SMU will face Texas Tech in the first round Thursday in San Marcos, Texas, at 4 p.m. The winner will advance to play the winner between Texas State and Rice on Friday. The Red Raiders went 15-14 overall with a 4-12 record in the Big 12.
The Mustangs went 21-10 overall, winning 20 matches for the fifth consecutive season, and finished tied for second in the American Athletic Conference with a 15-5 mark in league matches. SMU is playing in the postseason for the third straight year after winning back-to-back American Athletic Conference Championships to advance to the NCAA tournament in 2015 and 2016.
ABOUT SMU
Lauren Mills leads the Mustangs with 399 kills, averaging 3.38 overall and 3.28 against conference opponents, ranking eighth and seventh, respectively. With 399 digs, she ranks 13th in the conference with 3.38 digs per set, and has 19 double-doubles, including 12 in conference matches.
Brittany Adams is second on the team with 344 kills, ranking ninth in The American at 3.19 per set.
The duo of outside hitters was joined on the all-conference team by setter
Kendall Patterson and right-side hitter
Katie Hegarty. Hegarty earned her second straight first-team selection after averaging 3.00 kills per set for the season. She played in just 63 sets, missing extensive time due to multiple injuries. Patterson ranks third in the league with 10.12 assists per set while guiding SMU to 13.37 kills per set, third in the league, and a .202 attack percentage.
Defensively, the Mustangs are third in the conference, holding opponents to a .186 attack percentage. SMU leads the league with 17.97 digs per set, and ranks third with 2.35 blocks per set.
SCOUTING TEXAS TECH
Texas Tech is 15-14 overall, with seven of the losses coming against teams ranked in the top 25 at the time. Emily Hill leads the team with 348 kills, averaging 3.22 per set, and Chandler Atwood has 305 kills, averaging 2.82 per set. As a team, the Red Raiders are averaging 13.12 kills per set with a .206 attack percentage. Defensively, Texas Tech averages 15.32 digs and 1.92 blocks.
SERIES HISTORY
SMU is 2-6 all-time against Texas Tech, but the Mustangs won the last two meetings, a road contest in 2007 and a 3-0 win in Dallas in 2010. Texas Tech won a pair of neutral-site matches in 1996 to start the series, sweeping the first six matches before SMU's first win, 3-1, in 2007.
UP NEXT
With a win, the Mustangs would advance to play the winner between host Texas State and Rice in the second round Friday at 6:30 p.m. in San Marcos. SMU defeated Texas State, 3-2, on the road, while Rice defeated the Mustangs, 3-1, in the second match of the season. Texas State finished the year 24-9, while the Owls went 21-8.
SERIES HISTORIES
SMU is 4-2 all-time against Texas State, winning the last two matches, including a 3-2 victory this season. The Mustangs are 10-24 all-time against Rice. The 3-1 loss in Dallas this season was the first match in the series since 2012 as SMU joined The American. This would be the first neutral-site match between SMU and Rice, who spent 17 seasons in the same conference.
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 79-19 in American Athletic Conference matches since the league's inception five 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 23 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
In 2016, SMU 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
Lauren Mills and
Katie Hegarty named to the first team, while
Kendall Patterson and
Brittany Adams earned second-team accolades. For Hegarty and Patterson, this is the second all-conference award of their careers.
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. 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 10.12 assists per set. She has 14 double-doubles, including 10 in conference matches.
LAUREN MILLS
Lauren Mills leads the team and ranks eighth in the conference with 3.38 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 19 double-doubles this season, and is averaging 3.38 digs per set, 13th in the league. With 399 kills and 399 digs, Mills could become the first SMU player since Dana Powell in 2010 to finish with 400 kills and 400 digs in a season.
BRITTANY ADAMS
Brittany Adams is second on the team with 344 kills, ranking ninth in the conference with 3.19 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 13 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.
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.
ABOUT THE NIVC
The NIVC is in its first year of existence following a nearly 22-year hiatus. It was previously held for seven seasons from 1989-1995 as a 20-team event. All matches, including the semifinals and championship, are hosted by participating schools. SMU is one of three AAC teams in the field of 32.
