MAGNOLIA, Ark. - Mulerider Volleyball is looking to defend their perfect 2-0 home record this week as they're facing the Cotton Blossoms from Arkansas-Monticello in the W.T. Watson Athletic Center on Tuesday (Oct. 1), as well as getting on the road to Searcy, Arkansas for a matchup against Harding on Thursday (Oct. 3).
 
Southern Arkansas is preparing to bounce back from their first Great American Conference loss against Arkansas Tech last week where the Golden Suns took down the Muleriders in three sets. Last game's team leaders include Jada Hudson leading the offense with 10 kills as well as 2 block assists, setter Macie Shaver recorded the most assists with 14, Brinklee Dauenhauer did her part by recording 13 digs, and Isla Olivas took charge at the net as she tallied 3 block assists.
 
Sadie Kabisch is currently ranked 6th nationally in digs per set as she has delivered a total of 225 digs and 5.92 digs per set. Olivas is leading the conference as well as being ranked 43rd in the nation in blocks per set with 1.21.
 
Arkansas Monticello (4-8 | 0-2 GAC)
The Cotton Blossoms are coming off a 0-2 week with a 2-3 loss to Arkansas Tech at home and a 1-3 loss to Ouachita Baptist in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Monticello's last win came on September 14 versus Southwest Baptist (22-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-23) and has since then lost five matches in a row, two of them being conference matchups.
 
Right-side hitter Natalie White is currently leading the team in overall kills with a total of 147, as well as kills per set with 3.34. Junior setter Mia Smalls has recorded the most assists on the team so far in the season with a total of 297. Smalls is also leading the group with the most service aces with a total count of 19 this season. The Cotton Blossom's defense is being led by setter Jordan Wehr as she has produced a total of 137 digs. Senior Abrielle Jordan is leading the team in blocks as she has delivered seven solo blocks and 31 assisted blocks. Jordan also has the second-best hitting percentage in the conference with a percentage of .346.
 
The last time the Muleriders and Cotton Blossoms competed against each other, the Muleriders claimed a 3-0 victory (25-14, 25-16, 25-10) inside of the W.T. Watson Athletic Center. The first serve against Monticello is set for 6 p.m. at home in Magnolia.
 
Harding (9-5 | 2-0 GAC)
The Bisons are leading the conference in digs with 17.42 per set (16th nationally), assists with 12.94 per set (6th nationally), and kills with 13.94 per set (8th nationally), as well as having the second-best hitting percentage in the conference with a .231. Individually, Harding's Olivia Wiedower is leading the conference in assists with 10.54 assists per set, and Ashley Lamkin has the second-most blocks per set behind SAU's Olivas with 1.16.
 
Leading the offense for the Bisons is 5th year senior Skyler McKinnon with a total of 164 kills and 3.28 kills per set. McKinnon is ranked 56th in the nation for her total amount of kills so far in the 2024 campaign. As expected, Wiedower is leading the team in the amount of assists as she has delivered 548 assists to help the team succeed. The Bisons' defense is being led by 5th year senior Tatum Fouche as she has helped the team stay consistent in the rallies by recording 254 total digs. Lamkin is showing a steady game at the net as she has recorded a total of 17 solo blocks and 40 block assists.
 
Harding has posted a 2-0 conference record with wins from their two previous games over Ouachita Baptist and Henderson State and is running on a winning streak of four matches. The Bisons are facing the Golden Suns from Arkansas Tech on Tuesday (Oct. 1) in Russellville, Ark.
The last time the Muleriders and the Bisons saw each other was in Searcy, Arkansas in November last year where the Bisons claimed the victory in three straight sets.
The first serve against the Bisons is set for 6 p.m. on Thursday (Oct. 3) on the road in Searcy, Arkansas.