Cajuns Seek to Continue Climb Up Sun Belt Standings

Contact: Matt Hebert

TROY, Ala. – The Ragin' Cajuns volleyball team seeks to build on the momentum gained from last weekend's sweep of the Arkansas schools at Earl K. Long Gym in Sun Belt play this weekend on the Alabama road trip.

They will get an early wake up call here Saturday morning to jumpstart the trip. Louisiana (13-11, 4-4 Sun Belt) meets Troy (16-8, 7-2 Sun Belt) at 9:30 a.m. at Sartain Hall on the Troy campus.

The match with the Trojans is the first of two on the trek through the state of Alabama. On Sunday, UL travels south on Interstate 65 for a 1 p.m., matinee in Mobile against South Alabama (12-11, 5-4 Sun Belt).

Live coverage of both matches is available on RaginCajuns.com.

Last weekend the Cajuns were in need of two wins to stay in the race for a berth in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament and West division title. They accomplished that task with resounding wins over Arkansas State and UALR, the latter in straight sets.

This weekend, the challenge is to find success on the road in order to sustain the steady climb up the league standings. Depending on the outcomes of other matches, UL has the opportunity to slide into first place in the SBC West. The Cajuns trail co-division leaders ASU and UALR by one game.

Louisiana's task is not short order. The Cajuns face arguably two of the hottest teams in the Sun Belt Conference.

Troy has tied their school record for Sun Belt victories in a season. South Alabama is one win shy of tying their school record for Sun Belt victories. The Trojans have won four straight matches. The Jaguars had won four of their previous six matches before falling 3-1 (21-25, 24-26, 25-17, 24-26) at Troy on Thursday.

But, head coach Heather Mazeitis-Fontenot is equipped with a team on a “hot streak” of their own.

Louisiana has won three straight matches and claimed victories in nine of the 10 sets during the run. UL has re-discovered its groove offensively also, hitting well above .200 in each of the last three outings.

During the current win streak, the Cajuns are averaging 15.20 kills per set, hitting .252, scooping up 15.60 digs per set and have five players averaging over two kills per set.

Louisiana is 2-2 on the road in Sun Belt play this season. UL swept UL-Monroe and defeated FIU in four sets. Both road losses in SBC play came in five-set affairs at North Texas and Florida Atlantic.

Staying in the race for the SBC West title, is nice prize for the Cajuns to aim for. However, the group's main focus is assuring themselves a spot in the upcoming Sun Belt Conference Tournament.

“We have to play every match as if it's our last one,” Mazeitis-Fontenot remarked on the team's mindset as the season stretch run approaches. “Right now, our players are focused on how great we can be. They are reminded of last season and how we were shut out of the conference tournament on a tie-breaking procedure. They want to 'leave no doubt'.

“Everything we're talking about right now points toward the conference tournament,” Mazeitis-Fontenot added. “It's not about the West division title. It's about one match at a time, how can we make this great and if in the end we win the West Division, that's great.”

Saturday's match with Troy is the Cajuns' second outing of the week. Louisiana stepped out of SBC play on Tuesday and renewed a rivalry with former league foe UNO in New Orleans. UL swept the Privateers 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-22) for the eighth sweep of the year and third straight victory.

In that match at the Human Performance Center, senior setter Mandi Gavin eclipsed 3,000 career assists becoming only the fourth player in program history to reach the mark.

Kelly Wiesmann has been the Cajuns' hottest hitter during the current win streak. Wiesmann is averaging 3.40 kills per set and hitting .256. That's vaulted her into second on the squad in kills per set at 2.29 for the season.

The balanced attack that's put UL back on track after the split of the Florida road swing is the one advantage that the squad has as league play continues. For the season, five Cajuns attackers are averaging at least 1.97 kills per set. Lavinia Tataran leads the charge at 2.61 kills per set.

The Cajuns serve the opponent tough. Louisiana leads the Sun Belt Conference in service aces, with 141, and have a quartet of players with 20-plus aces – Mandi Gavin (30), Andrea Hole (30), Taylor Meade (25) and Lavinia Tataran (24).

Libero Caitlyn Auxilien and Meade (defensive specialist) anchor the back row defensive efforts. Auxilien has reached double figures in digs 19 times and averaged 4.06 per set. Auxilien is 34 digs shy of becoming only the third player in the rally scoring era to reach 400 digs in a single season (Erika Castro and Lindsay Brown the others).

UL's defense – which features a serve receive that's committed only 83 reception errors through 88 sets – has held the opposition below .200 hitting in each of the past five matches. During the streak, the Cajuns held FIU to .047 and UNO to .041.

The Trojans, who are second in both the overall league standings and in the East Division, enter Saturday's match on a six-match winning streak at home. Troy is 6-1 at home this season with the lone loss coming to Auburn.

Troy is led by a pair of players, Blair Winston (3.87) and Kayla Pickart (3.75), who average over 3.00 kills per set in Sun Belt play. Junior setter Alexandra Alexander leads the conference with 11.53 assists per set in conference play as she has topped the 50-assists mark twice in eight matches and the 40-assists mark four times.

Troy leads the all-time series with Louisiana 6-4. The Trojans have claimed all four previous outings at Sartain Hall between the two programs. Last season, Troy posted a 3-1 (16-25, 25-11, 25-17, 25-19) win at Sartain Hall on Sept. 25, 2011.

South Alabama continues to be led offensively by Melissa Waelter. The sophomore outside hitter leads the club and ranks ninth in the most recent Sun Belt standings in kills with 3.16 per set. True freshman Savannah Stewart paces the club in total kills (241) and is second with 2.80 kills per set.

Junior libero Jenna Hassell's 4.03 digs per set not only lead the Jaguars but also rank seventh in the conference. As a team, the Jaguars rank third in the Sun Belt in that same category, as they average 15.37 per set. USA is also ffith in the league in hitting percentage (.205).

The meeting at USA on Sunday marks the 43^rd all-time against the Jaguars. UL holds a 31-11 advantage and has won eight of the last 12 meetings dating back to 2003. UL is 11-7 vs. USA in Mobile. Last season the Jaguars posted a 3-1 (25-23, 25-16, 21-25, 25-14) win at Jaguar Gym.

For all of the latest news and information on Ragin' Cajuns Athletics, visit RaginCajuns.com. Fans can also follow the athletics department on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/ULRaginCajuns along with @ULRaginCajuns on Twitter.

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Cajuns Seek to Continue Climb Up Sun Belt Standings

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