Tops Look to Extend Hot Streak Into C-USA Tournament

CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL | WKU NOTES | BONE MARROW REGISTRY

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Beginning Friday, WKU Volleyball will commence play in the 2018 Air Force Reserve Conference USA Volleyball Championship from Huntington, W.Va. as the No. 2 seed. Entering postseason with the No. 2 seed for the second-consecutive season, Head coach Travis Hudson and company are seeking a program-record fifth-straight automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. The Lady Toppers finished the regular season with a 20-9 overall record including an 11-3 reading in league action.

MATCH INFORMATION:
Friday – vs. Southern Miss – 4 p.m. CT | ESPN+ | Livestats
Saturday – Semifinals – 1:30 p.m. CT | ESPN+ | Livestats
Sunday – Championship – 11 a.m. CT | ESPN+ | Livestats

2018 C-USA CHAMPIONSHIP SEEDS
No. 1 – Rice (21-6; 12-2 C-USA)
No. 2 – WKU (20-9; 11-3 C-USA)
No. 3 – UTSA (19-7; 11-3 C-USA)
No. 4 – Florida Atlantic (21-6; 11-3 C-USA)
No. 5 – North Texas (15-15; 11-3 C-USA)
No. 6 – FIU (17-11; 9-5 C-USA)
No. 7 – Southern Miss (16-14; 7-7 C-USA)
No. 8 – Charlotte (16-14; 6-8 C-USA)

The No. 1 seed a year ago, North Texas enters the postseason with a league-best seven match winning streak. WKU owns the next best mark coming in with wins in each of its last six matches. During that stretch, the Lady Toppers defeated the then second place team in C-USA in UTSA and Florida Atlantic. The Red and White finished the regular season in a four-way tie for second place, ending a seven year streak of claiming a regular season title.

In the regular-season meeting between WKU and its semifinal opponent, Southern Miss, the Lady Toppers claimed a five-set marathon over the Golden Eagles in Hattiesburg, Miss. Rachel Anderson led the Red and White with 17 kills while Kayland Jackson (11) and Lauren Matthews (10) also hit double figures. Payton Frederick posted a match-high 22 digs. WKU recorded 11 aces in the win.

WKU leads the all-time series against Southern Miss 6-1 including victories in each of the last six meetings. In the first-ever meeting with the Golden Eagles – a neutral site contest – USM claimed a five-set victory.

Since joining Conference USA, WKU Volleyball has won all four tournaments for an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. After finishing in a tie for second place in the regular season, WKU will look to collect its ninth C-USA Championship over the last five season in the form of the league's postseason tournament.

Tickets for the Conference USA Tournament are on sale now and can be purchased online here. The Marshall ticket office can also be reached at 800-THE-HERD.

BONE MARROW DONOR REGISTRY: SIGN UP
As former Lady Topper Volleyball All-American Alyssa Cavanaugh continues her battle with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), WKU Athletics has teamed up with Be The Match and the Cavanaugh family to host a Bone Marrow Donor registry event to find a donor for Alyssa.

Fans can use their phones to text "Cure154" to 61474 to begin the sign-up process.

The online registration process takes less than 10 minutes. Once registered, a cheek swab kit will be sent to your address within 3-7 business days. When the kit arrives, swab the inside of your cheek and return it then sit back and wait to be called if you are a match.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE LADY TOPPERS:
For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU.

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Players Mentioned

Rachel Anderson

Alyssa Cavanaugh

Payton Frederick

Kayland Jackson

Lauren Matthews