? Pre-match notes (.pdf)
Match 21: Friday, Oct. 5, vs. Prairie View A&M (11-9), 6 p.m.
Convocation Center ? San Antonio, Texas
Match 22: Saturday, Oct. 6, at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (4-12, 1-3), 5 p.m.
Moody Fieldhouse ? Corpus Christi, Texas
UTSA returns home on Friday, hits the road again Saturday: UTSA (7-13, 0-4) returns to the Convocation Center for the first time in nearly a month when it hosts Prairie View A&M (11-9) at 6 p.m. on Friday. The contest, the Roadrunners' first at home since Sept. 8, will be the final non-conference match of the year. UTSA, which has dropped its last five matches, then continues Southland Conference play the following evening when it travels south to play Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (4-12, 1-3). Saturday will mark the end of a conference-opening five-match road trip.
On the Web: Both matches will be streamed live on goUTSA.com (Friday video only/Saturday audio only/Rowdy Zone subscription required).
Scouting the opposition: Prairie View A&M has reeled off six consecutive victories and now owns an 11-9 overall record this season. The Lady Panthers have recorded five sweeps during their current win streak. UTSA swept Prairie View on Sept. 14 at the Lady Panther Invitational and holds a commanding 11-0 edge in the all-time series that dates back to the 1989 season. The Roadrunners have swept the past seven matchups. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi has dropped six of its last seven matches and now stands at 4-12 overall and 1-3 in league play. UTSA is a perfect 6-0 all-time against the Islanders, including a pair of wins last season.
Home sweet home: The Roadrunners return to the friendly confines of the Convocation Center for the first time since Sept. 8 when they host Prairie View A&M on Friday night. Fifteen of the team’s first 20 matches this season were played away from San Antonio.
Road warriors: Last weekend marked the end of a season-high nine-match road trip for the Roadrunners. In fact, 15 of UTSA’s first 20 matches this season were played away from the Convocation Center. The Roadrunners also are opening the Southland Conference campaign with five consecutive road matches. UTSA’s first league home contest is slated Thursday, Oct. 11, against Texas State.
SLC rankings: Freshman outside hitter Kendra Rowland and junior middle hitter Victoria Prior currently occupy the top two spots in the Southland Conference kills rankings with 256 (3.6 pg/fourth) and 249 (3.5 pg/fifth), respectively. Prior also ranks eighth in the league standings in hitting percentage (.298), while junior setter Rebecca Hrapmann stands seventh in assists per game (9.2 pg) and junior libero Audrey Hiser is ninth in digs per contest (4.4 pg).
Prior leading the way: Junior middle hitter Victoria Prior, one of 12 players named to the Southland Conference’s Preseason First Team, has been a force in her third season as a Roadrunner. Prior leads the squad with a .298 hitting percentage (eighth SLC) and 64 total blocks (27 solo/37 assists) and also stands second with 249 kills (3.5 pg/fifth SLC). She was named to three consecutive all-tournament teams at the Lady Panther Invitational (68 kills, .400 pct, 15 blocks), UTSA Classic (46 kills, .389 pct, 8 blocks) and North Florida Labor Day Classic (36 kills, .275 pct, 4 blocks). The Galveston native had a season-high 25 winners against Texas-Pan American on Sept. 15, which was one short of her career high, and she has been in double figures in 13 of her last 17 matches.
Rowland off to hot start: Freshman outside hitter Kendra Rowland continues to show she is no ordinary first-year player. Rowland leads the squad with 256 kills (3.6 pg/fourth SLC) and 22 service aces, ranks second with 198 digs (2.8 pg) and third with 23 total blocks (4 solo/19 assists). She has recorded at least 10 winners in 12 of her last 14 contests and also has nine double-doubles this season. On Sept. 6 against Houston, the Antioch, Calif., native slammed home a career-high 29 kills, which was the most by a Roadrunner since Meagan Daniel had 29 on Nov. 11, 2005 (at Northwestern State). Rowland opened her career by being named to back-to-back all-tournament teams at the Bronco Invitational (28 kills, 2 aces, 13 digs) and North Florida Labor Day Classic (34 kills, 3 aces, 36 digs, 3 blocks).
Hiser controlling back row: After a slow start to her junior season, defensive specialist Audrey Hiser has stepped her game up the past month. Hiser had a career-high 27 digs on Sept. 6 against Houston, which was her second career best in as many matches (she had 26 on Sept. 1 vs. Southeast Missouri State). Her previous career high was 22, set during her freshman year against Oklahoma (Sept. 11). The San Antonio native went on to record 25 digs against Texas A&M on Sept. 8, 26 more three days later at SMU and 22 on Sept. 20 at Texas State. She has five 20-plus performances this year, leads the team with 281 digs (4.4 pg/ninth SLC) and has been in double figures in 13 of the past 14 matches.
Preseason polls: UTSA was picked to finish fourth in the West Division of the Southland Conference this season by both the league’s head coaches and sports information directors. The Roadrunners were slotted behind defending regular season champion Stephen F. Austin, Texas-Arlington and Texas State. Meanwhile, McNeese State was the pick to win the league’s East Division.
Head Coach Laura Neugebauer-Groff: Laura Neugebauer-Groff is in her sixth season at the helm of UTSA?s volleyball program. She led the Roadrunners to a 19-13 record, a 10-3 mark at the Convocation Center and a berth in the Southland Conference Tournament a year ago. Her career ledger stands at 343-153 (.692), including an 87-91 mark at UTSA. She is scheduled to coach the 500th match of her career on Oct. 13 against Texas-Arlington. In five-plus years as the Roadrunners’ head coach, Neugebauer-Groff has tutored 13 All-SLC players and 11 all-academic honorees, including 2005 SLC Student-Athlete of the Year Meagan Daniel.
