Weekend Set in Arkansas Awaits @RaginCajunsVB

LAFAYETTE – Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Volleyball returns to Sun Belt West Division play on the road as the squad travels to Arkansas for matchups with Arkansas State and Little Rock.

The Ragin' Cajuns (10-10, 2-4 Sun Belt) will be in Jonesboro on Friday to meet ASU at First National Bank Arena, then travel to Little Rock to meet the Trojans at the Jack Stephens Center on Saturday.

Both contests on the road trip are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.

Louisiana seeks to build off of a strong finish to last weekend's Troy-South Alabama homestand. The Ragin' Cajuns hit their Sun Belt-play best of .275 in defeating the Jaguars in four sets on Saturday to round out the weekend.

The weekend also presents an opportunity for Louisiana to gain ground in the SBC West standings. Louisiana trails Little Rock (11-8, 3-3 Sun Belt) by one game and is tied with Arkansas State (10-9, 2-4 Sun Belt) for fourth.

Libero Sydney Davis could achieve a personal milestone as she enters the weekend 43 digs shy of surpassing Lindsay Brown for the rally scoring era lead in career digs.

Fans can follow all of the action by accessing the live stats and live video links at RaginCajuns.com/VBSchedule and with updates posted on the team's Twitter account (@RaginCajunsVB).

THE MATCHES
Match 21: Louisiana (10-10, 2-4 Sun Belt) at Arkansas State (10-9, 2-4 Sun Belt)
Friday, Oct. 12 • 6:30 p.m. (CDT) • First National Bank Arena (10,563) • Jonesboro, Ark.
Series: Arkansas State leads 46-15
Last Meeting: 10/15/2017 in Jonesboro, Ark. – ASU W, 3-1 (25-15, 25-21, 21-25, 25-22)
Live Video ($) | Live Stats

Match 22: Louisiana (10-10, 2-4 Sun Belt) at Little Rock (11-8, 3-3 Sun Belt)
Saturday, Oct. 13 • 6:30 p.m. (CDT) • Jack Stephens Center (5,600) • Little Rock, Ark.
Series: Little Rock leads 37-11
Last Meeting: 10/13/2017 in Little Rock, Ark. – Louisiana W, 3-2 (27-25, 25-23, 23-25, 23-25, 15-12)
Live Video ($) | Live Stats

ABOUT LOUISIANA
Louisiana returned five starters from the 2017 season highlighted by three returning All-Sun Belt Conference performers in middle blocker Dree'Ana Abram, libero Sydney Davis and 2017 SBC Freshman of the Year Hali Wisnoskie.

The Ragin' Cajuns added a talented group of eight newcomers headlined by freshmen Kelsey Bennett (5-11, OH, Allen, Texas) and Desiree Johnson (5-11, RS, Forney, Texas) who have been inserted into the rotation. Louisiana is utilizing a 6-2 offense for the first time in the Heather Mazeitis-Fontenot era with setters Avery Breaux and Milayne Danna directing the offense.

SET POINTS

The Arkansas schools return Louisiana's visit during the final weekend of the regular season (Nov. 9-11).
The Ragin' Cajuns are 1-1 against SBC West Division foes. The squad split four-set matches against UT Arlington and Texas State the opening weekend of conference play.
The Ragin' Cajuns are 9-10 vs. Little Rock with Heather Mazeitis-Fontenot, the most wins by any coach in program history in the series.
Hali Wisnoskie has reached double digits in kills three straight matches – her longest streak since opening the season in double digits the first 10 matches. She has hit the mark 15 times in 20 outings this season. She owns 33 career matches of double-digit kills.
During the streak of three straight matches with double digit kills, Hali Wisnoskie has scored 46 kills (3.54/set) on a .295 hitting percentage.
Avery Breaux has posted a double-double five times in the past seven outings (since San Diego State match). During the streak, she is averaging 5.17 assists and 2.23 digs per set.
Sydney Davis, who owns 94 career matches of double-digit digs, ranks 14th among the NCAA's active leaders in career digs with 1,821.
During last week's Troy-South Alabama homestand, Sydney Davis pushed her career digs total past 1,800 allowing her to join Nia Kiggundu (2,043) and Lindsay Brown (1,863) as the only players in program's al-time history (1976-present) to reach the milestone.
Louisiana's offense has featured a balanced effort in Sun Belt Conference play. The quartet of Hali Wisnoskie (2.60/set), Hanna Rovira (2.44/set), Dree'Ana Abram (2.32/set) and Nia Antoine (2.20/set) are each averaging over 2.00 kills per set in SBC action.'
Freshman Desiree Johnson has reached (or surpassed) the five-kill mark in 17 consecutive matches (streak dates back to Aug. 31 vs. Mississippi Valley).
Louisiana's .275 hitting percentage vs. South Alabama marked the highest figure since hitting .276 at San Diego State (Sept. 15) and was the 13th time this season finishing above the mark.

COACH MAZEITIS-FONTENOT'S THOUGHTS
On the importance effective blocking has on the team's defense
"The front row has to work with the back row even though they're two completely separate entities. If our block is chaotic then there's no way the defense can get stopped and dig a ball. Whereas if our block is stopped and disciplined where they're supposed to be, which is what happened last Saturday against South Alabama, it allows us to then defend better."

On the keys to being consistent on offense
"It's super simple things that we can do. Number one: remaining in game plan and actually doing what I want them to do. Number two: seeing the court and having vision. And number three: recognizing where teams like to pick on us."

UP NEXT
Louisiana is back at Earl K. Long Gym Oct. 19-20 hosting the Sun Belt's Georgia schools. The Ragin' Cajuns face Georgia State on Friday, then conclude the weekend against Georgia Southern on Saturday. First serve for both matches is set for 6:30 p.m.

FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Twitter (@RaginCajunsVB), Facebook (/RaginCajunsVB) or Instagram (@RaginCajunsVB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Volleyball.

- www.RaginCajuns.com -

Weekend Set in Arkansas Awaits @RaginCajunsVB

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Players Mentioned

Dree'Ana Abram

Nia Antoine

Kelsey Bennett

Avery Breaux

Milayne Danna

Sydney Davis

Desiree Johnson

Hanna Rovira

Hali Wisnoskie

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University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics

Weekend Set in Arkansas Awaits @RaginCajunsVB

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Dree'Ana Abram

Nia Antoine

Kelsey Bennett

Avery Breaux

Milayne Danna

Sydney Davis

Desiree Johnson

Hanna Rovira

Hali Wisnoskie

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