ULM Warhawks Volleyball: Seeking First-Ever Win at Sun Belt Conference Championship

2023-11-15 16:39:27

MATCH 31: (7W) ULM Warhawks (7-23 overall, 3-13 Sun Belt Conference) vs. (6E) App State Mountaineers (13-14, 4-12 Sun Belt Conference)
5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023 | Foley Sports Complex | Foley, Alabama
WATCH: ESPN+ | LIVE STATS

MATCH NOTES

MONROE, La. – The ULM volleyball team seeks its first-ever win at the Sun Belt Conference Championship when the Warhawks, the seventh seed from the West Division, takes on App State, the sixth seed from the East Division, at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Foley Events Center in Foley, Alabama. The Warhawks are 0-4 all time at the SBC Championship. ULM has not won a conference tournament match since taking a 3-0 decision once morest North Texas in the Southland Conference Tournament on Nov. 17, 1989.

FOLLOW THE WARHAWKS –

Links to live video and stats for all matches are available on ULMWarhawks.com. Navigate to the volleyball schedule page and select that day’s opponent.

COMING IN HOT –

ULM comes into the Sun Belt Conference tournament winners of three-straight matches. It’s the first three-match winning streak in Sun Belt Conference play in program history (2006-present). ULM snapped its 15-match losing streak on Nov. 4 with a 3-1 win over Arkansas State. In the process, the Warhawks snapped a pair of 44-match skids, winning their first Sun Belt Conference match since a 3-1 win over Georgia State on Sept. 23, 2021, and their first match once morest Arkansas State since 1986. A-State started a string of 44-straight wins over ULM in 1989. The Warhawks then swept Georgia State last weekend in a pair of five-set matches to earn three-straight conference wins for the first time in the SBC era.

JEFFUS LEADS THE ATTACK –

Middle blocker Logan Jeffus has been one of the most productive players for the Warhawks in 2023. Jeffus is third on the Warhawks with 245 kills with a .307 hitting percentage. She has 75 total blocks (26 solo, 46 assist) and 62 career solo blocked shots. Her six solo blocked shots jumped her up to first place on the all-time list of career block solos in the 25-point rally scoring era. She has reached double digit kills nine times in 2023 including a career-high 20 kills once morest App State on October 14.

She has been named to two All-Tournament teams this season. She was named Most Valuable Player of the New Orleans Invitational (Sept. 8-9) following leading the team with nine kills and two blocks vs. Southern on Sept. 8 and added 16 kills with two blocks on Sept. 9 at UNO. She hit a career high .615 (9-1-13) once morest Southern before topping it once morest UNO at .652 (16-1-23). Her .652 hitting percentage once morest UNO broke her own school-record hitting percentage for a four-set match in the 25-point rally scoring era.

Jeffus was named to the All-Tournament Team at the EIU Panther Invitational to open the season on Aug. 25-26. She had 25 kills over three matches, including 16 in the five-set win once morest Akron on Aug. 25.

BOTKIN CONTINUES STRONG SOPHOMORE SEASON –

Sophomore setter Brynn Botkin leads ULM with 286 kills with a .189 hitting percentage. She is tied for first on the team with 40 serve aces and is third on the team in digs with 270. She has 17 double-figure kill matches, 13 double-figure digs matches, and nine double-doubles in 2023 including two in the past weekend vs Georgia State. She produced 20 kills and 14 digs once morest App State on Saturday, October 14.

For the second-straight season, Botkin was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Battle For The Boot from September 15-16. Botkin put up 13 kills with six digs, three service aces and one block once morest Southeastern on Sept. 15. She added nine kills, 11 digs, two aces and two blocks once morest Southern on Sept. 15. She capped the tournament with seven kills while hitting .313 with five digs and an ace at Northwestern State on Sept. 16.

In the month of September, Botkin led ULM with 148 kills with a team-best 27 aces and was tied for third on the team with 117 digs. She had nine double-figure kill matches, five double-figure dig matches and three double-doubles in September, posting 12 kills and a season-high 17 digs once morest Indiana State on Sept. 1, 13 kills and 16 digs at McNeese on Sept. 19, and 15 kills and 16 digs on Sept. 22 at Texas State.

Botkin also was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Lindenwood Invitational. Botkin totaled 30 kills (2.3 per set) and 29 digs (2.2 per set) in the three-match event. She opened the tournament with 12 kills and a season-high 17 digs once morest Indiana State on Sept. 1. She added seven kills and 11 digs once morest Lindenwood on Sept. 1 before capping the tournament with 11 kills and one dig once morest Austin Peay on Sept. 2.

ROBERSON TOPS 1,000 ASSISTS –

Sophomore setter Bailey Roberson made history at the New Orleans Invitational when she passed 1,000 career assists, becoming only the fifth Warhawk ever to do so in the 25-point rally scoring era (2008-present). She currently stands at 1,435 career assists (6.21 per set), which places her fourth all-time in the 25-point rally scoring era.

She leads the Warhawks in 2023 with 600 assists (5.00 per set). She has surpassed 20 assists 17 times this season and has ten assist-dig double-doubles in 2023 with the latest one being once morest Georgia State last Friday (24 assists, 24 digs). The Decatur, Texas, native had 835 assists as a true freshman in 2022, the fourth most for ULM in a single season since the start of the 25-point rally scoring era. She led the Warhawks to an all-important set four win with her serving on the first eight Warhawk points.

Roberson also was named to the New Orleans Invitational All-Tournament Team with 40 assists over two matches once morest Southern and UNO.

Last weekend, Roberson collected service ace 73, which ties her at third place with Bayleigh Hoffman on ULM’s all-time list for career service aces in the 25-point rally scoring era.

ROGERS REACHES 1,000 CAREER DIGS –

Junior defensive specialist/libero Cameron Rogers is the team leader in digs with 455 (3.86 per set). She has reached double-digit digs in 26 matches and reached 20 digs in six of those matches. She totaled a career-high 27 digs in ULM’s five-set win over Akron on Aug. 25 and matched that number on Sept. 15 vs. Southeastern. Rogers was named Libero of the Tournament at the New Orleans Invitational (Sept. 8-9) with 32 total digs across two matches.

Rogers has totaled 1,122 digs throughout two-plus seasons at ULM. Against South Alabama, she placed herself in ULM’s Top-5 digs list in the 25-point rally scoring era over Albany Schaffer’s 953 from 2016-19. Rogers became just the fourth Warhawk in the 25-point rally scoring era to reach 1,000 career digs, which has only been achieved by Marcela Araya (1,896, 2011-14), Kacey LeBlanc (1,113, 2015-17) and Christy Tribble (1,025, 2008-10).

Rogers surpassed LeBlanc for second place on the Top-5 list last weekend once morest Georgia State.

Rogers also entered ULM’s career service aces list. She produced career service ace number 69 last weekend, which broke the tie with Hope Pawlik for fourth place on the ULM all-time list in the 25-point rally scoring era.

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU? –

ULM freshman outside hitter Ariana Brown is second on the team with 259 kills (2.31 per set). She has reached double-digit kills in 14 matches, including a season-high 15 kills in the five-set win over Georgia State last weekend. She tallied 12 kills and a season-high eight digs at Grambling on Aug. 29 and added 13 kills and seven digs vs. Austin Peay on Sept. 2. She picked up 10 kills and a season-high three blocks on Sept. 19 at McNeese.

ROAD WARRIORS –
The 2023 season has involved a good amount of time on the team bus. The Warhawks traveled on the road for the first 16 games of the season, and following playing two home matches, went on the road for four more. A similar scenario happened last season when ULM only played one home game in 14 non-conference games to open the season.

KEARNS TAKES CONTROL –

Head coach Matt Kearns is in the middle of his first season as a collegiate head coach at ULM. Kearns was a graduate assistant coach and assistant coach for six seasons for Northern Kentucky. While he was there, the Norse posted a 108-69 record. Before that, he was a student coach and technical advisor at Xavier from 2013-2017.

A LOOK AHEAD –

The winner of Wednesday’s match will play Troy, the third seed from the West Division, at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship in Foley, Alabama.

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