SMU DOUBLETREE INVITATIONAL
SMU (0-0, 0-0 AAC) vs. Pacific (0-0, 0-0 WCC)
Dallas, Texas | Moody Coliseum
Friday, August 27, 2021 – 12:30 p.m.
TV: ESPN+
Live Stats
 
SMU (0-0, 0-0 AAC) vs. SFA (0-0, 0-0 WAC)
Dallas, Texas | Moody Coliseum
Friday, August 27, 2021 – 7:30 p.m.
TV: ESPN+
Live Stats
 
SMU (0-0, 0-0 AAC) vs. North Carolina (0-0, 0-0 ACC)
Dallas, Texas | Moody Coliseum
Saturday, August 28, 2021 – 2:00 p.m.
TV: ESPN+
Live Stats
SMU NOTES (PDF)
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
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PREVIEW
SMU opens the 2021 season with the SMU DoubleTree Invitational Friday, August 27 and Saturday, August 28 at Moody Coliseum. The Mustangs will face Pacific and Stephen F. Austin on Friday followed by a clash with North Carolina on Saturday. All SMU matches will be streamed on ESPN+. SMU is temporarily requiring masks in indoor spaces on campus.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, August 27th
10:00 AM North Carolina Vs SFA
12:30 PM Pacific Vs SMU
5:00 PM North Carolina Vs Pacific
7:30 PM SFA Vs SMU

Saturday, August 28th
11:00 AM SFA Vs Pacific
2:00 PM North Carolina Vs SMU

SMU NOTES
Jadyn Bauss returns to the lineup after securing All-Conference Second Team last year. Bauss notched 11 double-doubles in just 14 matches to lead the Mustangs in the 2020 season. The Mustangs return all but two players from a season ago and add three freshman and a grad transfer (Alison French) from UNLV. The Mustangs were picked to finish third in the AAC Preseason Coaches' Poll. With no conference tournament in 2021, the league champion will be the program who finishes with the best regular season record against other AAC teams.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Pacific (0-0)
This is the first meeting between the Mustangs and the Tigers.
SFA (4-9)
The first meeting between these two squads occurred on September 21, 1996 as SFA took a 3-1 victory. In the last meeting on August 31, 2019, the Ladyjacks won 3-2 in Moody Coliseum.
North Carolina (0-1)
SMU is 0-1 versus North Carolina. The first and only meeting took place at the TCU Invitational on September 17, 2016. The Tar Heels took that match 3-0.

A LOOK AT THE OPPONENTS
Pacific
The Tigers finished with a 2-7 record in the 2020 season as a member of the West Coast Conference. Pacific finished 2019 with a four-match win streak and two All-West Coast Conference honors. Head Coach Greg Gibbons enters his 12th season at the helm.

SFA
In its first preseason coaches' poll as a member of the Western Athletic Conference, the Ladyjack volleyball program was chosen as the winner of the Southwest Division. Two Ladyjacks were named Preseason All WAC. Taya Mitchell and Leah Powell were both named to the Preseason team after having earned All-Conference honors at the end of last season, SFA's final in the Southland. SFA finished 23-6, but fell to Texas A&M Corpus Christi in the Southland Conference Championship match.

North Carolina
UNC makes its first trip to Moody Coliseum. North Carolina swept High Point, who made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last spring, in an exhibition match on August 20. The Tar Heels finished 10-8 a season ago including a 9-7 mark in ACC play. Aziah Buckner and Kaya Merkler represented North Carolina in the ACC's postseason honors as the pair was named to the ACC-All Freshman team in 2020. Head Coach Joe Sagula has accumulated a solid record at UNC: 614-355 (.634) in 30 seasons.

BOLD: Big Opportunities Live in Dallas
As part of its goal of Shaping Champions and preparing students for life, SMU Athletics proudly announces the addition of its BOLD (Big Opportunities Live in Dallas) Program to its suite of student-athlete development tools, with the goal of helping student-athletes navigate and capitalize on new Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) legislation. BOLD will provide SMU student-athletes with the means to navigate the evolving NIL landscape. The BOLD program will incorporate INFLCR, a comprehensive NIL education and compliance solution, and campus resources from the Cox School of Business, the Dedman School of Law, and the Meadows School of the Arts.

ANOTHER MILESTONE
With the victory over Tulane on March 5, 2021, Head Coach Lisa Seifert moved up the rankings and is now second all-time - across all sports - in wins at SMU.
1. Rhonda Rompola (Women's Basketball) 439
2 Lisa Seifert (Volleyball) 423
3. Carl Neufeld (Men's Tennis) 420

26TH SEASON
SMU is in its 26th season of NCAA competition. The SMU volleyball program was started in 1995 by current head coach Lisa Seifert. The Mustangs went 7-24 in 1996, its inaugural season. In 1999, SMU celebrated its first winning season with a 20-13 record. The Mustangs have played in the Western Athletic Conference, Conference USA and the American Athletic Conference.
Of the 11 current members, SMU is the only program without a losing record in league matches during at least one season. The Mustangs and UCF are the only two programs with multiple conference titles. (SMU-2015, 2016; UCF-2014, 2018, 2019).

FILLING THE TROPHY CASE
Over the past seven seasons, SMU has added four team trophies to the case, along with seven individual top league awards. SMU won The American championship in 2015 and 2016, and the west division crown in 2019. Avery Acker was named Setter of the Year in 2013. She added Player of the Year and another Setter of the Year in 2015. Kendall Patterson was Freshman of the Year in 2016, when Morgan Heise earned her second Libero of the Year honor. Lily Heim was named Setter of the Year in 2019.

UP NEXT
SMU will partake in the Rice Invite September 3-4. The Mustangs will face Oregon at 2 p.m. on Friday and the host school Saturday at 2 p.m.