| Conference USA Tournament // Nov. 19-21 // ODU Volleyball Center | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match 26: UAB (11-13) | Fri., Nov. 19 | 4 p.m. CT | ESPN+ | ESPN 102.7 FM // Listen Live | Livestats | ||||
| Match 27: Semifinals | Sat., Nov. 20 | 1:30 p.m. CT | ESPN+ | ESPN 102.7 FM // Listen Live | Livestats | ||||
| Match 28: Championship | Sun., Nov. 21 | 10 a.m. CT | ESPN+ | ESPN 102.7 FM // Listen Live | Livestats | ||||
| Media Center | WKU | Championship Central | Hudson Preview Interview | Bracket | ||||
| Record Books | WKU | Conference USA | ||||
| Series History | UAB | UTEP | FIU | Rice | Charlotte | MTSU | North Texas | ||||
| Social Media | @WKUVolleyball  | @WKU Volleyball  | Facebook  | YouTube  | Tik Tok |
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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Following a bye weekend separating the regular season and Conference USA Tournament, WKU Volleyball is headed to Norfolk, Va., for the Old Dominion-hosted C-USA Tournament. While the host Monarchs did not make the eight-team field, the 18th-ranked Hilltoppers are making their eighth appearance in the postseason event in as many seasons since joining the league.
The top seed in the East Division, WKU's opening match of the weekend will come on Friday at 4 p.m. CT against UAB, the fourth seed from the West. A single-elimination event, C-USA Tournament action would continue on Saturday for the Hilltoppers with a win as the winner of Friday's match will face the winner of UTEP and FIU at 1:30 p.m. CT on day two of the tournament. A win on Saturday would advance the Red and White to Sunday's championship match, slated for 10 a.m. CT.
All C-USA Tournament matches will be available on ESPN+, for fans who elect to subscribe.
As is the case for every Hilltopper match this season, all the action will also be available on the radio with Brett Williams on the play-by-play call. Any matches the Hilltoppers play from Norfolk, Va., this weekend will air on ESPN Radio 102.7 FM.
C-USA CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Friday, November 19 - Quarterfinals
Match 1: Rice (1W) vs. Charlotte (4E) – 11 a.m. CT
Match 2: Middle Tennessee (2E) vs. North Texas (3W) – 1 p.m. CT
Match 3: WKU (1E) vs. UAB (4W) – 4 p.m. CT
Match 4: UTEP (2W) vs. FIU (3E) – 6 p.m. CT
Saturday, November 20 - Semifinals
Match 5: Match #1 Winner vs. Match #2 Winner – 11 a.m. CT
Match 6: Match #3 Winner vs. Match #4 Winner – 1:30 p.m. CT
Sunday, November 21 - Championship
Match 7: Match #5 Winner vs. Match #6 Winner – 10 a.m. CT
WKU's first round opponent, UAB, leads the all-time series with the Hilltoppers, 23-13, while the Tops have earned wins in the last three decisions. The Blazers visited Bowling Green back on Nov. 7, 2020, WKU's lone match of the calendar year for a non-conference tilt that the Hilltoppers swept. This season, UAB owns an 11-13 record including a 6-6 mark in C-USA play.
Since joining C-USA prior to the 2014 campaign, WKU holds an overall record of 18-1 in the league's tournament. The Hilltoppers are 6-0 in tournament championship matches, winning six of the seven possible championships as a C-USA member entering the 2021 event. In total, WKU has claimed 13 of 15 possible regular season and tournament championships entering the upcoming tournament.
The Hilltoppers closed the regular season with a 24-1 overall record, which included a 12-0 mark in league play to secure their seventh regular season championship in the conference. WKU is a combined 13-0 when playing away from home this season, including a 4-0 mark in neutral contests. Entering the tournament, the Tops have won their last 17 matches.
Middle hitter Lauren Matthews continues to lead the nation in hitting percentage, working at a .490 clip, while the team ranks second in the nation for hitting percentage (.342), third in winning percentage (.960) and fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.127).
The Tops have claimed the No. 18 spot in this week's AVCA rankings. WKU has now been ranked in 35-consecutive polls, dating back into the 2019 campaign.
TOP STORYLINES
- WKU has won 45-straight regular season Conference USA contests with their last loss dating back to October of 2018 – the longest streak across all of Division I volleyball.
- The Hilltoppers also own the longest road winning streak in all of NCAA Volleyball with 23-straight wins.
- WKU will look to extend its 17-match win streak.
- The Hilltoppers have only lost eight sets all season, with three coming against Ole Miss - the Tops' lone loss in 2021.
- WKU became the nation's first 20-win team this season back on Oct. 23. The Hilltoppers now own 22-consecutive 20-win seasons, the second longest active streak in NCAA Volleyball.
- WKU was predicted to win the East Division in the Conference USA Preseason Poll voted by the league's coaches. Paige Briggs, Nadia Dieudonne and Lauren Matthews were all selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team. After meeting in last year's tournament championship Rice was predicted to win the West Division again this season.
- Lauren Matthews leads the team in kills this season with 367. Matthews is currently 10th in all-time kills by a Hilltopper with 1,342. Additionally, she's just the fourth WKU player to reach the 400-block milestone in her career.
- Paige Briggs and Katie Isenbarger were tabbed to Conference USA's 11-member All-Academic Volleyball Team on Monday, Nov. 15. The honor marks the first for Isenbarger and second of Briggs' career on The Hill.
- WKU Volleyball is more accessible than ever with radio broadcasts for every match. The Tops are 1 of just 10 Division I Volleyball programs that currently have live radio for home and away matches.
