MAGNOLIA, Ark. – Mulerider Volleyball continues their final stretch as they seek a bounce back victory after dropping their second match against Arkansas Tech this season to transition their record to 13-11 while being 7-5 in the Great American Conference. The final four games of the 2023 regular season begin with the second meeting between SAU and Arkansas-Monticello on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. followed up by one last trip to Arkadelphia to face-off against Ouachita Baptist on Thursday at 6:00 p.m.
 
Southern Arkansas is coming off a hard-fought road loss to Arkansas Tech after starting the match with a two-set lead to then be followed by three consecutive sets won by the Golden Suns.
 
WHO TO LOOK FOR
Kayte Delong broke the 200 kill mark as she recorded her 201^st against ATU and still leads the Muleriders in the statistic. Jada Hudson sits behind her with 167 kills in the campaign. The assist-leader remains Morgan Schuster as her 39-assist match on Thursday pushed her 488 (7^th GAC) on the year. Schuster also ranks sixth in the conference for service aces with 33. Lauryn Moultrie leads SAU with 86 total blocks this season which ranks second in the league. Mary Insalaco and Alessia Sonzini both lead the Muleriders in total digs as Insalaco leads with 256 and Sonzini behind with 243.
 
Arkansas-Monticello (0-24 | 0-12 GAC)
Arkansas-Monticello is still searching for its first victory of the 2023 season. The Cotton Blossoms have only been victors in four sets this season, including one against Southern Arkansas while the Muleriders were on the road at Monticello.
 
In the last matchup between these two programs, SAU took home its 18^th victory over UAM and now looks to tie the overall series.
 
In terms of team statistics, the Cotton Blossoms ranked 12^th in the conference in all but blocks per set where they rank 11^th with 1.36 blocks/set.
 
Jasmine Welton leads the offensive effort for UAM as she has accounted for 153 kill this season. Orchestrating that effort has been Jordan Wehr with 208 assits as well as Bruna Silva with 190. Wehr leads the team in service aces with 16 with Zoe Finkler just behind with 15. Stasha Adams ranks 12^th in the league with 317 digs this season as well as 8^th in the GAC with 4.17 digs/set. Abrielle Jordan leads the team in total blocks with 48 to her credit.
 
Ouachita Baptist (14-13 | 6-6 GAC)
Ouachita Baptist has been winners of three consecutive matches with victories coming over Oklahoma Baptist, Southern Nazarene, and Arkansas-Monticello while only giving up one set win to OBU.
 
The last matchup between the two squads entailed a Mulerider sweeping victory for the first time since 2010. Southern Arkansas leads the series 40-33 and look to sweep the Tigers in a season for the first time since 2012.
 
The Tigers are ranked first in the league for service aces (177), aces per set (1.77), and hitting percentage (.232). OUA sits at second in the GAC in kills as they have recorded 1,251 this season. The group sits at third for assists with 1,109. They have also been responsible to for putting the pressure on teams with 3,436 attacks (4^th GAC).
 
Taking charge of 86% offensive orchestration has been Courtney as she ranks first the conference and 12^th in the nation in total assists with 957. Riley Braziel leads the Tigers in service aces as she has accounted for 39 in 2023 (2^nd GAC). OUA has three players all averaging above a .300 hitting percentage in Haley Fairchild (.332), Emily Adams (.306), and Leah Gardner (.300).
 
Southern Arkansas needs these two crucial competitions to go its way as they prepare for the intense slate coming in the next week against Harding on the road and Henderson State inside the W.T. Watson Center. For more on Mulerider Volleyball and other events, check out www.MuleriderAthletics.com or look us up @muleridersports on X, Facebook, and Instagram.