Tournament Central | Live Stats (Missouri State, Texas A&M, Pepperdine) | SECN+ (Texas A&M only)
THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University volleyball team will head to College Station, Texas, for a two-day showing at the Texas A&M Invitational beginning Thursday at 4:30 p.m. against Missouri State at Reed Arena.
The Colonels (2-5) face Texas A&M Friday at 10 a.m. and battle Pepperdine at 4:30 p.m. to close the event. The matchup with A&M will be featured on SEC Network Plus.
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Nicholls had a strong showing at the Sawyer Camillo Memorial in Lafayette this past weekend, scoring in the 20s in all three sets against UL-Lafayette and sweeping Mississippi Valley State in the finale. Junior outside hitter and setter
Heidi Carpenter was named to the All-Tournament Team, compiling 15 kills, 18 digs, 19 assists and three service aces.
Freshman outside hitter
Katie Jones and senior right-side hitter
Brieanna Hill have accounted for 47 percent of the offense as the team's top-two kills leaders at 65 and 54, respectively. Junior libero
Emily Venable ranks second in the league with 12 service aces.
vs. Missouri State | Thursday, Sept. 6 | 4:30 p.m.
The Bears (3-4) shook off being swept in the opening weekend by Alabama, College of Charleston and Western Kentucky by winning all their matches at the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational versus Ball State, Grambling State and Oral Roberts. MSU won nine of 10 sets during that stretch. The Bears fell to Kansas State Tuesday in straight sets.
Tabbed second in the Missouri Valley Conference, MSU also boasts two preseason All-MVC selections in Emily Butters and Aubrey Cheffey. Freshman Amelia Flynn has totaled a team-high 80 kills with Cheffey the next closest at 48. Flynn has accumulated double-digit kills in five of seven games with a match high of 15 twice.
This is the first-ever meeting between the Colonels and the Bears.
at Texas A&M | Friday, Sept. 7 | 10 a.m.
The Aggies are 4-2, finishing 2-1 at the D.C. Koehl Classic and Penn State Classic. Texas A&M most recently swept Indiana and Temple before dropping a straight-setter to No. 6 Penn State.
Preseason All-SEC honoree Hollann Hans was named to the all-tournament team at the D.C. Koehl Classic, racking up a whopping 5.2 kills per set, which led to the SEC Player of the Week and SEC Offensive Player of the Week awards. The 6-1 outside hitter sits seventh in Division I at 5.05 kills per set.
Nicholls' record vs. A&M: 0-1
Last outing: L, 0-3 in College Station (Dec. 5, 2003)
vs. Pepperdine | Friday, Sept. 7 | 4:30 p.m.
The Waves (4-2) recovered from a 1-2 opening weekend by breezing through their three matches at their Asics Classic. Pepperdine topped CSUN and Idaho in four sets and swept North Texas.
The Waves, chosen to finish fourth in the West Coast Conference, attack is spearheaded by Shannon Scully (4.05 k/s) and Rachel Ahrens (3.25 k/s). With Preseason All-WCC outside hitter Hannah Frohling thrown into the mix, senior setter Blossom Sato ranks second in the country at 12.76 assists per set.
Nicholls' record vs. Pepperdine: 0-1
Last outing: L, 2-3 in Tucson, Arizona (Sept. 11, 2004)
To stay up to date with Nicholls volleyball, follow the team on Instagram and Twitter
@Nicholls_VB.
