Volleyball Hosts Tulsa, SMU This Weekend

Friday, October 13

Memphis, Tenn.

7 pm CT

University of Memphis

Tulsa

Photo by: Brandon Dill

Oct 12, 2017 | Women's Volleyball

Memphis Season Statistics (Overall/Conf. Combined)Tigers Volleyball Youth Clinic Waiver

Tigers at home for six of next nine matches.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Well, the schedule-maker couldn't allow the University of Memphis volleyball squad to enjoy too long of a homestand.

After a road-heavy, early-season slate, the Tigers were finally coming back to the Bluff City to play four-straight home matches against Tulsa/SMU this weekend and ECU/Cincinnati Oct. 20-22.

That's not the case now, as the Oct. 1 match at Tulane that was postponed has now been rescheduled for Oct. 17. The rescheduled road match now breaks up the Tigers' four-match homestand.

Despite the change, Memphis is in its "home-heavy" portion of the schedule. Including this weekend, the Tigers played six of their next nine matches at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

Memphis' American Athletic Conference Home Weekend

Date/Day	Opponent	Time (CT)
Oct. 13/Friday	Tulsa	7 p.m.
Oct. 15/Sunday	SMU (Cancer Awareness Match; Sundaes on Sunday; Youth clinic post-match)	1 p.m.

Memphis/Opponents Breakdown

	Memphis	Tulsa	SMU
2017 Record	7-10, 0-5 AAC	8-10, 2-4 AAC	12-5, 6-0 AAC
Series		Tulsa leads 13-12	SMU leads 13-5
Last Meeting/2016		Memphis 3-2 win (@Tulsa)	SMU 3-0 win (@Dallas)
Kills Leader	Hannah Flowers, 168	Emily Thorson, 293	Lauren Mills, 244
Assists Leader	Faith Myers, 419	Lindsey Ledyard, 453	Kendall Patterson, 669
Digs Leader	Alyssa Kronberg, 239	Taylor Horsfall, 422	Montana Watts, 304
Total Blocks Leader	Brianna Kadiku, 69	Callie Cook, 61	Kelly Brunstein, 59

Head coach April Jauregui comments
(On playing at home/past matches on the road)
"Our team is looking to be back home for a few matches, which will be good. We haven't had a stretch like this the entire season, and you can see that the travel is taking a toll on some of our younger players.

"We're at home this and next weekend, which is our longest stretch of the season. As I said earlier this season, playing on the road a lot has given our younger players adversity to fight through. We have a lot of talent, but have to learn to fight through when things aren't going our way. It kind of what happened to us last weekend. It's life. Things happen, and it's how you respond to it that's most important."

(On Tulsa, SMU)
"Tulsa is much like us, Central Florida, South Florida, Tulane and Houston as we're all in the same area of the conference standings. We know how close we are, and we're just one or two points in a couple of five-setters away from being right there in the mix with everybody. We're playing a good Tulsa team Friday. On Sunday, we play an SMU team that is undefeated in conference play, and we're excited about the challenge."

(On youth of team)
"They're freshmen, and we're relying on them to be stabilizers on the court. We're going to take our bumps this season, but the future is very bright. We have to keep pushing the right buttons, and keep them positive and engaged. We've adjusted our practices to add a more competitive edge. We don't have to practice five hours a day, but we need to go hard. We're (coaches) continuing to push them, and they're making progress.

"We're just trying to stay positive. If we get some pieces together this week, change our mentality and go out there with a competitive mindset and wanting to win, I like our chances."

Tigers Tidbits

Yes, the Tigers are playing Tulsa on Friday the 13^th. But, the "scary" date has actually been kind to Memphis in the 2000s. Since the turn of the century, the Tigers have played six Friday the 13^th matches, and of those six, they have won five. In fact, Memphis has won its last five Friday the 13^th matches, including a 3-2 victory at ECU Nov. 13, 2015. In that five-win stretch on Friday the 13^th, the Tigers have a win over Tulsa, a 3-2 home victory over the Golden Hurricane Oct. 13, 2006.
Much has been made of the few Tigers home matches so far in 2017. Well, a team that can rival Memphis in that category is Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane have played only four home matches (out of 18 total) so far this season. Prior to this weekend, the Tigers have played only five home matches (out of 17 total).
The youth movement at Memphis has been a storyline all season long, and the Tigers have more first-year players on their roster than Tulsa and SMU. The Tigers have 10 newcomers (7 freshmen/2 transfers/1 redshirt freshman) on their roster. Tulsa has six freshmen on its roster, and SMU has five freshmen and one redshirt freshman.
Sophomore Tai Bierria is getting back to form in recent matches. She averaged 9.5 kills and 9.5 digs in matches vs. USF and Houston. Bierria also hit over .400 in each outing.
Freshman Tia Gleason is catching on midway through the 2017 campaign, and it's showing in the stats. Gleason posted double-figures assists in the last three matches, including a season-best 29 assists vs. UCF Sept. 29. She followed that performance with 28 assists vs. USF Oct. 1. Gleason nearly had double-doubles in both matches, as she registered eight digs in each outing vs. UCF and USF.
This week, three Tigers rank in the top-10 in three statistical categories in The American, and they are: Brianna Kadiku in blocks (8^th), Faith Myers in assists (9^th) and Alyssa Kronberg in digs (7^th).