aggies' 10th consecutive match on the road. Texas A&M makes its home season debut Friday as the Aggies play host to No. 6 Wisconsin at Reed Arena to close out their preconference schedule.
The Texas match will be the Aggies' fourth meeting against a top-16 team this season. Texas A&M is aiming for its first ranked win, having fallen to No. 6 Minnesota, 3-0, and suffering 3-2 setbacks to both No. 15 Ohio State and No. 16 Florida State.
Including A&M's Friday contest against No. 6 Wisconsin, the Aggies will have faced five ranked opponents and one team receiving votes (Arizona) during its 11-match preconference schedule. Three teams—Texas, Minnesota and Wisconsin—are ranked in the top six.
This is the first regular season contest between the Aggies and Longhorns since Texas A&M joined the SEC in 2012. Since the Aggies departure from the Big 12, the teams have been paired up twice in NCAA second-round matches, with Texas winning, 3-1, in both 2012 and 2013 at Gregory Gym.

ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY

On Sept. 14, 2012, Texas A&M played its first conference match as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The Aggies defeated Ole Miss, 25-21, 25-23, 25-16, at Reed Arena, recording Texas A&M's first SEC victory in any sport.

A&M SERIES HISTORY VS. TEXAS

According to Texas A&M records, Texas holds a 67-23 lead in the all-time series, while Texas lists its lead at 72-23.
Texas has won the last four meetings, including the most recent, a 3-1 victory in the NCAA second round on Dec. 6, 2013, in Austin.
Texas A&M's most recent victory was Sept. 16, 2010, as the unranked Aggies stunned the No. 8 Longhorns, 3-0, at Reed Arena in the Big 12 Conference season opener.
Texas has won 12 consecutive matches against the Aggies at Gregory Gym.
Texas A&M's last victory in Austin was Oct. 6, 2001.
The Longhorns were 21-11 against the Aggies in Big 12 matches during Texas A&M's 16 years in the league (1996-2011).

SCOUTING TEXAS

Texas is 7-1 and riding a six-match win streak.
The Longhorns' only loss was to No. 1-ranked Nebraska, 3-0, on August 27 in a rematch of the 2015 NCAA national championship match.
Nebraska is the only ranked team Texas has faced, although the Aggies are the first of three consecutive ranked opponents for the Longhorns.
Most recently, the Longhorns defeated Colorado State, 3-0, and Wichita State, 3-1, last weekend to win the Rams Volleyball Classic in Fort Collins, Colo.
Texas has won 19-straight home matches.
Texas ranks ninth in the nation with a .306 hitting efficiency. The Longhorns are 14th in the country with 14.41 kills per set and 23rd with 13.26 assists per set.
Individually, junior opposite Ebony Nwanebu is ninth in the country with 4.80 kills per set, and she is 14th with 5.18 points per set.
Senior setter Chloe Collins is 17th in the nation with 11.30 assists per set.
Jerritt Elliott is 386-89 in his 16th season as the head coach at Texas.

CHALLENGING PRE-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

The first 10 of Texas A&M's 11 non-conference matches are away from home.
Of the 11 non-conference opponents, five are currently ranked in the AVCA top 15, including three that are in the top six: No. 2 Texas, No. 3 Minnesota and No. 6 Wisconsin.
The Aggies lost five-set matches to current No. 19 Ohio State and No. 13 Florida State at the North Texas Challenge and the Puerto Rico Clásico, respectively. A&M also suffered a 3-0 setback in Puerto Rico to then-No. 6 Minnesota, an NCAA Final Four team in 2015.
Texas A&M defeated Arizona, which was receiving votes, 3-0, at the Borderland Invitational last weekend.
On Sept. 5, Texas A&M hosted an exhibition match at A&M Consolidated High School against Shandong, a team from China that entered the match having not dropped a set during its U.S. tour. Shandong won the match, 3-0.

TEXAS A&M IN THE RANKINGS

For the second consecutive week, Texas A&M is No. 16 in the AVCA Top 25 Poll released on Monday.
The Aggies' season-high No. 14 showing on Aug. 29 marks the program's highest ranking in the AVCA poll since a No. 13 showing on Sept. 5, 2005.
The Aggies' No. 16 AVCA preseason ranking matched their highest preseason ranking by the AVCA since they were No. 16 in 2005. Texas A&M was No. 13 in the AVCA's 1997 preseason poll, marking the highest preseason ranking in program history.

TEXAS A&M IN THE NATIONAL/SEC STATS

Kaitlyn Blake, an all-tournament selection at both the North Texas Challenge and the Puerto Rico Clásico, leads the SEC and is fourth in the nation with 1.81 blocks per set, and she is fifth in the country and first in the SEC with 58 total blocks.
Blake tied a school record for block assists in a four-set match with 12 in a 3-1 victory at North Texas on Aug. 27 and also tied the school record for total blocks in a four-set match with 13 against the Mean Green. Her 13 total blocks ranks third in the country for most blocks in a four-set match.
Blake is second in the SEC and 23rd in the country with a .412 hitting percentage.
Junior setter Stephanie Aiple is third in the SEC and 27th in the nation with 11.03 assists per set.
As a team, A&M leads the SEC and is 14th in the country with 2.94 blocks per set.
The Aggies are second in the SEC and 30th in the nation with 14.13 kills per set.
The Aggies are fourth in the SEC and ranked 35th nationally with a .261 hitting efficiency, and Texas A&M is third in the SEC and 49th in the country with a .160 opponent hitting percentage.

CLIMBING THE CAREER CHARTS

Senior middle blocker Jazzmin Babers is ranked in the top 10 in the Texas A&M all-time career records in block assists, total blocks and points, and she is on pace to finish in the top 10 for career hitting percentage and block solos.
Babers is fourth in block assists with 407 and needs only two more to tie Lindsey Miller (2009-12) for third place.
Babers is tied with Miller for sixth place in total blocks with 462 and needs eight more to tie Kim Mitchell (1990-93) for fifth place.
Babers ranks sixth in career total points (1,216.5) since rally scoring begin in 2001, and she currently ranks second in career hitting percentage (.372).
Junior setter Stephanie Aiple tallied 84 assists last weekend to move her into ninth place in the A&M career assist records with 2,605. She needs 357 more assists to tie Chris Zogata (1983-86) for eighth place.

AGGIE PLAYER NOTABLES

Babers needs 44 kills to become the 17th player in program history to join the 1,000 Kills Club. The last player to join the club was middle blocker Lindsey Miller (2009-12), who finished with 1,025 in her four-year career.
Babers has started every match of her career (101).
Sophomore middle blocker Kaitlyn Blake tied the school record for total blocks in a four-set match with 13 in a 3-1 victory at North Texas on Aug. 27. The 13 blocks is the most by a player in the SEC this season.
Junior libero Amy Nettles, who has received the team's best defensive player award each of the last two seasons, has 822 career digs and needs only 178 more to become the 21^st player in Texas A&M history to join the 1,000 Digs Club. As a sophomore, Nettles played in every set as the team's libero and finished with 444 digs, ranking seventh in the Texas A&M season record books.
Senior Emily Hardesty is the most experienced outside hitter of the team, having been a starter each of the last two seasons. In 2015, she was the only non-setter to play all six rotations. Hardesty has been held out of the last four matches after suffering an injury against Minnesota. It will be a game-time decision on whether or not she plays against Texas.
Freshman outside hitter Hollann Hans has been starting in place of Hardesty, drawing the first start of her young career in the Aggies' 3-0 victory over Virginia Tech at the Puerto Rico Clásico on Sept. 3, which also was her 19th birthday. The Corpus Christi Calallen High School product had 12 kills in 32 attempts while hitting .250. She also added five digs and three block assists and finished with 13.5 points.
This past weekend at the Borderland Invitational, Hans led Texas A&M with 2.78 kills per set and was second on the team with 3.39 points per set as the Aggies tallied sweeps against Arizona, New Mexico State and UTEP. She had four aces against Arizona, the most aces by an A&M player this season, and she claimed match-high honors and tied her career high with 12 kills in the win at UTEP.
Several players made their first appearance of the season against UTEP, including senior setter Kaysie Shebeneck, who played the entire second set. Freshman setter Lexi Lopez and freshman middle blocker Maddie Douglas made their Texas A&M career debuts, subbing in late in the third set. Lopez had an ace and an assist in the first two plays of her career, and Douglas had the match-ending kill.

HOMECOMING

Several Texas A&M players grew up in the shadows of the University of Texas and will be making a homecoming of sorts when the Aggies travel to Austin to take on the Longhorns. Freshman setter Lexi Lopez hails from Austin and attended Vandegrift High School, and freshman middle blocker Maddie Douglas is from nearby Georgetown, Texas.
Junior setter Stephanie Aiple is a product of Round Rock High School, where she was coached by her aunt, Diane Watson, a two-time All-American outside hitter at Texas (1985-86) and a 2013 inductee to the Texas Women's Athletics Hall of Honor.
Lopez, Douglas and Aiple all played club ball for Austin Juniors, as did senior middle blocker Jazzmin Babers, who attended Midway High School in Waco, Texas, but now lists her hometown as Syracuse, N.Y.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

After playing its first 10 matches away from home, Texas A&M makes its Reed Arena season debut on Friday as the Aggies play host to No. 6 Wisconsin. First serve against the Badgers is at 4 p.m., and the match will be broadcast on SEC +, available on WatchESPN.com.
The match is the final pre-conference match for the defending SEC-champion Aggies, who open league play at Alabama on Friday Sept. 23.
It will be Faculty/Staff Appreciation Day against the Badgers, and all Texas A&M Faculty/Staff can purchase discounted tickets starting at only $3. Purchase below at:
http://bit.ly/2cSpv2c and use Promo code: Thankyou
BE Ready. Be Clear. Be Fast: Texas A&M Athletics is committed to providing the 12th Man with the safest environment possible at its athletic venues. Be prepared on match day by reviewing the 12-1-1 Gig 'Em Rule. Visit www.12thman.com/beclear for all information regarding the clear bag policy, which is in effect at ALL Texas A&M Athletics home events.

DIG PINK

In conjunction with October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Texas A&M volleyball team has announced that it will hold its annual "Dig Pink" fund raiser match Sunday, Oct. 16 when the Aggies play host to the nationally ranked Florida Gators in a highly anticipated match-up at Reed Arena. First serve is set for 4 p.m., and all fans wearing pink to the match can purchase tickets at the entrance for only $3.
The Aggies are currently accepting donations for their "Dig Pink" initiative and encourage fans to visit their online fund raiser page, https://giving.side-out.org/campaigns/11634. All funds raised will be donated to The Side-Out Foundation and applied toward a clinical trial specifically for patients with Stage 4 breast cancer, the most advanced form of the disease and the least funded area of research.

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.