University of North Texas Athletics
Volleyball prepares for two matches against Southern Miss
10/8/2021 12:42:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
DENTON — North Texas volleyball continues their three game homestead this weekend when they host Conference USA foe Southern Miss on Friday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at noon.
About the Mean Green: North Texas (9-8, 2-2) heads into the weekend series looking to shake off a loss to #12 Baylor and keep building on a modest two game conference winning streak.
So far, senior outside hitter Rhett Robinson has been leading the offensive charge for the Mean Green. She has a team-high 279 kills and a 5.26 kills per set average, both of which lead Conference USA. Her kills per set mark is also good for third best in the nation, while her total kills rank her sixth nationally. She also carries a .254 hitting percentage.
With graduate setter Kaliegh Skopal missing time, freshman setter Katie Butler has stepped up in her place. Butler posted a career high 54 kills in the first of two matches last weekend against Louisiana Tech. She followed that up with 42 more in the second match. After posting 10 more assists Wednesday night against Baylor, Butler has a total of 268 assists, second only to Skopal's team-leading 359.
Other Mean Green leaders: Sarah Haeussler has continued her push as one of the most efficient players for North Texas, hitting .348 on the year. Defensively, she continues to lead the Mean Green in blocks with 75.
Henrianna Ibarra has been one of the biggest contributors on defense for North Texas. She holds a team-leading 250 digs on the season. Not to be outdone, Aleeyah Galdeira has also been a solid player on the defensive end, posting 134 digs of her own on the season.
Scouting the Golden Eagles: Despite being picked to finish dead last in Conference USA's West Division in the annual Preseason Poll, Southern Miss (10-8, 2-2) has played well through the first half of the season. However, most of the Golden Eagles success has come in Hattiesburg. The team is a whopping 9-1 in matches played at home, but is just 1-7 in matches played away from Hattiesburg.
Series history: North Texas and Southern Miss have met 19 times on the court. This weekend's matches will be the 20th and 21st all time meetings between the two programs. North Texas leads the series11-8. Their most recent matchup was a 3-1 Mean Green win back on March 22, 2021.
Where to watch: Both matches will be streamed live on CUSA.tv.
