COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Coming off its longest break of the year, Texas A&M volleyball returns to Reed Arena for its final home stand of the 2019 regular season. The Aggies (18-6, 10-4) take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs (13-14, 2-13) before turning their attention to Ole Miss for senior day on Sunday. The match against Mississippi State is streamed live on SEC Network+ and the ESPN app, with Casey Richardson and Chelsea Reber on the call. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m.
Texas A&M received votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll for the fifth straight week and stands at No. 15 in the NCAA RPI ranking, which orders teams based off of their strength of schedule.
The Aggies remain in College Station following a midweek sweep of the Auburn Tigers last Wednesday night. Since A&M’s decisive home victory last Wednesday night, the Aggies have spent the last eight days recovering and preparing for the final four games of the 2019 season.
Senior outside hitter Hollann Hans served as the driving force behind A&M’s victory over Auburn, compiling a match-high 14 kills and 11 digs. The Corpus Christi native notched her third consecutive double-double, bringing her season total to nine and career total to 84. The senior captain also dominated from behind the service line, landing four aces in the sweep.
A&M’s middle blocker tandem of Makena Patterson and Mallory Talbert came up big on the offensive side of the court, recording nine and six kills, respectively. Patterson finished the evening hitting at a .471 clip, one of the strongest attacking performances on the night.
Junior setter Camille Conner dished out 26 assists to go along with eight digs, three kills and a pair of service aces. Under Conner’s leadership, the Aggies were able to record 50.0 points and fire down 43 kills as a team.
Defensively, the Aggies were led by freshman defensive specialist Karly Basham and senior libero Camila Gomez, who tallied nine and eight digs, respectively.
The Mississippi State Bulldogs return to College Station for the first time since 2017, currently sporting a 13-14 overall record, and a 2-13 mark in conference play. The Bulldogs currently sit in the No. 12 position in the SEC standings.
The Bulldogs are led statistically by a pair of sophomore middle blockers, Gabby Waden and Deja Robinson. Waden leads her team in points (342.5), points per set (3.53), kills (312) and kills per set (3.06). Robinson serves as Mississippi State’s defensive stalwart, recording 96 blocks on the season.
Texas A&M remains undefeated against Mississippi State in volleyball, booking an 11-0 record following a four-set win over the Bulldogs in Starkville earlier this year. All 11 matches have occurred since the Aggies joined the SEC.
