Friday, August 29
Commerce, Texas
10 AM CT
University of North Texas
vs
Little Rock
Volleyball Opens Season Friday at Lion Invitational
8/28/2025 10:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
COMMERCE, Texas –UNT volleyball opens its 50th season Friday at the Lion Invitational versus Little Rock. First serve is set for 10 a.m. with live video coverage on East Texas A&M's website.
The Mean Green will also meet Providence on Friday at 4 p.m. and hosts, East Texas A&M, Saturday at 2 p.m. with streaming coverage of the finale against the Lions on ESPN+.
"Our group has been working hard this summer, and we cannot wait to get on the court Friday," first-year head coach Dave Fleming said. "We feel really good going into opening weekend and are excited to compete against three talented teams."
NEW YEAR, NEW SQUAD
LION INVITATIONAL PREVIEW
The Mean Green will also meet Providence on Friday at 4 p.m. and hosts, East Texas A&M, Saturday at 2 p.m. with streaming coverage of the finale against the Lions on ESPN+.
"Our group has been working hard this summer, and we cannot wait to get on the court Friday," first-year head coach Dave Fleming said. "We feel really good going into opening weekend and are excited to compete against three talented teams."
NEW YEAR, NEW SQUAD
- Armed with eight returners, including three seniors, Fleming added eight newcomers to his roster
- The Mean Green return the second-lowest percentage of kills (18.6%) in the American Conference behind only Memphis at 11.4%
- Sophomore outside hitters Tatum Busch (Tarleton State) and Jahniya Jackson (Georgia State) add 161 and 158 career kills, respectively, to the Mean Green roster
- Opposite hitters Lilly Croshaw (Illinois State) and Reese Watters (Arkansas State) look to carve out contributing roles after underutilized freshmen campaigns at previous schools
- Along with 4A Texas state champion setter Sidney Soria (Randall High School), liberos Dakota Mitchell (Kolona, Iowa) and Alessandra Romo (McKinney, Texas) joined the roster as incoming freshmen
LION INVITATIONAL PREVIEW
- Friday's opening match against Little Rock will mark the 26th in program history and first since the former Sun Belt and Southland Conference rivals last met in 2016
- Last season, the Trojans finished sixth in the Ohio Valley Conference with a league record of 11-7
- UNT have won three of the past four meetings against Little Rock but trail the series 9-16 overall
- Friday evening's match marks the second-ever meeting versus Providence
- North Texas fell to the Friars in a five-set thriller on Sept. 2, 2022, at the UTA Classic in Arlington, Texas
- Saturday's tournament finale against East Texas A&M will mark the 29th meeting in program history, tied for 12th-most in UNT history
- The Mean Green have swept the previous two contests – both held at neutral-site venues – with wins in 2022 and 2023
- UNT has not visited Commerce since Sept. 9, 1986, and leads the series 17-11
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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