Volleyball | 9/30/2015 3:14:00 PM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State prepares for a big weekend as the Bobcats host defending Sun Belt Conference Champion Little Rock Trojans on Thursday followed by a Saturday match against the Georgia Southern Eagles in which Texas State will honor the 10^th anniversary of the team's 2005 Southland Conference Championship.
 
Match 1 Info: Texas State (8-8, 3-1 SBC) vs. Little Rock (7-6, 3-0 SBC)
Site: Strahan Coliseum – San Marcos, Texas
Date: Thursday, October 1 – 6:30 p.m.
 
Match 2 Info: Texas State (8-8, 3-1 SBC) vs. Georgia Southern (5-10, 0-3 SBC)
Site: Strahan Coliseum – San Marcos, Texas
Date: Saturday, October 3 – 12 p.m.
 
The Series
Vs. Little Rock: 2-4
Last Meeting: L, 3-0 (11/29/14)
 
The Bobcats have only played Little Rock six times in their histories, winning two of the first three matches but falling in the last three. All three of those losses came last season as the Bobcats fell in four on the road, in three at home and was swept at home in the Sun Belt Conference Championship match.
 
No Bobcat had more than Jordan Kohl's eight kills in the match while Shelby Vas Matt and Lauren Kirch each had seven kills. Caylin Mahoney gave out 21 assists in the three-setter while Vas Matt and Sierra Smith combined for 23 digs.
 
Little Rock's top two hitters in the match combined for 38 kills, but neither players is still with the team. Outside of them, the top Trojan had six kills in the match. Little Rock did outblock Texas State, 13-7.
 
Vs. Georgia Southern: 2-0
Last Meeting: W, 3-0 (11/22/14)
 
The only meetings between Georgia Southern and Texas State in the series took place last season with the Bobcats coming out on top in both matches. The Bobcats swept the Eagles both home and away and won the last match, 25-14, 25-15, 25-22.
 
It was the last match of the regular season, and Texas State outserved GS, four aces to one, and outblocked the Eagles, 13-5. Jordan Kohl led the team with 11 kills while Shelby Vas Matt had 10. Caylin Mahoney gave out 31 assists. Lauren Kirch had seven blocks to lead the team while Sierra Smith led the squad in digs with eight.
 
On the Trojans
Little Rock comes to San Marcos undefeated in conference action, but the Trojans have struggled on the road with a 1-3 record. Outside of conference play, Little Rock's wins came against Central Arkansas, North Texas, Tennessee Tech and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
 
Middle blocker Edina Selimovic leads the team in offense with 160 kills for a 3.48 kills per set average. After her, stands Carolee Dillard with 112 kills and new addition Marina Avram with 111 kills. Setter Megan Mathis has given out 438 assists while Priscila Almeida has 234 digs for a 5.09 digs per set average. Selimovic leads the team in service aces with 13 while Sydnee Martin has 12 and Kelsey Leech has 11. Avram is the other Trojan with double-digit aces with 10. Dillard leads the team in blocks with 55, but Selimovic as 47 to both average more than a block per set.
 
On the Eagles
Georgia Southern has dropped four consecutive matches coming into this weekend and seven of the last nine matches. The Eagles are winless in the young conference season, falling to Little Rock, UL Monroe and South Alabama.
 
They have a two-pronged offensive attack behind Stephanie Spencer (149 kills) and Megan Chevalier (148 kills). They are the only Eagles that are in triple-digits in kills. The team has split the setting duties with 316 assists for Katie Bange and 246 for Kat Minnerly. Alex Beecher has 20 service aces while Bange and Avery Stephens have 12 aces each. Beecher leads the team in digs with 324 at 5.59 digs per set while Bange has 119 and Stephens has 110. At the net, Lauren Reichard leads the team with 59 blocks while Crysten Curry has 55.
 
On the Bobcats
Texas State had a strong start to Sun Belt action, winning the team's first three matches. One of those wins came on the road in a sweep of Georgia State, but the Bobcats fell on the back end of the road trip to Appalachian State. Other than the loss to App State, the Bobcats had won four consecutive matches.
 
Jordan Kohl leads the squad in kills with 152 while Shelby Vas Matt has 116. After that top duo, there are four Bobcats with 56 kills or more. Erin Hoppe has given out 370 assists with a team-high 18 service aces. Vas Matt is second on the team with 14 service aces. Sierra Smith leads the team in digs with 205, but Vas Matt has 102 and Kelsey Weynand has 110 digs. Morgan Lewis leads in blocks with 52 while Kohl has 31.
 
A Look Ahead
The Bobcats will follow this weekend by hosting UT Arlington in a conference match at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday and will travel to Waco for a 7 p.m. match on Friday. After that, Texas State sticks to the road for four consecutive matches at UT Arlington, Arkansas State, Troy and South Alabama.