SAN ANTONIO — On the verge of capturing its second consecutive Conference USA Regular Season Championship, the UTSA volleyball team will remain in the Lone Star State this weekend to face North Texas and Rice to conclude the regular season. Thursday's match with the Mean Green is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the Roadrunners will square off with the Owls at 1 p.m. two days later.
The Roadrunners (18-7, 14-0 C-USA) sit in the driver’s seat of the league standings by virtue of their perfect C-USA record and their current streak of 15 consecutive victories is one shy of the program record of 16 set in 1999 when they finished 22-7.
UTSA ranks in the top five in most major statistical categories in Conference USA, as they hold the third-best hitting percentage with a .240 clip. The Roadrunners will be up against the top-hitting team (conference only matches) in Rice, while North Texas sits right behind UTSA in fourth.
This weekend will mark the second meeting of the fall for the teams.
The Birds swept North Texas on Sept. 28 before battling back from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Rice on Oct. 19. Both victories took place at the Convocation Center.
The Mean Green (19-9, 9-5 C-USA) currently are riding a seven-match winning streak and is coming off last Sunday's sweep of TCU in non-conference action. Carnae Dillard, who leads the team with 540 kills and 5.40 kills per set, was named the AVCA/Sports Imports National Player of the Week after leading the team to a pair of victories last weekend.
Meanwhile, Rice (21-7, 11-3 C-USA) will host Marshall on Thursday before welcoming the Roadrunners for its final match of the season on Saturday. The Owls, who have won four of their last five outings, own a 10-3 mark at home this season. Jillian Humphrey ranks second in C-USA with a .377 hitting percentage on the strength of 276 kills. Humphrey ranks third in Rice history in block assists and total blocks, fourth in block solos, fifth in hitting percentage and 13th in kills.
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