No. 22 Mustangs Set For Two Matchups With UNI

Saturday, September 21, 2024 – 1 p.m. CT
Sunday, September 22, 2024 – 1 p.m. CT
#22 SMU (6-3, 0-0 ACC) vs. UNI (5-4, 0-0 MVC)
McLeod Center – Cedar Falls, Iowa
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SETTING THE SCENE

SMU Volleyball will travel to Cedar Falls, Iowa, for two matches against the Northern Iowa Panthers this weekend, before they begin ACC play on Sept. 27 at Georgia Tech.
Last week, SMU went 2-1 with wins over #18 Baylor and Houston. Their resume thus far earned them the program's first AVCA ranking, coming in at No. 22 in the latest poll.
The two matches will be the start of a seven-game road trip for the Mustangs.

RANK THEM MUSTANGS!!

The Mustangs are ranked No. 22 by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA), released Monday. It's the first time SMU volleyball has been ranked in the AVCA Top 25 poll in its 29-year history.
SMU has received votes and been as high as 26th in the AVCA poll but has never cracked the top 25 until this week.
The Mustangs are off to a 6-3 start in their inaugural ACC season, which included two ranked wins over No. 2 Nebraska at home and No. 18 Baylor in Waco.
Two of the five ranked wins in program history have come this season.

A LOOK AT THE OPPONENT
Northern Iowa

Northern Iowa brings a 5-5 record into the weekend's slate of matches.
The Panthers finished the 2023 campaign with a 26-7 record and a perfect 18-0 conference mark to capture the program's 19th MVC regular season crown, 21st MVC Tournament championship and secure its 25th NCAA berth, which ended with a first-round loss to Miami (FL) in Madison, Wisconsin.
UNI rattled off a 21-match winning streak throughout las
UNI was named the preseason favorite to win the MVC's regular season title with ten first-place votes for the third time in the last seven seasons
Northern Iowa is attempting to record just the third regular season three-peat in league history in 2024.

ALL-TIME SERIES

LATEST AVCA POLL NOTES

SMU joined the AVCA rankings for the first time in program history after receiving the most votes in last week's poll.
Six of SMU's nine opponents are ranked or receiving votes in the latest poll.
There are six more opponents on SMU schedule remaining that are ranked or receiving votes in the latest poll.

TWO NON-CONFERENCE RANKED WINS

The Mustangs swept the Huskers in Moody Coliseum in front of a record crowd of 6,773 people, crushing the previous record of 1,819 against TCU in 2019.
The win over Nebraska was also the first time an unranked team has swept the powerhouse program in a decade.
The match was also the highest scan in Moody for any event in the last four years.
A week later, SMU knocked off their second-ranked opponent this season in a sweep of #18 Baylor Tuesday night in Waco with set scores of 25-21, 25-15, and 25-16.

During the Sam Erger era, the Mustangs have yet to lose to the Bears.
The win marked just the second time SMU Volleyball has won in Waco in the program's 29-year history.
Coach Sam Erger has led the Mustangs to three of the programs five ranked wins in its history two against Baylor in each of the last two seasons, and the win over #2 Nebraska a week ago.

SHIME ECLIPSES 1,000 KILLS

Naya Shime earned her 1,000th career kill on Tuesday night.
She had a season-high 19 kills while hitting .452 Tuesday night and four blocks in the win.
Shime leads the team in kills with 86 this season, which ranks 5th in the ACC. She also ranked 3rd in the conference in points with 101.5 through seven matches this year.

MUSTANGS CHASING MILESTONES

Jamison Wheeler needs 41 kills and 90 digs to reach 1,000 for her career in both categories.
Graduate Setter Celia Cullen needs 126 more assists to reach 4,000 for her career and 182 digs to reach 1,000 digs. Cullen is currently seventh all-time in career assists at SMU and needs 435 assists to pass Tara Hatfield (1999-2001) for sixth place.
With 94 more digs, Ellie Bolton will reach the 1,000-career dig club.
Maya Tabron looks to collect 141 digs by the end of the year to reach the 1,000-dig mark in her career.

DOUBLETREE INVITATIONAL RECAP

SMU went 1-1 in the Doubletree Invitational over the weekend, falling to #10 Kentucky in straight sets Friday before bouncing back to beat Houston Saturday afternoon in four. Purdue went on to win the Invitational, going 2-0 with wins over Houston and then Kentucky.
Celia Cullen was SMU's representative on the Doubletree Invitational All-Tournament Team. Cullen averaged 10.00 assists per set and 2.43 digs per set in the two matches against the Wildcats and Cougars. She logged a season-high 43 assists in the four-set win over Houston and earned her first double-double of the season in that match with ten digs.

NATIONAL NUMBERS

As a team, the Mustangs rank 17^th in the country in hitting percentage (.282), 22^nd in opponent hitting percentage (.146), and 26^th in blocks per set (2.78).
Individually, Natalie Foster has been a weapon at the service line, ranking 18^th in the country and second in the ACC in aces with 20 this season. Her 0.61 aces per set is good for 22^nd best in the nation.

ATTENDANCE RECORDS AT MOODY

SMU has set the two highest attendance records in program history this season. SMU had 6,673 people in attendance in their win over #2 Nebraska and 1,883 in their 3-1 victory over Houston a little over a week later.

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