Arkansas State Tops Sun Belt Volleyball Teams in Playoff Competition

NIVC Bracket
 
NEW ORLEANS  – Arkansas State secured two victories to move on to the Great 8 in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC), leading the Sun Belt Conference volleyball teams in postseason play. This signifies the second year running that a team from the league has reached the Great 8 of the tournament.
 
Arkansas State (28-5) triumphed over UTRGV in the opening round with a score of 3-1, progressing to the Super 16 of the NIVC. The Red Wolves recorded 13 blocks and restricted their opponent to a .175 hitting rate. In the following match, Arkansas State faced the host SFA for a chance to enter the Great 8. The Red Wolves improved their record to 7-1 in five-set encounters, handing the Ladyjacks their second defeat at home this season.
 
These two victories marked the first instance of Arkansas State achieving multiple postseason wins since a 2-2 performance in the 1993 NIVC. In the win against SFA, the Red Wolves contributed 12 blocks, with seven coming from Sun Belt Newcomer and Defensive Player of the Year Daedrianna Cail. Arkansas State will take on Northern Colorado in Tucson, Ariz. at the McKale Center located on the campus of Arizona. The match is set for December 11 at 4 p.m. CT.
 
Georgia Southern also reached the Super 16 following a 3-0 victory against SEMO in the first round (28-26, 25-13, 25-13). Reagan Barth recorded 13 kills, while Jillian Gray added 11. Kirsten Barrett accumulated five service aces along with 36 assists in the win. The Eagles concluded the season with a 22-7 record after losing 3-2 to Northern Colorado on Saturday night (18-25, 25-18, 24-26, 25-14, 10-15). Barrett notched 44 assists in the five-set defeat and became the first Eagle to surpass 1,000 assists in a season since 2014. Gray contributed 15 more kills, and Paige Powers finished with 17. This also marked the Eagles’ first loss at Hanner Fieldhouse this year.
 
App State (18-10) encountered Northern Colorado in the First Round, where the Mountaineers were defeated 3-1 (25-20, 23-25, 12-25, 22-25). Maya Winterhoff, Lulu Ambrose, and Sun Belt Freshman of the Year Elise Marchal each posted double-digit kills. Addison Heidemann recorded 39 assists and ten digs for her 11th double-double of the season, while Kenady Roper led the team with 17 digs.
 
In the NCAA Tournament, Texas State received the league’s automatic berth and faced Missouri away at SMU. Despite closely contested sets, the Bobcats ended the season with a 22-9 record following a 3-0 defeat (16-25, 22-25, 22-25). Sun Belt Setter of the Year Ryann Torres recorded 24 assists, as both Jade Defraeye and Bailey Hanner registered three blocks. Samantha Wunsch topped the team with nine kills, while Alyssa Ortega collected 13 digs.