Complete Notes

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State will take on No. 1 Texas in Austin at Gregory Gym in the opening round of the NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship Tournament at 7 p.m. Thursday. The winner will face the winner between No. 2 Texas A&M and No. 3 UTSA at 7 p.m. Friday.
 
The Bobcats have had tough sledding against Texas in the all-time series with the Longhorns holding a 44-20-2 advantage over Texas State. The Bobcats last beat the Longhorns in a 3-2 victory (15-8, 2-15, 14-16, 15-5, 15-8) on Sept. 5, 2000. Head Coach Karen Chisum is 1-23 against Texas in her career.
 
This will be the fifth time the Bobcats have gone up against Texas in the opening round of the tournament and the fourth consecutive meeting in the tournament's first round for Texas State, playing the Longhorns in 2007, '09 and '11 as well as in 2004.
 
Texas State last took a set off Texas in 2008 in a 3-1 loss to Texas, just three matches ago. Since 2000, the Bobcats have claimed four sets in 10 matches.
 
The Bobcats will have to be prepared for the top two hitters from Texas, Haley Eckerman and Bailey Webster. The two have combined for 679 kills on the season for more than 54 percent of the team's kills. In the middle, Khat Bell and Molly McCage have combined for 209 blocks and are averaging more than 1.2 blocks per set each.
 
Texas State is coming off a strong performance in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, only dropping one set in three matches. Caylin Mahoney put together a Most Outstanding Player performance while Amari Deardorff and Ashlee Hilbun also were named to the All-Tournament Team. Deardorff played her strongest match of the season with 17 kills and no errors for a career high in hitting percentage with a .680. Those three should be a formidable trio for the Longhorns.
 
Fans will be able to follow live stats here and live video on the Longhorn Network here. Live audio will still be carried at Texas State's website at www.txstatebobcats.com/radio and on 89.9 KTSW. Bobcat fans can also catch twitter updates throughout each match at Texas State Volleyball's twitter account: @TexasStateVball.
 
The Austin Sub-Regional tournament homepage is here and fans can purchase tickets here.
 
NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship Tournament Info
Site: Gregory Gym – Austin, Texas
Date: Thursday, Dec. 5 – Friday, Dec. 6
Complete Notes
Tournament Homepage
Live Stats: NCAA.com
Live Audio: txstatebobcats.com/radio
Live Video/TV: Longhorn Network