Volleyball | 10/5/2015 6:11:00 PM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Bobcats look to keep rising as UT Arlington comes to town for a Sun Belt Conference match, the seventh of the season for both teams.
 
Match Info: Texas State (10-8, 5-1 SBC) vs. UT Arlington (13-5, 4-2 SBC)
Site: Strahan Coliseum – San Marcos, Texas
Date: Tuesday, October 6 – 6:30 p.m.
 
The Series
Vs. UT Arlington: 31-41
Last Meeting: L, 3-0 (10/8/14)
 
In two matches last season, the Bobcats split with UT Arlington, beating UTA in five in San Marcos but falling in three in Arlington. While the Mavericks do have the overall advantage in the all-time series, 31-41, Texas State has won three of the last four matches and 12 of the last 15 matches dating back to 2008.
 
Still, UTA prevailed in the last meeting, largely on the power of blocks, outblocking Texas State, 9-2. The Bobcats did outserve the Mavs, 5-1, though. For Texas State, Lauren Kirch and Amanda Watkins led the team in kills with 12 apiece, but they were the only offensive threats in the match. No other Bobcat has more than five kills.
 
Ali Gonzales gave out 20 assists while Jordan Moore added 11. Keeley Davis and Brenna Lyles added two aces apiece while Alexandra Simms chipped in one. Defensively, Sierra Smith led the team with 10 digs, but Lyles and Shelby Vas Matt combined for 17 while Gonzales and Simms tallied seven apiece.
 
For UT Arlington, Qiana Canete led the team with 12 kills while Briana Sharratt had 10. In the 6-2 offense, Amanda Welsh gave out 23 assists and Cassidy Wheeler had 15. Taylor Story finished with 16 digs and Caitlyn Cooney tallied 15. Canete added 10 digs in the match.
 
On the Mavericks
UT Arlington comes into this match with two consecutive wins and five wins in the team's last seven. In fact, the Mavericks have 10 wins in the last 13 matches and they have started the season 13-5 with a winning record in conference play at 4-2. One of UTA's wins was a 3-1 victory against Little Rock in the team's most recent match, right after the Bobcats pulled off the same upset.
 
This past week, UTA has averaged 14.1 kills per set, three more kills per set than opponents. Qiana Canete has been on fire, averaging 4.25 kills per set, including a career-high 23 kills in the win over Little Rock. In addition to Canete, freshman middle blocker Marisah Ingram has made an impact as well, just breaking into the top-10 list for single-season kills by a freshman. She has 73 block assists and 77 total blocks.
 
The Mavericks have been strong when hitting a better percentage than their opponents, but their hands will be full against Texas State. The Bobcats are third in the Sun Belt Conference in team hitting percentage at .216. The Mavericks are fourth with a team percentage of .185.
 
Unlike in years past, UT Arlington is running a 5-1 with Cassidy Wheeler orchestrating the offense, giving out 670 assists this year. Canete and Stacey Koch are the main offensive weapons with 232 and 225 kills respectively. Zhanelle Geathers is the only other Maverick in triple digits with 115. Wheeler has 23 service aces this season while Canete has 15. Caitlyn Cooney and Geathers have combined for 21 aces.
 
Cooney leads the team in digs with 259. Second on the team is Canete with 199. At the net, the freshman Ingram leads the team in blocks with 77. Behind her is Geathers with 66 blocks and Koch with 59.
 
On the Bobcats
Texas State is feeling good at 5-1 in the Sun Belt Conference, currently sitting third behind undefeated Arkansas State (6-0) and Appalachian State (5-0). With six wins in the last seven matches, the Bobcats are looking to keep the momentum going before a five-match road trip.
 
So far, Texas State is standing out in the pack with Sierra Smith receiving Defensive Student-Athlete of the Week honors this week. She is second in the conference in digs during conference play. Morgan Lewis is second in blocks while Erin Hoppe leads the SBC in service aces.
 
The strong Bobcat defense coupled with a balanced offensive attack has kept opponents off balance. While Jordan Kohl leads the team in kills with 170, Shelby Vas Matt has 133 and Lewis has 106. After the top trio, there are four more Bobcats with 46 kills or more to prove that everyone is a threat for Texas State.
 
Hoppe is the one spreading the ball around to all the hitters with 431 assists on the season. She also leads Texas State in service aces with 25. The Bobcats have 50 more service aces than opponents this year, 92-42. Meanwhile, Texas State's record-holder in career digs, digs in a match and season digs, Smith has 249 for the season but is averaging 6.05 digs per set. At the net, Lewis leads the team with 66 blocks, doing most of the heavy lifting. Behind her, Kohl has 36. The Bobcats have outblocked opponents, 232-211.
 
A Look Ahead
The Bobcats take to the road after this match against UT Arlington. Texas State will start with a 7 p.m. match at Baylor on Friday followed by road conference matches at UT Arlington, Arkansas State, Troy and South Alabama.