SMU (14-6; 8-1 AAC) vs. Rice (13-5; 7-1 AAC)
Friday, Oct. 20 I 7 PM I Watch I Live Stats
Saturday, Oct. 21 I 3 PM I Watch I Live Stats
Moody Coliseum- Dallas, Texas
Match Notes (PDF)
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SETTING THE SCENE
-SMU continues American Athletic Conference play with back-to-back matches versus Rice in Moody Coliseum. 
-SMU takes on the Owls at 7 p.m. on Friday and 3 p.m. Saturday. 
-SMU (8-1) sits at first in the AAC with Rice (7-1) tied for second place. 
-Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+, with live stats accessible on SMUMustangs.com.

A LOOK AT THE OPPONENT
Rice
Rice is 13-5 overall and 7-1 in AAC play. The Owls finished their non-conference slate with a 6-4 record. Rice won its first seven conference matches before falling to FAU in its most recent outing on Oct. 13. Rice is 54th in the latest edition of the NCAA RPI, and was receiving votes in the AVCA poll on Oct. 9.

ALL-TIME SERIES
•   Rice (12-25)
    This weekend will be the 38th and 39th meetings between the Mustangs and the Owls. Rice leads the all-time series 25-12. SMU has won two out of the last three meetings. The Mustangs defeated Rice twice in the 2020-21 season. Most recently,     Rice defeated SMU in four sets on Sept. 3, 2021 in Houston. 

UP TO THIS POINT 
-SMU is 14-6 overall and 8-1 in conference play.
-SMU started AAC play with a dominating sweep over Memphis. SMU then defeated UTSA in back-to-back matches.  SMU picked up a 3-1 victory before finishing off the weekend with a sweep of the Roadrunners. 
-SMU split its matches against Wichita State. The Mustangs swept the Shockers before falling in four sets on Sunday.  
-SMU picked up back-to-back road victories against Charlotte and FAU. SMU swept the 49ers on Oct. 6 before taking down the Owls in four sets on Oct. 8. 
-SMU opened its 2023 campaign at the Ameritas Players Challenge hosted by the University of Nebraska. SMU picked up a dominating sweep over Lipscomb to start off the season. SMU fell in a hard-fought match to Utah State 3-1, and was swept by Nebraska in the tournament finale. 
-Next, SMU swept Florida State to kick off the Seminole Invitational. SMU dropped a hard-fought contest against Auburn 3-1 the next day.
-SMU defeated No. 14 Baylor 3-2 in its home opener. The victory marked the Mustangs' highest-ranked victory in program history. 
-From there, SMU dropped back-to-back matches at the Stacey Clark Classic hosted by the University of Purdue. The Mustangs fell to the then-20th-ranked Boilermakers and then-No. 21 Houston 3-1, respectively. 
-SMU closed out its non-conference slate with three straight wins at the DoubleTree Invitational. The Mustangs beat Texas Tech in five sets to open the tournament. The Mustangs took down Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 3-1 the next day before closing out their non-conference slate with a sweep of LSU. 

LAST TIME OUT 
SMU enters the weekend after back-to-back dominating sweeps of Tulsa. The Mustangs outhit the Golden Hurricane .342-.194 on Friday and two different Mustangs tallied 15 plus kills, while two notched 10 plus digs. On Saturday, the Mustangs turned in a dominant defensive performance, holding Tulsa to .032 hitting on the day and tying its season-high in blocks with 13.

AAC ACCOLADES
Sept. 11
Emma Clothier- Weekly Honor Roll
Sept. 18
Jamison Wheeler- Weekly Honor Roll
Sept. 25
Emma Clothier- Offensive Player of the Week
Oct. 9
Jamison Wheeler- Offensive Player of the Week
Sina Uluave- Defensive Player of the Week
Oct. 16
Jamison Wheeler- Offensive Player of the Week
Alex Glover- Defensive Player of the Week

AAC'S BEST
-SMU junior outside hitter Jamison Wheeler and graduate middle blocker Alex Glover were named AAC Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week on Oct. 16. 
-Preseason AAC Player of the Year selection Wheeler earns the honor for the second consecutive week after putting together another impressive weekend in back-to-back sweeps of Tulsa. -Wheeler posted her fourth double-double of the season with 16 kills on .308 hitting and 12 digs on Friday. A day later, she led the Mustangs in kills with 15 on .371 hitting and added seven digs.
-Glover finished off the weekend with a dominant performance on Saturday. The graduate middle blocker turned in a season-high 10 blocks, marking the third time this season she's turned in five or more blocks in a match. Glover added four kills and two digs. She recorded six kills on eight swings while adding a team-high four blocks on Friday. Glover tallied 2.33 blocks per set over the Mustangs' pair of weekend sweeps.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION 
-Graduate middle blocker Emma Clothier was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I National Player of the Week, the organization announced on Sept. 26. Clothier was the first Mustang to receive National Player of the Week honors in program history. She earned the honor after starting league play hitting .800 with 12 kills in SMU's sweep over Memphis. Clothier tallied 17 kills on .576 hitting, and 13 kills on .500 hitting in back-to-back matches at UTSA.

CONSISTENT CLOTHIER 
-Emma Clothier has been consistently efficient for the Mustangs. 
-Clothier ranks 29th in the country and second in the AAC with a .396 hitting percentage. 
-Clothier was named the AAC and National Player of the Week after starting league play hitting .800 with 12 kills in SMU's sweep over Memphis. Clothier tallied 17 kills on .576 hitting, and 13 kills on .500 hitting in back-to-back matches at UTSA. 
-Clothier has tallied at least eight kills on .300 or better hitting in 15 out of 20 matches this season.
-Clothier has tallied at least 12 kills on .500 or better hitting six times this season. 
-Clothier has posted 11 or more kills on .400 or better hitting three times this season. 
-Clothier has tallied five plus blocks six times this season. 
-Clothier was named to the All-Tournament Teams at the Seminole Invitational and the SMU DoubleTree Invitational. 
-At the DoubleTree Invitational, Clothier recorded 13 kills on .545 hitting against Texas Tech while adding 11 kills on .429 hitting against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and finished the weekend with eight kills on .333 hitting against LSU. 

BREAK OUT YEAR FROM PERDUE
-Perdue enters the weekend after turning in back-to-back double-digit kill performances in SMU's sweeps of Tulsa. She tallied 15 kills on .351 hitting on Friday, and added 10 kills while posting a career-high five blocks a day later. 
-Perdue is second on the team in kills with 211. 
-Perdue has a team-high five double-doubles this season: vs. Auburn (15 kills, 12 digs), vs. Baylor (16 kills, 13 digs), vs. Houston (14 kills, 13 digs), vs. Wichita State (14 kills, 11 digs), at Florida Atlantic (16 kills, 18 digs).
-Perdue has turned in 106 kills, 70 digs, and 21 blocks through nine matches in conference play. 
-She has tallied double-digit kills in six out of the last seven matches. 
-Perdue put together an impressive non-conference.
-Perdue recorded double-digit kills in six straight matches between 9/1-9/15. Perdue wrapped up non-conference play with 105 kills, 72 digs and three double-doubles. 
-Perdue was named to the All-Tournament Teams in back-to-back weeks to open the season at the Ameritas Players Challenge and the Stacey Clark Classic. 

SETTING UP FOR SUCCESS 
-Celia Cullen ranks first in the AAC in total and assists per set. 
-The senior setter has passed out 749 total assists, ranking 21st in the nation, while turning in 10.41 assists per set, which ranks 31st nationally.
-Cullen has led the Mustangs in assists in all 20 matches, and has four double-doubles on the season. 
-Cullen recorded a season-high 58 assists against Florida Atlantic on Oct. 8, while also eclipsing 3000 career assists. 
-Cullen earned All-Tournament Honors at the Stacey Clark Classic. 
-Cullen dished out 36 assists and recorded four digs against No. 20 Purdue. The next day, Cullen Cullen led SMU in assists (45) and digs (16) on the way to her third double-double of the year. 
-Cullen turned in back-to-back double-doubles against Auburn and Baylor. She passed out 41 assists and recorded 13 digs, against the Tigers, while turning in 54 assists and 19 digs against the Bears. 

WHEELER LIVING UP TO THE HYPE
-Preseason AAC Player of the Year selection Jamison Wheeler enters Rice matches after being tabbed as the conference's Offensive Player of the Week for the second straight time. 
-Wheeler earned her second AAC Offensive Player of the Week honor on Oct. 16 after posting her fourth double-double of the season with 16 kills on .308 hitting and 12 digs on Friday. A day later, the junior outside hitter led the Mustangs in kills with 15 on .371 hitting and added seven digs. 
-She earned the same honor on Oct. 9 after leading the Mustangs in kills with 15 in SMU's sweep of Charlotte. Wheeler turned in her second-highest hitting percentage of the season (.394) and added five digs, a block, and an assist. On Sunday, Wheeler tallied a season-high 21 kills along with eight digs, and a block.  
-Wheeler leads the Mustangs with 212 kills and has recorded four double-doubles this season. 
-Wheeler has tallied 124 kills and 81 digs throughout AAC play. 
-Wheeler was named the Most Valuable Player of the SMU DoubleTree Invitational after recording 53 kills across three matches.
-Wheeler entered conference play after three straight 15 plus kill performances to finish non-conference. 

SHIMEING STAR
-SMU transfer outside hitter Naya Shime is putting together an impressive season. 
-Shime has turned in 68 kills, 45 digs and 21  blocks in conference play. 
-The Wyoming transfer finished the non-conference gauntlet with a team-high 107 kills, 81 digs and 30 blocks.
-The senior outside hitter recorded her first double-double of the season (17 kills, 14 digs) against Utah State. 
-At the Stacey Clark Classic, Shime recorded 16 kills on .517 hitting and added three digs to start the tournament against No. 20 Purdue. On Saturday, Shime turned in her second double-double of the year with 11 kills and 14 digs versus No. 21 Houston. Her 14 digs tied her career high.

DIGGIN' IT
-Defensive specialists/liberos Sina Uluave and Brooke Frazier have helped lead the Mustang defense this season. 
-Uluave leads the Mustangs with 271 total digs on the year. Uluave has tallied double-digit digs 16 times this season and led the Mustangs in digs 11 straight matches. The graduate libero has passed out 54 assists this season. 
-She was named the AAC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9 after tallying 15 digs and adding five assists in SMU's sweep of Charlotte. The Mustangs held the 49ers to a .047 hitting percentage. On Sunday, Uluave led the Mustangs in digs with 21.
-Frazier has notched 182 total this season.

OHLINGER SHINES 
-Lauren Ohlinger led SMU's high-powered offensive attack with a season-high 17 kills on .308 hitting, including eight in the second set in the Mustangs sweep over (RV) Florida State. The Boise State transfer turned in 30 kills across two matches at the Seminole Invitational. 
-Ohlinger finished non-conference with 57 kills. 

MOODY MAGIC
-SMU is 6-1  in Moody Coliseum.
-SMU swept Wichita State on Sept. 30, before falling to the Shockers in four sets in its lone home loss this season. 
-SMU picked up a 3-0 sweep of Memphis in its conference opener. The Mustangs outhit the Tigers .396-.070. 
-SMU took down Texas Tech, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and LSU at the Double-Tree Invitational. 
-The Mustangs picked up their highest ranked victory in program history when it defeated then-No. 14 Baylor 3-2 on Sept. 6.

SEPTEMBER TO REMEMBER
-SMU finished the month of September 9-3. SMU won seven consecutive matches, and recorded five sweeps during the month. 
-SMU won the DoubleTree Invitational, and picked up a road sweep at Florida State, along with its highest ranked win in program history, a 3-2 win over then-No. 14 Baylor. 
-SMU was undefeated in AAC play in September.

IN THE POLLS/RPI
-SMU checked in 30th in the third edition of the 2023 Volleyball RPI.
-SMU received votes in the AVCA Top-25 Coaches Poll Sept. 18. 

MUSTANGS ON ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS
SMU Double Tree Invitational 
Jamison Wheeler- MVP
Emma Clothier
Sina Uluave 
Stacey Clark Classic
Celia Cullen
Ameritas Players Challenge All-Tournament Team
Natalie Perdue 
Seminole Invitational All-Tournament Team
Emma Clothier
Natalie Perdue 

NO PRESSURE, NO DIAMONDS
-The Mustangs 11-match non-conference gauntlet featured eight teams that made the NCAA Tournament in 2022, including three who won at least one tournament match and four who reached the Sweet 16. Five teams on the docket received votes or finished in the AVCA top-25 rankings. 
-Nine of SMU's non-conference foes were ranked or received votes in the AVCA Top-25 Preseason Poll. -In-conference, the Mustangs host Rice in back-to-back matches in Moody Coliseum (Oct. 20 and 21). The Owls finished last season ranked 19th in the AVCA final top-25 rankings and made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. 
-SMU faced 10 teams who finished in the top-50 in the NCAA RPI last season: Utah State (46), Nebraska (9), Florida State (30), Auburn (50), Baylor (16), Purdue (27), Kentucky (10)/Houston (18), LSU (48), Rice (15), Pepperdine (45). 

EXPERIENCE BACK ON THE HILLTOP
-Jamison Wheeler and Celia Cullen return to the lineup after securing All-Conference honors last season. SMU returns more valuable pieces, including Casey Battenhorst, Jentry Lamirand, Natalie Perdue, and Alex Glover.
-Wheeler was a first-team All-AAC selection after leading the Mustangs with 385 kills, 3.41 kills per set, 1,051 attacks and 48 service aces. The 48 aces placed her second on the all-time single-season list in school history.
-Cullen handed out 1,148 assists in her first season in Dallas, finishing in the Mustang annuals for assists in a campaign. She ranked second in the league in assists and 34th in the country, while her 10.16 assists per set placed second in the conference and 59th in Division I.
-Glover started 29 out of the Mustangs 30 matches last season and registered 139 kills, averaging 1.36 per set and held a team-high hitting percentage (.336).
-Perdue started 24 out of her 29 matches played last season and was second on the team in total points with 330.5, averaging 3.59 per set. 

PRESEASON PROWESS 
- SMU was picked to win the American Athletic Conference in the 2023 Preseason Coaches Poll.
-Junior outside hitter Jamison Wheeler was selected as the Preseason AAC Player of the Year. Graduate middle blocker Emma Clothier and senior setter Celia Cullen were also tabbed as Preseason All-Conference selections. 
-The Mustangs garnered the most points in the poll with 78 and picked up seven first-place votes, while Rice was second with 76 points and six first-place votes. 
-A 2022 First-Team All-AAC selection, Wheeler was selected as the conference's preseason player of the year after leading the Mustangs with 385 kills, averaging 3.41 kills per set last season. She totaled 1,051 attacks and 48 service aces, placing her second on the all-time single-season list in school history. Wheeler ranked second on the team with 292 digs and finished with 38 blocks.
-Cullen made the 2023 Preseason All-Conference team after earning a team-high 1148 assists, averaging 10.16 assists per game last season. The senior tallied 253 digs and recorded 41 kills and 18 service aces. Cullen was a Second-Team All-Conference selection in 2022. 
-Clothier brings her talents to the Hilltop as a graduate transfer after a decorated career at Florida State. The Carrollton, Texas native was a four-time All-ACC and two-time All-American selection. 

FRESH FACES
-The Mustangs welcome eight newcomers to the Hilltop, including six transfers and two freshmen. 
-Freshmen Hannah Whittingstall and Evan Glade  join the veteran-laden roster for 2023.
-Lauren Ohlinger (Boise State), Brooke Frazier (Texas A&M), Naya Shime (Wyoming), Anllelivis Fernandez (Miami Dade), Emma Clothier (Florida State) and Sina Uluave (Toledo) join the Mustangs as transfers. 

NO PLACE LIKE HOME 
-After leaving home to begin their collegiate career, Emma Clothier and Natalie Perdue returned home to play for SMU.
-Perdue (Dallas/Richardson HS) spent a year in Fayetteville, Ark., before choosing to play for the Mustangs. Perdue Started 24 matches, playing 92 sets in 29 matches last season and was second on the team in total points with 330.5, averaging 3.59 per set.
-Emma Clothier (Hebron HS) put together a decorated career at Florida State before coming home to play her last season for SMU. Clothier was named All-ACC second-team in 2022, and a 2021 AVCA Honorable Mention All-American. She was All-ACC First Team in 2020 and 2021 and to the 2019 All-ACC Freshman Team. 
-Jentry Lamirand (Decatur, Texas) enters her sophomore season after playing 85 sets in 27 matches while starting nine in 2022. 

PONY UP DALLAS
-In just seven days, SMU has raised $100 million to support the Mustangs' transition to the Atlantic Coast Conference. 
-The generous early commitments from a group of thirty donors that includes trustees and key donors – alumni and non-alumni alike – will enable SMU to align and compete with an elite group of national institutions with powerhouse athletic programs, benefitting both SMU Athletics and the entire University community. 
-The move to the new conference is also creating additional impact. Mustang fans have responded enthusiastically to the planned move, with men's basketball season ticket sales jumping 30% in the last week and hundreds of new football season tickets being sold as well.
-Notably, the move has immediately raised SMU's profile, with media coverage of the move generating more than $163 million in advertising value in the first three days. In that same small window, SMU also experienced a 103% increase in visitors to its undergraduate admissions homepage. 

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. 

BUILDING SOMETHING SPECIAL
-Sam Erger was named the second head coach in the program's history Feb. 2, 2022, after spending the previous eight years at Baylor, including the last two as associate head coach.
-Erger took over for Lisa Seifert, who started the program and holds the SMU record for most coaching wins across all sports (441), announced her retirement in January of 2022. 
-Erger completed her first season (2022) as head coach on the Hilltop with a 22-10 overall record. Selected fifth in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, the Mustangs finished third with a 15-5 clip in league play. Marieke van der Mark and Jamison Wheeler earned All-AAC First Team honors, and Celia Cullen was named to the Second Team. It marked the first time since 2019 that two Mustangs earned first-team honors. SMU collected the third most selections in the conference under Erger.
-Trent Sorensen is the Mustangs associate head coach. Christa Branson serves as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Clayton Bristow is a assistant coach. Brittany Clark serves as the director of operations, and Diego Aguilar is the Mustangs graduate assistant. 

ON THE COURT, AND IN THE CLASSROOM 
The SMU volleyball team earned the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award for the 2022-23 season. The award, initiated in the 1992–93 academic year, honors volleyball teams that maintain a year-long grade-point average of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale or 4.1 on a 5.0 scale. The Mustangs posted a cumulative GPA of 3.476 over the 2022-23 academic year. 

FOREIGN TOUR
-SMU volleyball embarked on the program's first ever foreign tour. The Mustangs completed a 10-day trip, May 21-30, that included stops throughout Greece and Italy.
-The Mustangs faced several international teams along the way. The tour began with four nights in Greece. While there, SMU faced Club Milon in Athens. The Mustangs visited the Acropolis and Plaka and  went sightseeing in Sounion and the island of Aegina.
-Next, SMU headed to Italy where they competed against Volleyro Roma and B1 team in Capannori.
-While in Italy, SMU visited the Colosseum and Roman Forum, along with stops at the Vatican and Trevi fountain, the region of Tuscany, and Lucca. The Mustangs closed out the tour with a match near Florence.

ALEX GLOVER- THE NIL SUMMIT 
This past fall, graduate student Alex Glover was presented with the opportunity to be a part of Meta's NIL Empower 2.0 NIL program — she was one of 30 female student-athletes across the nation.
The program provides student-athletes with a multitude of resources to help us amplify content creation efforts, specifically on Facebook and Instagram.
In addition to boosting their brands and helping prepare athletes for life after college, one of the advantages of being a part of Meta's NIL program was the chance to attend the 2023 NIL Summit in Atlanta just a few weeks ago in early June.
Meta was nominated for an award at the summit, so they invited the 30 student-athletes to Atlanta to meet each other face-to-face for the first time and continue to grow each other's brands and networks.
Glover was on a panel to speak on behalf of the Empower 2.0 program about content creation and storytelling.
"If there's anything I've learned within the past few years, it's that we have the capacity as student-athletes to write our own stories," graduate student-athlete Alex Glover said.  "Every single one of us is going to have to retire from our respective sports one day, but now more than ever, we have the ability to build our brand and set ourselves up for success once we graduate."

28TH SEASON
SMU is in its 28th season of NCAA competition. Former Head Coach Lisa Seifert started the program in 1995, with the Mustangs finishing
the inaugural season of competition with a mark of 7-24 in 1996. In 1999, SMU celebrated its first winning season with a 20-13 record. The Mustangs competed as an independent the first two seasons before moving to the Western Athletic Conference in 1998. From 2004-2012, SMU played in Conference USA before moving to the American Athletic Conference prior to the 2013 campaign. 

2022 RECAP
-The Mustangs finished their 2022 campaign with a 22-10 overall record. Selected fifth in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, the Mustangs finished third with a 15-5 clip in league play. Three Mustangs garderned All-AAC honors. Marieke van der Mark and Jamison Wheeler earned first-team All-AAC honors, and Celia Cullen claimed second-team accolades. 

FILLING THE TROPHY CASE
Over the past seven seasons, SMU has added three 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.