No. 25 Hilltoppers Open CUSA Action Against UTEP

UTEP Series // Sept. 22-23 // Diddle Arena
Match 15: UTEP (8-3)	Fri., Sept. 22 \| 6 p.m. CT \| ESPN+ \| Varsity Radio Network // Listen Live \| Livestats
Match 16: UTEP	Sat., Sept. 23 \| 12 p.m. CT \| ESPN+ \| Varsity Radio Network // Listen Live \| Livestats
Tickets	Flexible Ticket Package \| Single game tickets are also available at entrance 2 ($6 adults, $3 youth)
Promotions	HAF Weekend + 4 for 4 Promotion All HAF members receive free entry to the match + 1 free ticket Volleyball 4 for 4: If fans attend both matches in a weekend series, they will be entered into a drawing to win a suite for a Hilltopper Basketball game during the 2023 season. Ticket stubs will be collected at the marketing table and a winner will be drawn at the end of the season.
Game Notes	WKU \| UTEP
Series History	WKU leads all-time series, 12-0 \| Full History
Social Media	@WKUVolleyball \| @WKU Volleyball \| Facebook \| YouTube \| Tik Tok

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -- Capping on a five-match win streak and back into the AVCA top-25 poll, No. 25 WKU Volleyball opens up Conference USA action against preseason No. 2 voted UTEP, Friday and Saturday, September 22 and 23 inside Diddle Arena. Friday's match is set for a 6 p.m. first serve, while Saturday's contest is slated for a matinee beginning at noon.

Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+ with Scott Thompson on play-by-play and Ken Marshall as color analyst. As is the case for every Hilltopper match this season, all the action will also be available on the Varsity Radio Network with Reily Chestnut on the audio call.

The Hilltoppers garnered their way back into the AVCA Top 25, tying for 25th with Iowa State after the Tops went a perfect 4-0 last week. In the inaugural Alyssa Cavanaugh Classic, the Tops took care of Ball State, ETSU, and Western Michigan in a combined 11 sets, as Paige Briggs broke the program record for most kills in a single match with a 35-kill outing against the Broncos on Saturday.

The No. 25 Tops "swept" the CUSA weekly awards this week, as Briggs (offensive), setter Callie Bauer (setter), and middle hitter Gabby Weihe (freshman) all received Player of the Week nods from their performances for the Red and White.

UTEP was voted to finish second in the Conference USA preseason coaches' poll. The Miners are off to a 8-3 non-conference start, including a ranked win against [RV] Washington in the first weekend of the season. Head coach Ben Wallis and the Miners are working with a .266 hitting clip, averaging 12.3 kills a set on offense. On the other side of the net, UTEP leads Conference USA with 2.50 blocks a game, totaling 110.0 blocks on the season.

PARKING
Fans can park in Parking Structure 2 (located between the football stadium and E.A. Diddle Arena) and enter through the Gate 2 entrance.

TICKETS
Flexible season ticket packages are on sale now and include 15 vouchers that fans can use at any regular-season home match in whatever fashion they choose. Fans can opt for the traditional use of one ticket for all home matches or bring a group to a few matches. Flexible ticket packages are available for $50 at WKUTickets.com, by calling 1-800-5-BIGRED or by coming to the WKU Ticket Office during regular business hours.

Single match tickets are available at only entrance 2 on game day. Save 20% on single-match tickets when you buy online in advance.

TOP STORYLINES

WKU has been predicted to win the conference title in the Conference USA Preseason Poll voted by the league's coaches. Callie Bauer, Paige Briggs, Kaylee Cox, and Kenadee Coyle, were all selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team. Briggs was tabbed Preseason Player of the Year. After a third place finish in 2022, UTEP was predicted to finish second.
WKU Volleyball is ranked 25th in AVCA Coaches Poll this week. After being in the ranks and receiving votes earlier this season, the Hilltoppers have now been ranked in the top 25 in 12 of the last 13 seasons and received votes for 13 consecutive campaigns.
After a sweep over Austin Peay in the Tops' final midweek of the non-conference schedule, WKU went 3-0 in the inaugural Alyssa Cavanaugh Classic sweeping ETSU and taking Ball State and Western Michigan into four.
Paige Briggs broke the program record of kills in a single match, with her 35-kill outing against Western Michigan last Saturday. The fifth-year outside hitter currently leads the nation of most kills in a single four-set match this season.
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.
Picking up a 10-4 record so far on the year, the Hilltoppers picked up their first win in 2023 with a marquee 3-1 victory over No. 12 Marquette in Dayton, Ohio. It was the first Top-15 win for the Red and White since 2015.
A strong offense to head coach Travis Hudson's Hilltoppers, the Tops lead Conference USA in total kills (678) and kills/set (13.84).
In the program's first education day, WKU tied for the fifth-largest crowd inside Diddle Arena for volleyball with 2,737 fans in the stands and children from Warren County and Bowling Green City Schools.

How to Follow WKU Volleyball: For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook.

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Players Mentioned

Callie Bauer

Paige Briggs

Kaylee Cox

Kenadee Coyle

Gabby Weihe