The SMU volleyball program starts the season at home, hosting the SMU DoubleTree Invitational Friday and Saturday. The Mustangs play Bradley in their first match Friday at 12:30 p.m. in Moody Coliseum, while Stephen F. Austin and UTSA start the tournament at 10 a.m. 

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

SMU IN OPENERS
•     The Mustangs are 13-10 all-time in season-opening matches, and 16-7 in their home openers. When starting the season in Moody Coliseum, the win percentage jumps to .750 with a 6-2 record. SMU won its first home match in four of the last six seasons. 

SMU IN 2019
•     The Mustangs return four of six starters and the libero from last season. Montana Watts became just the second player in program history with at least 600 digs in multiple seasons. Meryn Kennedy led the team with 111 blocks, and setters Lily Heim and Kendall Patterson combined for 12.27 assists per set.

SMU AGAINST BRADLEY
•     SMU is facing Bradley for the first time in program history. SMU is 4-1 against teams from Illinois. The last match versus a team from Illinois was a 3-0 win against Eastern Illinois on Sept. 12, 2008.

SCOUTING BRADLEY
•     The Braves went 24-9 last season, advancing to the second round of the NIVC at Iowa State. Hannah Thompson is the top returning attacker with 383 kills during her freshman season. Erica Haslag led the team with 543 kills as a senior. Bradley hit .204 as a team, while holding opponents to a .166 attack percentage. 

SMU AGAINST UTSA
•     13th Meeting: The Mustangs are 8-4 against the Roadrunners, including a 4-1 record at home. SMU won the last meeting, a 3-1, neutral-site victory in San Marcos, Texas, on Sept. 8, 2017. SMU won four of the last six meeting in the series. The first match took place on Aug. 30, 1997, with SMU winning 3-0 in Lubbock, Texas. 

SCOUTING UTSA
•     The Roadrunners went 19-8 last season, but lost three starters and the libero from the 2018 roster. The three returning starters were three of the top four attackers last season, including Kirby Smith, who led the team with 3.00 kills per set, and Brianna McCulloch, who led the team with 286 kills.

SMU AGAINST SFA
•     13th Meeting: The Mustangs are just 4-8 all-time against Stephen F. Austin, but won the last match in the series, 3-0, on Aug. 28, 2010, in Waco, Texas. 

SCOUTING SFA
•     The Ladyjacks went 32-3 last season, including a stretch of 29 straight wins to claim the Southland Conference regular-season and tournament championships. The streak ended with a loss at Texas in the NCAA Tournament. However, the 2019 roster features just two returning starters, and SFA has 11 newcomers.