KINGSVILLE, Texas – With the first weekend of the season in the books and owners of a 4-0 record, the Texas A&M-Kingsville women's volleyball team is preparing to hit the road for the second straight week, and the schedule first takes them to Arkadelphia, Arkansas, where they'll take on the Ouachita Baptist Tigers on Wednesday at 4 p.m. at the Tiger Volleyball Court.
Next, the Javs will journey to Wichita Falls, Texas for the Midwestern State Hampton Inn-vitational at the D. L. Ligon Coliseum, where, on Friday, they'll tangle with the Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds at 11:30 a.m. and the Midwestern State Mustangs at 4:30 p.m. The Saturday slate will then see the Javelinas square off with the Arkansas Tech Golden Suns at 9 a.m. and the No. 22 Colorado Mesa Mavericks at 11:30 a.m.
This marks the third straight season in which TAMUK has started 4-0 and the fifth time they've accomplished that under coach Tanya Allen. One of the key factors in TAMUK reaching that mark again has been the play of junior Kailey Estrada (San Antonio, Texas). Her 15 total blocks were a team-high during the season's first weekend and she also posted the squad's best hitting percentage at .333. During the Javs' two wins on Saturday, Estrada tallied 10 rejections with 23 kills at a clip of .432.
Junior Nicole Murff (San Antonio, Texas) has returned to her usual role as libero and picked up right where she left off following a spring season that earned her an all-conference selection. No one in the Lone Star Conference collected more digs than Murff's 89 and she was at her best in TAMUK's first match, when she accumulated 35 scoops in a come-from-behind effort against Western Colorado. Murff also sits atop the team leaderboard in aces with eight.
This trip will give the Javelinas an early look at two of their LSC foes in ENMU and MSU. Neither of these two teams appeared on TAMUK's spring schedule and when the Javs meet each squad on Friday, it will be their first encounter since 2019. Both the Greyhounds and the Mustangs are heading into the season's second week searching for their first victory.
Perhaps the most intriguing matchup on the docket for TAMUK is their final contest of the week against the 22nd-ranked Mavericks. Saturday's showdown represents the first time the programs have ever met and the Javs will have to contend with a CMU crew that posted a 15-1 record in the spring and reached NCAA Regionals as recently as 2018. The Mavs also benefit from the return of six players who were named all-conference a season ago and they're aiming for what would be the program's eighth NCAA Tournament appearance under coach Dave Fleming.
Javelinaathletics.com is where fans can go for complete coverage of every upcoming match, with links to live stats and live video and a recap at the end of each contest. Keep up with Javelina volleyball all season long by following @Javelina_VB and @JavelinaSports on Twitter, @JavelinaVB and @JavelinaSports on Instagram, liking TAMUK Volleyball on Facebook, subscribing to the Javelina Athletics YouTube Channel and visiting Javelinaathletics.com.
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