Sept. 27, 2007

UTSA/TAMUCC Game Notes

NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Debbie Humphreys will bring her Ladyjacks back into Southland Conference play this weekend as they host UT-San Antonio and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. SFA is riding a six-match win streak after picking up a 3-0 win over UT-Pan American on Tuesday.

SFA (12-5, 2-0) is on fire as of late, winning 11 of its last 12 matches, and even having a game-point opportunity in the one loss in the middle of that stretch. A pair of Ladyjacks made history in the last three matches with the latest being Lauren Railey, who became only the fifth Ladyjack to ever go over the 1,000-kill and 1,000-dig marks for her career on Tuesday. Traci Rohde became only the third Ladyjack to ever record 1,000 kills and 400 blocks in a career last Friday against Northwestern State.

The Roadrunners (7-11, 0-2) entered 2007 knowing that youth would play a dramatic role in this year's events, and that has been the case with seven of its 11 losses coming via sweep. They have lost their last three matches, including starting off 0-2 in SLC play; however, they did start off with a pair of the tougher teams in the SLC - Texas State and UT-Arlington. Victoria Prior and Kendra Rowland will be the offensive keys for UTSA, ranking second and third in the Southland in kills; however, the team shows a dramatic drop off after those two as the team only ranks ninth overall in the conference in that category.

The Islanders (3-11, 0-2) will be taking on SFA for only the third time ever, having fallen twice in 2006. Kimberly Martinez's squad turned in a record of 7-21 last season and has not fared much better in '07, having lost their last five matches to drop to 3-11 on the year. Defense is the team's specialty as they currently stand ranked third in the Southland Conference with 17.89 digs per game; senior libero Laura North is also the top individual in the conference in that category, pacing the league and sitting seventh in the nation with 6.23 digs per game. She is the only player in the SLC that averages over six digs a game.

What to watch for:

• With one more win, Debbie Humphreys will garner her 450th win of her career. She currently is 449-205 in her career (.686) and 231-59 (.798) in Southland Conference matches for her career.

• SFA will put its 53-match SLC win streak on the line, looking to increase that total to 55 in a row by week's end. The team is quickly closing in on the record in the Southland Conference with that streak as UT-Arlington still holds the record. The Lady Mavs won 58 straight in conference play before having that run halted in 1991.

• After this weekend's matches, the Ladyjacks will hit the road for six straight matches. They will not play at home again until October 23 against Sam Houston. It is the longest road trip after conference play has started SFA has had since 2004.

• UTSA has had its share of problems with SFA, particularly Traci Rohde and Lauren Railey. In six matches against UTSA, Rohde has averaged 3.17 kills per game, 1.70 blocks per game and is hitting at a .306 clip - in six wins. Railey has taken on UTSA four times in two years, getting at least 17 kills three times. She averages 3.70 kills a game with a .286 attack percentage against the Roadrunners.

• Victoria Prior and Kendra Rowland rank second and third in the SLC in kills, but will be going up against an SFA defense that ranks second in the league in blocks with 2.72 a game.