Sun Belt Conference Weekly News and Notes (Week 1)
2016 Sun Belt Conference Composite Schedule
2016 Sun Belt Conference Standings
2016 Sun Belt Conference Statistics
2016 Sun Belt Conference Scoreboard
Appalachian State's Longley, Arkansas State Duo Earn Week 1 Volleyball Honors
Appalachian State’s Emma Longley picked up two awards this week after her debut as a Mountaineer this past weekend. Longley, a freshman from Raleigh, N.C., started her career with a tremendous debut with 30 kills in a five-set loss to Virginia Tech. Longley’s 30 kills were the most by a Mountaineer since the 2011 season. She tallied 53 kills and averaged 4.81 kills per set and was a large part of the Mountaineers’ 2-1 weekend at the Virginia Tech Invitational. Longley hit a season-high .524 in a sweep of Norfolk State on Saturday.
Arkansas State seniors, Markie Schaedig and Mallory Warrington, picked up right where they left off last season as the duo earned this week’s Defensive Player of the Week honors and Setter of the Week honors following their performances over the weekend.
Schaedig registered a solid start to the 2016 season with 60 digs for a 5.45 per set average over A-State’s three opening-weekend matches. She recorded 19 digs in each of the Red Wolves’ 3-0 wins over Northwestern State and North Carolina State before adding 22 more in the team’s final match of the TCU Invitational against TCU.
Warrington had a fantastic weekend leading the A-State offense as the team hit .241 across the three matches. She dished out 127 assists (11.55 per set) and also picked up double-doubles with double-digit digs against Northwestern State and TCU. She handed out 37 assists against both Northwestern State and North Carolina State before recording 53 against TCU.
Recent Results
August 26 (Friday)
Georgia State 3, Holy Cross 0
UTSA 3, Little Rock 0
South Alabama 3, Indiana State 2
Coastal Carolina 3, Florida A&M 0
Ohio State 3, Texas State 0
Arkansas State 3, Northwestern State 0
Troy 3, USC Upstate 2
North Carolina 3, Georgia Southern 0
Montana 3, Little Rock 2
Houston 3, UL Lafayette 1
Middle Tenn. 3, UL Monroe 0
South Alabama 3, Nicholls State 0
Virginia Tech 3, Appalachian State 2
Coastal Carolina 3, FIU 0
James Madison 3, Georgia State 1
UT Arlington 3, Sam Houston State 2
August 27 (Saturday)
Appalachian State 3, Norfolk State 0
Penn State 3, Georgia Southern 0
Austin Peay 3, Troy 0
Georgia State 3, N.C. Central 0
Texas State 3, North Texas 1
Houston Baptist 3, UL Lafayette 2
Tennessee 3, UL Monroe 0
ETSU 3, Troy 0
Arkansas State 3, North Carolina State 0
UT Arlington 3, Ark.-Pine Bluff 0
SMU 3, Little Rock 0
Nevada 3, Texas State 0
Cincinnati 3, UL Monroe 0
Appalachian State 3, Siena 0
West Virginia 3, Georgia Southern 0
Weber State 3, UL Lafayette 1
Coastal Carolina 3, Miami (FL) 0
TCU 3, Arkansas State 2
Samford 3, South Alabama 0
Sacramento State 3, UT Arlington 1
Upcoming Schedule
August 30 (Tuesday)
Southeastern Louisiana at Troy - 6:00 PM
Northwestern State at UL Lafayette - 6:30 PM
Baylor at Texas State - 6:30 PM
UT Arlington at North Texas - 7:00 PM
August 31 (Wednesday)
UL Monroe at Northwestern State - 6:30 PM
September 1 (Thursday)
(13) Jacksonville State at Georgia Southern - 12:00 PM
(13) Charleston Southern at Georgia Southern - 6:00 PM
(14) Oklahoma at Little Rock - 6:30 PM
September 2 (Friday)
(15) Georgia State vs. William and Mary - 10:00 AM
(16) Stephen F. Austin at Texas State - 10:30 AM
(14) UAPB at Little Rock - 12:00 PM
(13) Savannah State at Georgia Southern - 12:00 PM
(17) Southern at Troy - 12:00 PM
(18) Southeastern Louisiana at South Alabama - 1:00 PM
(15) Georgia State vs. Mercer - 3:30 PM
(19) UL Monroe vs. Oral Roberts - 4:30 PM
(20) UNCW at Appalachian State - 6:00 PM
(14) Mississippi State at Little Rock - 6:00 PM
(21) Coastal Carolina at Notre Dame - 6:00 PM
(13) The Citadel at Georgia Southern - 6:00 PM
(22) Air Force at UL Lafayette - 6:30 PM
(18) Florida International at South Alabama - 6:30 PM
(23) UT Arlington at Ole Miss - 6:30 PM
(24) Arkansas State at Saint Louis - 7:00 PM
(16) Kennesaw State at Texas State - 7:00 PM
(17) Valparaiso at Troy - 7:00 PM
September 3 (Saturday)
(21) Coastal Carolina vs. Purdue - 9:00 AM
(17) New Mexico State at Troy - 9:00 AM
(24) Arkansas State vs. Cal Poly - 10:00 AM
(22) Alabama A&M at UL Lafayette - 10:00 AM
(September 3 (Saturday cont.) -
23) UT Arlington vs. North Carolina State - 10:00 AM
(20) Wofford at Appalachian State - 11:30 AM
(18) Florida A&M at South Alabama - 1:00 PM
(15) Georgia State at Belmont - 2:00 PM
(19) UL Monroe vs. Alcorn State - 2:00 PM
(16) Tulsa at Texas State - 2:00 PM
(22) Nicholls State at UL Lafayette - 3:00 PM
(21) Coastal Carolina vs. Howard - 3:30 PM
(24) Arkansas State vs. Western Kentucky - 4:30 PM
(14) UT Martin at Little Rock - 5:00 PM
(23) UT Arlington vs. McNeese State - 5:00 PM
Ohio at Appalachian State - 6:00 PM
(19) UL Monroe at Central Arkansas - 7:00 PM
Tournament Legend:
13 - Bash in the Boro (Statesboro, Ga.)
14 - Little Rock Invitational (Little Rock, Ark.)
15 - Bruiser Showcase (Nashville, Tenn.)
16 - Creeds & Crests Classic (San Marcos, Texas)
17 - Trojan Invitational (Troy, Ala.)
18 - Jaguar Invitational (Mobile, Ala.)
19 - UCA Invitational (Conway, Ark.)
20 - Black and Gold Invitational (Boone, N.C.)
21 - Notre Dame Invitational (South Bend, Ind.)
22 - Sawyer Camillo Memorial Volleyball Classic (Lafayette, La.)
23 - Ole Miss Invitational (Oxford, Miss.)
24 - Marcia E. Hamilton Classic (St. Louis, Mo.)
* - Denotes Conference Match | All times central
WEEK 1 SUN BELT CONFERENCE OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Emma Longley
Appalachian State | FR | OH
Emma Longley started her career with a tremendous debut with 30 kills in a five-set loss to Virginia Tech. Longley’s 30 kills were the most by a Mountaineer since the 2011 season. She tallied 53 kills and averaged 4.81 kills per set and was a large part of the Mountaineers’ 2-1 weekend at the Virginia Tech Invitational. Longley hit a season-high .524 in a sweep of Norfolk State on Saturday.
WEEK 1 SUN BELT CONFERENCE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Markie Schaedig
Arkansas State | Sr | L/DS
Senior libero Markie Schaedig registered a solid start to the 2016 season with 60 digs for a 5.45 per set average over A-State’s three opening-weekend matches. She recorded 19 digs in each of the Red Wolves’ 3-0 wins over Northwestern State and North Carolina State before adding 22 more in the team’s final match of the TCU Invitational against TCU. The Little Rock, Ark., native only had three reception errors all weekend.
WEEK 1 SUN BELT CONFERENCE SETTER OF THE WEEK
Mallory Warrington
Arkansas State | SR | S
Senior Mallory Warrington had a fantastic weekend leading the A-State offense to a 2-1 record at the TCU Invitational as the team hit .241 across the three matches. She dished out 127 assists (11.55 per set) and also picked up double-doubles with double-digit digs against Northwestern State and TCU. She handed out 37 assists against both Northwestern State and North Carolina State before recording 53 against TCU. She also had an ace on the weekend.
WEEK 1 SUN BELT CONFERENCE FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Emma Longley
Appalachian State | FR | OH
Emma Longley started her career with a tremendous debut with 30 kills in a five-set loss to Virginia Tech. Longley’s 30 kills were the most by a Mountaineer since the 2011 season. She tallied 53 kills and averaged 4.81 kills per set and was a large part of the Mountaineers’ 2-1 weekend at the Virginia Tech Invitational. Longley hit a season-high .524 in a sweep of Norfolk State on Saturday.
PREVIOUS PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
08.23 - Offensive: Emma Longley, Applachian State | Defensive: Markie Schaedig, Arkansas State
08.23 - Setter: Mallory Warrington, Arkansas State | Freshman: Emma Longley, Applachian State
AROUND THE SUN BELT CONFERENCE
New Year, New Changes
With the addition of Coastal Carolina the Sun Belt now has 12 teams in women’s volleyball and will compete in divisional play for the 2016 season. This is the first time since the 2012 season the Sun Belt will compete in divisional play. Teams will play 16 conference games with the East division comprising of Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, South Alabama and Troy. The West division will comprise of Arkansas State, Little Rock, UL Lafayette, UL Monroe, UT Arlington and Texas State.
Championship Seeding
The 2016 Sun Belt Volleyball Championship will take place from Friday, Nov. 18 through Sunday, Nov. 18 at the College Park Center on the campus of UT Arlington. The top team in each division will be the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. The top four in each division will earn berths to the tournament, however, seeds 3-8 will be determined based on overall conference winning percentage, regardless of the teams’ division.
Freshman Earns Two Honors in Week 1
Appalachian State’s Emma Longley picked up two awards this week after her debut as a Mountaineer this past weekend. Longley, a freshman from Raleigh, N.C., started her career with a tremendous debut with 30 kills in a five-set loss to Virginia Tech. Longley’s 30 kills were the most by a Mountaineer since the 2011 season. She tallied 53 kills and averaged 4.81 kills per set and was a large part of the Mountaineers’ 2-1 weekend at the Virginia Tech Invitational. Longley hit a season-high .524 in a sweep of Norfolk State on Saturday.
Pair of Red Wolves Earn accolades
Arkansas State seniors, Markie Schaedig and Mallory Warrington, picked up right where they left off last season as the duo earned this week’s Defensive Player of the Week honors and Setter of the Week honors following their performances over the weekend.
Schaedig registered a solid start to the 2016 season with 60 digs for a 5.45 per set average over A-State’s three opening-weekend matches. She recorded 19 digs in each of the Red Wolves’ 3-0 wins over Northwestern State and North Carolina State before adding 22 more in the team’s final match of the TCU Invitational against TCU.
Warrington had a fantastic weekend leading the A-State offense as the team hit .241 across the three matches. She dished out 127 assists (11.55 per set) and also picked up double-doubles with double-digit digs against Northwestern State and TCU. She handed out 37 assists against both Northwestern State and North Carolina State before recording 53 against TCU.
Chants Sweep Opening Tournament
Coastal Carolina swept its way through the Miami/FIU Invitational this past weekend defeating all three opponents face by a score of 3-0. It is the second straight year during the Jozsef Forman era that the Chanticleers (3-0) are crowned champions of their season-opening tournament. The Chants return to action this weekend for the Notre Dame Invitational.
A First for the LR Program
When Little Rock takes the floor on Friday, it will be the first time the program has ever fielded a roster with more than 12 players. The Trojans will tout a roster of 13 this season, the largest in program history. With eight returners from 2015, three transfers and two freshmen joined this season’s squad.
Returning Stats for Trojans
With the majority of last year’s roster returning, the Trojans hope to build off last season’s numbers. Out of 1,224 kills last season, 94 percent of them are returning this year. On the defensive side, Little Rock recorded 459 total blocks last season with 424 of those (92 percent) coming from returning players.
Mountaineer Frosh Tallies 30 Kills in Debut
The Mountaineers (0-1) were led by freshman Emma Longley who recorded 30 kills and 13 digs in her freshman debut. Longley’s 30 kills are the most by a Mountaineer since former student-athlete and assistant coach Anna Wagner recorded 31 on Aug. 26, 2011 against NC State.
Red Wolves Look to Continue Success
The Red Wolves went 28-2 a season ago with a winning percentage of .933. That winning percentage is the second best in school history behind the 1988 team that went 41-1 that had a mark of .976. The NCAA Tournament appearance in 2015 was the fifth in school history and first since 1999.
Receiving AVCA Votes
A-State received votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Preseason Poll with 23 points that would rank them 34th. A-State’s third opponent of the weekend, TCU, is also receiving votes with three points.
LR’s Dillard Fifth in Total Blocks
Dillard leads the SBC in active leaders for blocks with 452. She currently stands fifth overall in the NCAA behind BYU’s Whitney Young Howard.
Two in Top Ten in Digs
Georgia Southern’s Alex Beecher and Arkansas State’s Schaedig are ranked fourth and seventh, respectively, on the career active leaders for digs in the NCAA. Beecher has 1,789 digs in 357 sets played while Schaedig has 1,604 in 349 sets.
All-Time Wins for Texas State’s Chisum
Head Coach Karen Chisum began her 37th season in 2016 and ranks sixth among NCAA Division I active coaches with 821 career victories. Only nine other NCAA coaches in all three NCAA Divisions have recorded 800 wins. Chisum enters the 2016 campaign with an 821-521-3 career record. TXST was picked to finish second in the West division.