MAGNOLIA, Ark. – Behind a high-powered offensive attack that saw the club hit .409; their highest attack percentage of the season, the Southern Arkansas Lady Mulerider Volleyball team concluded non-conference portion of the 2016 campaign with a straight sets victory (25-18,25-21,25-15) over NCAA Division I-Grambling State inside the W.T. Watson Center on Tuesday night.
 
Records
 
Southern Arkansas (8-15)
Grambling State (5-10)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 

• Grambling State opened the first set on a 4-1 run, before Southern Arkansas used their own 4-1 run moments later to take a 10-8 lead. SAU increased their advantage to 15-9 and would eventually lead 23-16, but not before GSU manufactured a 5-1 run down 17-11 to make the opening frame close down the stretch.
• The Lady Tigers led 8-4 in set two and owned a late 17-15 lead that would not hold as Southern Arkansas closed the frame on a 10-4 run highlighted by five kills from junior Alli O'Banion.
• Southern Arkansas would not trail in the third set as Grambling State induced back and forth action that brought the Lady Tigers to within two at 10-8, before the Lady Muleriders jumped out 22-11 on their way to a match sweep.
• GSU attacked at .233 (33-13-86); their highest output against the Lady Muleriders in the last three meetings.
• SAU's season-high .409 attack percentage (48-12-88) came via an explosive third set as the Lady Muleriders hit .615 (17-1-26), while registering 48 total kills; the most for Southern Arkansas in a three-set match this season.
• The 12 Southern Arkansas attack errors tied for the second-fewest by the club this season.

 
FOR SOUTHERN ARKANSAS
 

• O'Banion led eight Lady Muleriders in kills with a game-high dozen. It was the 11^th match this season in which O'Banion has recorded ten or more kills and the fifth match of the last six that has resulted in the opposite hitter registering an attack percentage greater than .390.
• Senior Serena LeDuff recorded her 11^th double-digit kill match with 11 and the 12^th game this season with ten or more points. She finished with an attack percentage of .474 after hammering home some the night's most violent attacks. Junior Brittany Lampkin added eight kills on a career-high .667 (8-0-12) attack clip.
• Southern Arkansas claimed seven service aces led by freshman Katy Cooper's four. Junior Savannah Pillow added a pair and senior Brittney Johnson collected one, while leading the Lady Muleriders with a game-high eight digs. Hannah Rice added seven digs.
• Cooper recorded her seventh match with 40 or more assists as she finished Tuesday night with 42; the most assists by an SAU setter in a three set match this season. She also chipped in with six digs and a pair of kills.

 
FOR THE OPPOSITION
 

• The Lady Tiger duo of Chasity Nicks and Kevreion Ward recorded 11 kills each, while Javienna Jones added six kills. Ward also chipped in with six digs.
• L'Muriell Thrower led GSU with three aces, while collecting eight assists and six digs.
• Diemend Richardson paced the Lady Tiger offense with 11 assists.
• Alleeyah Hensley recorded eight digs to lead Grambling State.

 
OF NOTE
 

• SAU moves to 5-2 inside the W.T. Watson Center this season, while six of their eight wins have come via three-sets.
• The Lady Muleriders concluded non-conference play with Tuesday night's win and improved to 3-0 in 2016 against non-NCAA Division II opponents.
• SAU improves to 3-0 against the Division I Lady Tigers since the former became a charter member of the Great American Conference in 2011.
• Southern Arkansas registered their highest attack percentage of the season with an output of .409. The last time SAU attacked better than Tuesday evening's clip was on November 7, 2014 in a 3-0 win against NAIA-Texas College (.444). The last time the Lady Muleriders attacked better than .409 against an NCAA opponent was on November 5, 2010 in a straight sets victory over Miles College in which SAU hit .438.
• O'Banion's swing clip of .529 (12-3-17) was the second-highest in her career when registering 15 or more attempts. As a freshman in 2014, the Dos Palos, California, native hit .733 (12-1-15) in a three-set win over Texas A&M-International. She is currently hitting .404 in seven games played in the month of October.

 
UP NEXT
 

• Southern Arkansas remains at home for five of their final seven games beginning with a Great American Conference tilt against East Central on Friday, October 21. First-serve is set for 7 p.m. The Tigers are currently one game up on the Lady Muleriders in league play and are holding the eighth and final GAC Tournament spot.
• Live stats for the contest can be found here: http://www.sidearmstats.com/saumag/wvball/.
• Live video is also available and can be found here: http://livestream.com/accounts/10140781.
• Be sure to visit muleriderathletics.com for continuing coverage of Lady Mulerider Volleyball including pre- and post-game updates, weekly notes, and the coach's show with Head Coach Britney Davis.