The SMU volleyball team wraps up the regular season with back-to-back matches against Tulsa, playing at Tulsa Wednesday at 2 p.m. before hosting the Golden Hurricane Friday at 2 p.m. The home contest for the Mustangs is the fifth in the last six matches.
ABOUT SMU
With a win in either match against Tulsa, the Mustangs would secure a fifth straight top-two finish in the American Athletic Conference, including conference championships in 2015 and 2016. With a 14-4 record in league action, SMU is one match in front of third-place Temple, while No. 20 Wichita State has clinched the league title. The Mustangs are 20-9 overall, winning at least 20 matches for the fifth consecutive season and the eighth time in program history.
Lauren Mills leads the team and is eighth in the conference with 3.43 kills per set. The senior also ranks 13th in the league with 3.39 digs per set, and Mills is second in The American with 18 double-doubles this season.
Brittany Adams is scoring 3.16 kills per set, and
Katie Hegarty is averaging 3.00, despite missing multiple stints due to injury.
Kendall Patterson is third with 10.17 assists per set, guiding SMU to 13.43 kills per set, third in the conference.
Defensively, SMU is second in the American, holding opponents to a .187 attack percentage. The Mustangs lead the league with 17.69 digs per set.
Montana Watts accounts for 4.89 digs per set, ranking fifth. The Mustangs are second in blocks (2.35 per set) with three players ranking in the top 15, including freshman
Lexi Nordmann, who is second in the conference with 1.20 blocks per set.
SCOUTING TULSA
The Golden Hurricane is 14-16 overall and 8-10 in The American after losing the last three matches, all at home. Emily Thorson leads the team with 4.13 kills per set, but Tulsa is averaging 12.28 kills as a team with a .182 attack percentage. Taylor Horsfall leads the conference with 6.04 digs per set, and Tulsa is second in the conference, averaging 17.48 digs as a team.
SERIES HISTORY
SMU is 24-17 all-time against Tulsa, with a 5-1 record against the Golden Hurricane in American Athletic Conference matches. The Mustangs are just 11-10 in Tulsa with a 13-7 record at home against Tulsa. SMU won the first match in the series, 3-1, on Oct. 26, 1996, winning the first five contests in the series. The Mustangs have won five straight after losing four consecutive when the two teams were in Conference USA.
BACK-TO-BACK CHAMPS
SMU successfully defended its American Athletic Conference championship, going 18-2 against league opponents. After going 17-3 in 2015 for the program's first title, the Mustangs won 11 of their first 12 conference matches in 2016 and never dropped below at least tied for first all season. For the second straight season, SMU clinched sole possession of the championship with a win at Connecticut (3-1), this time in the last match of the regular season.
AMERICAN SUCCESS
SMU is 70-14 in American Athletic Conference matches since the league's inception four seasons ago. The Mustangs finished runner-up behind champions Louisville and UCF in the first two years before winning back-to-back championships. SMU players have earned 19 all-conference awards, one conference Player of the Year award, one Freshman of the Year award and five yearly awards for position.
Lisa Seifert was also named conference Coach of the Year in 2015. With 18 conference wins in 2016, SMU matched the conference record for league wins.
NCAA VICTORY
The Mustangs advanced to the NCAA Tournament, playing in the first round at Texas for the second straight year. SMU swept Texas A&M (25-23, 25-23, 25-18) for its first NCAA victory in the program's first match against the Aggies.
Katie Hegarty scored a match-high 14 kills, and
Kendall Patterson posted her 12th double-double of the season with 36 assists and 10 digs. The SMU defense held Texas A&M to a .177 attack percentage, recording 10 blocks and 51 digs. SMU was eliminated in the second round by national runner-up No. 4 Texas.
POSTSEASON AWARDS
Five Mustangs earned All-American Athletic Conference honors, with
Katie Hegarty, Janelle Giordano and Morgan Heise named to the first team, while
Kendall Patterson and Kristen Stehling earned second-team accolades. Heise earned her third straight conference Libero of the Year award and a selection on the AVCA All-America Honorable Mention list for the second straight season. Hegarty, Heise and Giordano also earned selections to the AVCA All-Region team. Patterson was tabbed as The American's Freshman of the Year.
MOODY MAGIC
The Mustangs are 188-102 all-time in home matches and 176-100 in matches played at Moody Coliseum. Since the renovation to Moody Coliseum in 2014, SMU is 42-11 in home matches over four seasons, including a program-best 15-1 record in Moody in 2014. SMU clinched what at the time was at least a share of its first conference championship with a 3-1 win against Houston in front of its home fans on Nov. 15, 2015. SMU won 12 straight home matches during the 2015 season.
20-WIN SEASONS
SMU has won at least 20 matches in a season eight times, including each of the last five seasons. The Mustangs won a program-best 27 matches in 2015.
YEAR RECORD
1999 20-13
2003 23-7
2010 25-6
2013 22-9
2014 26-6
2015 27-6
2016 26-8
2017 20-9
TEAM CAPTAINS
Katie Hegarty and
Kendall Patterson were selected as team captains for the 2017 season. Team captains are elected by the players. Both players earned all-conference accolades in 2016, and led the team in their respective stat category (kills and assists).
KATIE HEGARTY
Katie Hegarty averages 3.00 kills per set, and is scoring 2.84 per set against conference opponents She missed two weeks of conference matches, her second stint of missed time due to injury. Hegarty returned to score 14 kills vs Cincinnati.
KENDALL PATTERSON
Kendall Patterson led the American Athletic Conference with 1,325 assists, averaging 10.95 per set, during her first season on the Hilltop, earning the league's Freshman of the Year Award. As a sophomore, Patterson is third in the conference with 10.17 assists per set. She has 14 double-doubles, including 10 in conference matches. Against league opponents this season, Patterson is fourth with 10.74 assists per set, and recorded a season-high 59 assists at East Carolina.
LAUREN MILLS
Lauren Mills leads the team and ranks eighth in the conference with 3.43 kills per set this season. The senior scored a career-high 27 kills in a 3-1 win against UTSA, matching the SMU single-match record for a four-set match. Her 27 kills is tied for fifth all-time in a match at SMU, and the record is 33, set by Rachel Giubilato on Oct. 3, 2006 against Stephen F. Austin. Mills has 18 double-doubles this season, and is averaging 3.39 digs per set, 13th in the league. She earned her second conference Offensive Player of the Week award of the season after leading The American with 34 kills in the first two league matches, recording double-doubles against Tulane and Houston. In conference play, Mills is scoring 3.36 kills per set.
BRITTANY ADAMS
Brittany Adams is second on the team with 319 kills, ranking ninth in the conference with 3.16 per set. She earned all-tournament honors at Texas State, matching her then-career high with 18 kills against Texas State. She also had 17 digs in one of two double-doubles at the tournament. Adams has 10 double-doubles this season, and has scored at least 10 kills 17 times, including 11 conference matches. She recorded a new career high with 23 kills at Houston and matched her career high with 21 digs against the Cougars.
RECORD-SETTING DAY
SMU set a conference and program record with 23.0 total blocks in a five-set win at Cincinnati. Freshman
Meryn Kennedy led the defense with 12 blocks (1 BS, 11 BA), and junior
Kelly Brunstein posted 10 (5 BS, 5 BA), both career highs. Kennedy is tied for sixth in a match at SMU with the fourth highest block total recorded by a Mustang, while Bruntein's five solo blocks is tied for second. She is just the third Mustang with five solo blocks in a match.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Montana Watts was named American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 6. Watts recorded a career-high 38 digs in a five-set win at Houston Friday night, tied for third all-time in a match at SMU and just four shy of Sydney Stewart's record of 42. She then had 13 digs in a sweep at Tulane, holding the Green Wave to a .087 attack percentage. After averaging 6.38 digs per set on the weekend, Watts climbed to fourth in the conference, averaging 5.15 digs against league opponents.
SMU PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Lauren Mills Offensive Sept. 11
Lauren Mills Offensive Sept. 25
Meryn Kennedy Defensive Oct. 2
Brittany Adams Offensive Oct. 30
Montana Watts Defensive Nov. 6
ABOVE THE NET
SMU is second in The American with 2.35 blocks per set. Three players rank in the top 15 in the league, led by freshman
Lexi Nordmann, who is second with 1.20 per set.
Meryn Kennedy is ninth, averaging 1.03, and
Kelly Brunstein, who has played middle blocker and right-side hitter this season, ranks 14th in the league with 0.92 per set. SMU has blocked at least 10 attacks nine times this season, including a three-set match at Arkansas State.
LITTLE DIG TOWN
The Mustangs lead the conference and rank 18th in the NCAA with 17.69 digs per set.
Montana Watts is fifth in the league with 4.89 digs per set, and
Lauren Mills is 13th with 3.39 digs per set. SMU eclipsed 90 in a match three times this season, with a season-high 112 in a five-set win at Houston. In 2015, SMU led the league with 17.39 digs per set.
