Volleyball Preview: Wichita State, Tulsa

Friday, October 4

Memphis, Tenn.

7 pm CT

University of Memphis

Wichita State* (Girls' Day)

Photo by: Brandon Dill

Oct 03, 2019 | Women's Volleyball

Tigers host AAC home-opening weekend at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – "There's no place like home."

That's what the University of Memphis volleyball team is saying as it returns to the friendly confines of the Elma Roane Fieldhouse for the Tigers' American Athletic Conference home-opening weekend. Memphis welcomes Wichita State Friday and Tulsa Sunday.

The Tigers have made the Elma Roane Fieldhouse a homecourt advantage in 2019. Memphis is off to a 5-1 record at home this season, the best home start since the 2005 team began that campaign with a 7-0 home mark. The 2003 squad also started that season 7-0 at home.

Memphis' American Athletic Conference Home-Opening Weekend

Date/Day	Opponent	Time (CT)
Oct. 4/Friday	Wichita State (Girls' Day/Mighty Sound of the South)	7 p.m.
Oct. 6/Sunday	Tulsa (Breast Cancer Awareness)	1 p.m.

Memphis/Opponents Breakdown

	Memphis	Wichita State	Tulsa
2019 Record	11-3, 0-2 The American	3-11, 0-2 The American	9-6, 2-0 The American
Series		WSU leads 4-1	Tulsa leads 15-13
Last Meeting		WSU won 3-0 in 2018 (at Wichita)	Tulsa won 3-0 in 2018 (at Tulsa)
Kills Leader	Meredith Wallace, 179	Megan Taflinger, 136	Dilara Gedikoglu, 225
Assists Leader	Sabrina Bianco, 567	McKayla Wuensch, 213	Roosa Rautio, 313
Digs Leader	Kaitlyn Gehler, 203	Kara Bown, 156	Taylor Horsfall, 315
Blocks Leader	Sabria Cooper, 38	Emma Wright, 48	Callie Cook, 64
Aces Leader	Hannah Flowers, 33	McKayla Wuensch, 11	Taylor Horsfall, 18

Head coach Sean Burdette comments
(On the start of conference play last weekend)
"There are no easy matches when you get to conference. I was proud of our fight last weekend. Tulane hit us hard off the bat, and it took a while for us to settle in. We did a good job of regrouping and getting back in that second set.

"We walked away from last weekend and four points in two matches was the difference. We know it's tough to steal matches on the road. You have to protect your house, and they did that. We came away having done some great things on the road. The great thing we walk away with (from last weekend) is that things are correctable.

"This is just the beginning of conference play, and now we get to come back home in front of our crowd. That's given us so much support, and we're looking forward to that this weekend."

(On Sabrina Bianco's play last weekend)
"The defensive effort is what stands out. That's great for a setter to go out and defend. It's easy to always want to go set the ball. To be able to defend like that, it gives our hitters other opportunities to attack. It was a great, well-rounded weekend for her."

(On Wichita State, Tulsa)
"We have to get after it. Wichita State is a team that is deep, good, strong and physical. Tulsa is too. Wichita State and Tulsa went to five (sets) last weekend. In our division of the conference, teams are battling night after night. Tulsa is another physical team. They have a lot of length. Tulsa and Wichita State have similar attributes with their hitters and offensive systems. We'll have to fine tune and get ready for both matches."

Tigers Tidbits

After only seeing them once in 2018, the Tigers face Wichita State and Tulsa twice this season. This weekend, Memphis hosts both rivals at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse. In mid-November, Memphis makes the road trip to Tulsa and Wichita State.
In addition to the shorter league schedule in 2019 (16 matches; 18 in 2018), the conference is split into East and West Divisions this season. The Tigers kicked off West Division play on the road at Tulane and Houston last weekend and now host divisional foes Wichita State and Tulsa. The Tigers are one of two West Division teams (SMU is the other) to play their first four conference matches against division opponents.
Memphis is playing its latest conference home opener since 2013, the program's first season in the American Athletic Conference. That year, the Tigers hosted their league home opener Oct. 11, 2013, against SMU. The latest conference home opener for the Tigers in the 21^stcentury came in 2003. That season, Memphis played its league home opener Oct. 17, 2003.
In the 21^stcentury, Memphis has a 4-3 record when playing a conference home opener in the month of October.
Since becoming American Athletic Conference rivals in 2014, Memphis holds a narrow edge over Tulsa in the nine meetings (5-4). Wichita State joined the league in 2017 and has won all three meetings against the Tigers.
Freshman Sabria Cooper is facing a team from her home state this weekend. The Oklahoma City, Okla., native meets Tulsa for the first time in her career Sunday.
Friday's Memphis-Wichita State match provides a Mountain West Conference (MWC) reunion for two players. The Tigers' Sabrina Bianco and the Shockers' McKayla Wuensch both played in the MWC in 2018. Bianco starred at New Mexico, and Wuensch at Nevada. Bianco's Lobos got the better of both meetings in 2018, with New Mexico winning 3-2 in Albuquerque, N.M., and 3-1 in Reno, Nev. Both players had solid performances in the two matches. Bianco totaled 47 assists and 18 digs, including one double-double, in the two meetings. Wuensch had 51 assists and 23 digs and posted double-doubles in the two matches.
Sunday's Memphis-Tulsa match-up features two of the American Athletic Conference's top hitters. The Golden Hurricane's Callie Cook is second in the league in hitting percentage (.354) and the Tigers' Hannah Flowers is third (.343).
Hannah Flowers continues to lead the league in total service aces (33) and aces per set (0.62).