No. 7 SMU Begins NCAA Tournament at Home Versus Central Arkansas

Friday, December 5

Dallas, Texas

6:30pm CT

SMU

Central Arkansas

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SMU Volleyball team huddle overhead 2025

No. 7 SMU Begins NCAA Tournament at Home Versus Central Arkansas

Dec 4 | Volleyball

#7 SMU (25-5, 17-3 ACC) vs. Central Arkansas (18-11, 12-4 ASUN)

Friday, Dec. 5 • 6:30 p.m. CT (30 minutes after conclusion of 4 p.m. match)

Moody Coliseum • Dallas, Texas

ESPN+ • Live Stats • Match Notes • SMU Mobile App

SETTING THE SCENE
• The No. 7-ranked SMU Volleyball team begins NCAA Tournament play on Friday, Dec. 5, as it hosts Central Arkansas in its first-round matchup.
• For the second straight season, SMU Volleyball was selected as a No. 2 seed. The Mustangs are the No. 5 overall seed for the NCAA Tournament.
• The Mustangs will host the first and second rounds for the second time in program history at Moody Coliseum this Friday and Saturday.
• The Mustangs, making their third straight NCAA Tournament appearance and their fifth in program history, will open the tournament on Friday, Dec. 5, 30 minutes after the 4 p.m. match, against Central Arkansas (18-11), the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) champions. The 4 p.m. match will feature Florida (15-11) of the Southeastern Conference and 7-seed Rice (21-9) out of the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Friday's winners will meet in the second round on Saturday, Dec. 6, at 7 p.m.
• SMU brings a nine-match winning streak into the postseason and has won 17 of its last 18 matches.
• SMU ended the regular season eighth in NCAA RPI and 10th in KPI.
• The Mustangs are 13-1 at home this season and have won their last nine at Moody Coliseum.
• SMU has had 20 or more wins in each of the four seasons under head coach Sam Erger.
• Coach Erger is 98-30 (.766) at SMU. Two wins this weekend would give her 100 career wins and would punch the Mustangs a ticket to the sweet sixteen for the first time in program history.

TWO-TIME NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Graduate opposite Malaya Jones has been named AVCA Division I Player of the Week for the second time this season, announced by the organization on Tuesday. It's the second honor of the week for Jones as she was named to the All-ACC First Team on Monday.
• Jones averaged 5.56 kills per set, which ranked ninth in the country, and 6.61 points per set, ranking fourth this week in SMU's two wins this week. She registered 50 kills and 59.5 points in the two matches, ranking third and second in the nation, respectively. Jones put up these numbers while hitting .389 and notched two double-doubles.
• Jones is the first player in SMU Volleyball history to win the honors multiple times. Former Mustangs Avery Acker and Emma Clothier each won the honor once in their careers.

ALL-ACC MUSTANGS
• SMU Volleyball setter Averi Carlson was named the 2025 Atlantic Coast Conference Setter of the Year, while four others joined her by earning All-ACC honors, the league announced on Monday.
• After being named to the All-ACC Preseason Team, Senior setter Averi Carlson is the program's first ACC position player of the year and is the eighth SMU Volleyball athlete to earn a conference position player of the year award.
• Carlson and Malaya Jones were selected to the 15-player All-ACC First Team, while middle blocker Favor Anyanwu and outside hitter Jadyn Livings both earned All-ACC Second Team honors. Kennedi Rogers became the fifth Mustang to earn conference All-Freshman team honors.

QUICK HITS
• Averi Carlson enters the postseason ranked second nationally in assists per set (11.22) and third in total assists (1,268), leading the ACC in both categories.
• Christa Wilburn leads the Mustangs with 46 aces this season, the fifth-most in the modern scoring era and tied for fifth-most all-time at SMU for a single season.
• Reclassifying to play for the Mustangs this season, Wilburn is 17 and doesn't turn 18 until March 28, 2008. This makes her the second youngest player in DI Volleyball on record this season.
• The Mustangs enter the tournament fifth in the nation in hitting percentage, swinging at a .309 clip. SMU has hit over .300 in 17 matches, including 13 in ACC matches. SMU is set to shatter the previous season's hitting percentage of .267 from last season.
• SMU is top 50 in the country in seven categories: Hitting Percentage (5th), Winning Percentage (17th), Team Total Blocks (21st), Kills Per Set (22nd), Assists Per Set (26th), Blocks Per Set (28th), Team Assists (29th), Team Kills (32nd), Team Service Aces (41st), Aces Per Set (43rd) and Opponent Hitting Percentage (49th).
• Favor Anyanwu has been one of the most dominant forces at the net defensively this season, ranking eighth in the country in total blocks with 162. Her 162 blocks this season are tied for second in the modern scoring era at SMU and tied for third all-time.
• In ACC play, Anyanwu (4th) and Jones (3rd) both ranked top 5 in hitting percentage. In the 20-match ACC slate, Anyanwu swung at a .407 clip, and Jones hit at a .408 clip.
• SMU has five players with 20 or more aces this season, including five with 16 or more in ACC matches. The Mustangs have 196 aces this season, drawing closer to the school record of 200 aces set by last season's squad.
• This season, SMU has won 13 ACC weekly awards, the most by any team in the league in 2025. During Head Coach Sam Erger's tenure, the Mustangs have earned 28 weekly conference honors. Averi Carlson has earned ACC-record seven Setter of the Week awards this season.

BREAKING RECORDS AND REACHING MILESTONES IN RALEIGH
• Malaya Jones broke the SMU rally scoring record for most kills in a season against NC State, passing Katie Hagerty's 461-mark set in 2016. Jones also moved up to second on the SMU all-time list for a season.
• Jadyn Livings reached the 500-kill milestone in the first set against the Wolfpack on Saturday.
• Jordyn Schilling passed the 1,500-career dig mark against NC State, finishing with 14 in the regular season finale.
• Casey Batenhorst needs six aces away from becoming the eighth Mustang to have 100 or more aces at SMU in their career. She sits tied for ninth all-time in career aces at SMU.

RALLY-SCORING SINGLE SEASON KILLS
1. Malaya Jones, 479     2025
2. Katie Hegarty, 461      2016
3. Dana Powell, 440      2009
4. Dana Powell, 416      2010
5. Lauren Mills, 404      2017

ALL-TIME SINGLE SEASON KILLS
1. Rachel Giubilato, 568     2006
2. Malaya Jones, 479      2025
3. Erin Pryor, 473      1997
4. Kelly Klecka, 469      2000
5. Erin Pryor, 466      1999
6. Katie Hegarty, 461     2016

RALLY-SCORING SINGLE SEASON BLOCKS
1. Janelle Giordano, 188      2015
T-2. Courtney Jones, 162      2010
T-2. Janelle Giordano, 162      2016
T-2. Favor Anyanwu, 162     2025
5. Janelle Giordano, 160      2014
6. Nnedi Okammor, 151     2024

ALL-TIME SINGLE-SEASON BLOCKS
1. Janelle Giordano, 188      2015
2. Courtney Manning, 184, 2011
T-3. Courtney Manning, 162      2010
T-3. Janelle Giordano, 162     2016
T-3. Favor Anyanwu, 162     2025

ALL-TIME CAREER ACES
1. Melissa Godwin, 153      2015-18
2. Caroline Young, 132      2011-14
3. Kathryn Wilkerson, 115      2010-12
4. Leslie Olson, 106      2008-10
5. Jackie Erazmus, 104      2011-13
6. Beth Karasek, 103      2018-21
7. Erin Pryor, 100      2014-17
8. Rachel Giubilato, 95     2020-22
T-9. Jamison Wheeler, 94     2021-24
T-9. Casey Batenhorst, 94      2022-25

RALLY-SCORING SINGLE SEASON ACES
1. Natalie Foster, 64 2024
2. Caroline Young, 51, 2012
3. Jamison Wheeler, 48, 2022
4. Caroline Young, 47, 2014
5. Christa Wilburn, 4,6 2025

ALL-TIME SINGLE SEASON ACES
1. Natalie Foster, 64 2024
2. Caroline Young, 51, 2013
3. Jamison Wheeler, 48, 2022
4. Caroline Young, 47, 2014
T-5. Melissa Godwin, 46 1999
T-5. Melissa Godwin 46, 2002
T-5. Christa Wilburn, 46 2025

MUSTANGS HEADED TO THE PROS
• SMU Volleyball setter Averi Carlson and opposite Malaya Jones were selected in the 2025 Major League Volleyball Draft on Monday.
• The Atlanta Vibe selected Setter Averi Carlson in the first round with the No. 7 overall pick.
• Jones was selected No. 9 overall by the Dallas Pulse and will team up with former Mustang setter Celia Cullen. The Pulse traded up to the first pick of the second round to take Jones.
• In the last three seasons, six players have been drafted to play professional volleyball under head coach Sam Erger at SMU.
• Carlson became the 24th SMU athlete to be drafted in the first round across all sports. (Men's Soccer – 12, Football, 7, Men's Basketball 3, Baseball 1, Volleyball 1)

SMU Volleyball Draft Picks
Emma Clothier 23' - No. 25 pick
Natalie Foster 24' - No. 13 pick
Naya Shime 24' - No. 14 pick
Maya Tabron 24' - No. 23 pick
Averi Carlson 25' - No. 7 pick
Malaya Jones 25' - No. 9 pick

SEASONED VETS
• Malaya Jones and Averi Carlson are both among the nation's active career leaders in kills and assists, respectively.
• Jones sits in ninth in the entire NCAA in career kills, fifth in DI.
• Carlson ranks 11th out of all NCAA divisions and third in DI in career assists.
Active Career Kills (DI) – As of December 1
1.    Eva Hudson, Kentucky    2,088
2.    Mimi Colyer, Wisconsin    1,945
3.    Flormarie Heredia Colon, Miami (FL.)   1,836
4.    Victoria Barrett, Alabama   1,782
5.    Malaya Jones, SMU 1,750

Active Career Assists (DI) – As of December 1
1.    Callie Bauer, Western Ky.   4,942
2.    Jordan Karlen, Tennessee Tech   4,562
3.    Averi Carlson, SMU    4,501
4.    Sophia Hudepohl, Lipscomb 4,459
5.    Isabella Bareford, Vanderbilt 4,287

SERIES HISTORY
• Friday's matchup against Central Arkansas is the first meeting between the two programs.
• Rice leads the overall series over SMU 25-15. Coach Erger is 2-0 with SMU against the Owls. Both matches were in 2023. SMU has won four of the last five meetings with Rice.
• A showdown in the second round between SMU and the Florida Gators would be the first ever between the two programs.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
The Central Arkansas Sugar Bears
• UCA brings an 18-11 overall record into the NCAA Tournament after going 12-4 in the ASUN and winning its tournament title.
• Last season, the Sugar Bears went 17-12, 13-3 in the ASUN.

The Rice Owls
• Rice is 21-9, 15-1 in the AAC entering the tournament. The Owls won the American to secure an automatic bid to NCAAs. Rice is receiving votes in the latest AVCA poll.
• Last season, the Owls went 19-8 overall, 13-3 in league play.

The Florida Gators
• Florida finished the regular season fifth in the SEC with a 15-11 overall record and a 9-6 mark in league play. Florida is receiving votes in the latest AVCA poll.
• The Gators fell in the quarterfinal round of the SEC Tournament to Tennessee their last time out.
• Last season, the Gators went 23-8, 11-5 in SEC play. They fell to Stanford in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen.

GROW WITH THE NEW LOOK MUSTANGS
• Fans get to grow with the new look Mustangs for years to come. 11 of the 17 players on SMU's 2025 roster are underclassmen, and four of the seven typical starters are freshmen or sophomores.
• SMU had to replace 95% of its point production from a season ago. With nine productive players graduating a season ago, Coach Erger and staff have reloaded their roster for the 2025 season, as they return no starters from the program's historic season.
• Production lost by the numbers: Set Played: 87%, Kills: 95%, Attacks: 96%, Assists: 99%, Digs: 95%.
• The highest returning points scorer is sophomore Natalia Newsome, who logged 56.5 points in her rookie season, with 44 kills and 21 blocks.
• SMU also brought in six transfers and seven players out of high school to go along with four returners.
• Each of the six transfers SMU brought in has NCAA Tournament experience in their careers.

AVCA RANKINGS: WEEK 14 – Final Regular Season Poll
• SMU Volleyball moved up to No. 7 in the latest AVCA/TARAFLEX Division I WVB Poll, released on Monday by the association. It's the highest ranking in program history, also held for two weeks previously this season.
• SMU is the third-highest ranked ACC squad, trailing No. 4 Pitt and No. 5 Stanford. After the No. 7 Mustangs, Louisville is No. 9, Miami is No. 13, and North Carolina is No. 19.
• The Mustangs were ranked No. 10 in the 2025 preseason ranking, marking the first time that the program was ranked going into the season.
• The Mustangs cracked the top 25 for the first time in last year's historic season. The Mustangs have been ranked in 28 straight polls.

ALL-ACC PRESEASON TEAM
• Malaya Jones, Averi Carlson and Favor Anyanwu were voted to the All-ACC Preseason team by the ACC coaches.
• The 2024 Preseason Volleyball All-ACC Team consisted of 18 players and was voted on by the league's head coaches.
• Pitt leads the way with the most players on this year's preseason team, with four representatives. SMU, Stanford, and Louisville follow, each having three players listed.

ACC PRESEASON POLL
• SMU was chosen fourth in the ACC Preseason Poll by the league's head coaches.
• The Mustangs finished fourth in the ACC a season ago after being picked sixth in the 2024 preseason.
• SMU trails defending ACC Champion, Pitt, then Louisville and Stanford, while North Carolina rounded out the top five behind SMU.

YEAR FOUR FOR ERGER
• Head Coach Sam Erger is in year four as SMU's head volleyball coach.
• Erger has now been to three-straight NCAA tournaments, two consecutive second-round appearances (2023 & 2024). Before the Erger tenure, SMU had only been to two NCAA Tournaments, in the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
• Four consecutive 20-win seasons, the second-longest streak in program history.
• Erger has four of the program's 12 total 20-win seasons.
• Coach Sam Erger is 98-30 (.766) as head coach at SMU, 66-13 (83.5%) in conference matches on the Hilltop, winning 15+ in each of her first four seasons.
• Erger has 13 ranked wins under her belt at SMU, five over top 10 teams and four over top five teams.