University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Thursday, November 2
Hattiesburg, Miss.
6:00 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
at
Southern Miss
Louisiana and USM Set to Settle Seeds for SBC Tournament
11/1/2023 5:09:00 PM | Volleyball
Cajuns seek to finish as high as No. 4 seed from SBC West, Golden Eagles looking for first round bye
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Volleyball team looks to continue its recent winning ways –while locking up its seed for the Sun Belt Conference Tournament – during a two-match series with Southern Miss from Thursday-Friday, November 2-3 at the USM Wellness Center in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
First serve is scheduled for 6:00 p.m., both nights. Live video coverage is available on ESPN+ while live stats can be accessed at CajunStats.com.
Already guaranteed a bye from the first round in the Nov. 15-19 SBC Tournament in Foley, Alabama, the Ragin' Cajuns (15-11, 6-6 Sun Belt) results in Hattiesburg will determine whether the team is the No. 4 or 5 seed from the SBC West Division. UL needs only one win to secure the SBC West No. 4 seed.
USM (10-13, 5-7 Sun Belt) is looking to shore up a first round bye of its own, needing one win or one Arkansas State loss to accomplish the task. It would take two wins for the Golden Eagles to surpass the Cajuns for the SBC West No. 4 spot.
Louisiana carries a three-match winning streak into the USM series, the squad's longest in SBC play. The Ragin' Cajuns are 4-2 on the road in SBC action this season.
UL is coming off a series sweep of ULM in which the offense turned in its best performance in league play. The Cajuns averaged 14.6 kills per set on a .281 series hitting percentage, hitting .250-plus in all but one of the eight sets contested.
Setter Siena DeCambra and libero Mio Yamamoto are the reigning SBC Setter and Defensive Player of the Week, awards indicative of their recent strong play. DeCambra is coming off back-to-back, 40-plus assist efforts and has turned in at least one double-double each of the last five conference series. Yamamoto is coming off a strong month-long performance in October, scooping 20-plus digs in six of the eight matches played in the month.
Balance has been the mainstay for Louisiana's success this season. Five different players have posted 100 kills, led by the duo of Shyia Richardson (313 kills) and Celeste Darling (240 kills) at outside and opposite hitter, and four different players have collected at least 150 digs, led by Yamamoto (384 digs) and defensive specialist Kennedy Gustafson (258 digs).
The Golden Eagles are coming off a sweep of their own, taking two over Georgia State last weekend in Atlanta, and have also won three straight. Junior Mia Wesley, who eclipsed 1,500 career kills last Friday, paces the offense averaging 3.8 kills per set (294 total). Defensively, USM is led by the 345 digs (4.4/set) from libero Megan Harris and the blocking trio of Cara Atkinson (52), Ari Barksdale (47) and Reagan Leinen (44).
THE MATCHUPS
Thursday, Nov. 2 at Southern Miss // Hattiesburg, Miss. // 6:00 p.m.
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Friday, Nov. 3 at Southern Miss // Hattiesburg, Miss. // 6:00 p.m.
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Match Notes (PDF): Louisiana | Southern Miss
Rosters: Louisiana | Southern Miss
Schedules: Louisiana | Southern Miss
Stats (PDF): Louisiana | Southern Miss
SERIES HISTORY
- Southern Miss: Louisiana leads, 25-13 | Last match: L, 2-3 on 11/4/2022 at E.K. Long Gym
Sun Belt Matches: Tied, 1-1
Current Streak: USM +1
SERVICE ACES
>> Louisiana begins the final month of the regular season in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, taking on Southern Miss from Thursday-Friday, November 2-3.
>> UL and USM are set to battle for ordering of seeding as the SBC West's No. 4 and No. 5.
>> The Cajuns current three-match win streak is their longest in Sun Belt play this fall.
>> UL is one win shy of setting a new benchmark in the Kristi Gray era.
>> The Cajuns and Golden Eagles play a Sun Belt series for the first time in Hattiesburg.
>> UL and USM split the series during the initial conference meeting held last season at E.K. Long.
>> Louisiana hit .281 for the series and averaged 14.6 kills per set in the sweep of ULM (Oct. 27-28).
>> Siena DeCambra's 11.4 assists per set and Mio Yamamoto's 6.1 digs per set were the top marks in the Sun Belt during the October 26-28 series.
>> Libero Mio Yamamoto has hit 20 digs in six of the last eight matches, and double digits 10 straight.
>> Shyia Richardson, sitting at 313 kills, has picked up the third consecutive 200-plus kills season of her collegiate career, and her first 300-plus campaign.
>> Shyia Richardson is the first to reach 300 kills since assistant coach Kelsey Bennett in 2021 (374).
>> Setter Siena DeCambra currently ranks Top 15 nationally with 942 assists – one of only 18 players nationwide to tally 925 assists entering the week.
>> Siena DeCambra collected her 2,000th overall assist with Louisiana during the South Alabama series (Oct. 13-14). Entering the USM series, she's 58 assists shy of her first 1,000-assist season.
>> Kara Barnes hit .310-plus the previous three seasons, tallying 150-plus kills each time. She's currently hitting .334 and has 170 kills.
>> Celeste Darling has set a new personal single-season mark in total kills, her current total of 240 surpassing the previous-best 207 from last season.
>> Cami Hicks (338) and Kara Barnes (312) rank No. 3 and 4, respectively, in UL's rally scoring era charts for career blocks. Hicks has an additional season to chase Kim Rodgers' record 396 blocks.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Ragin' Cajuns conclude regular season play and their home schedule from Friday-Saturday, November 10-11 hosting App State at E.K. Long Gym.
Louisiana will be celebrating Senior Weekend during the series with the Mountaineers. The 2023 senior class playing their final matches at E.K. Long includes: Kara Barnes, Celeste Darling, Emery Judkins and Mya Wilson.
Start times for the two-match series are 6:00 p.m. on Friday (Nov. 10) and 12:00 p.m. on Saturday (Nov. 11). Live coverage will be available on ESPN+ and CajunStats.com.
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.
Fans are also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
First serve is scheduled for 6:00 p.m., both nights. Live video coverage is available on ESPN+ while live stats can be accessed at CajunStats.com.
Already guaranteed a bye from the first round in the Nov. 15-19 SBC Tournament in Foley, Alabama, the Ragin' Cajuns (15-11, 6-6 Sun Belt) results in Hattiesburg will determine whether the team is the No. 4 or 5 seed from the SBC West Division. UL needs only one win to secure the SBC West No. 4 seed.
USM (10-13, 5-7 Sun Belt) is looking to shore up a first round bye of its own, needing one win or one Arkansas State loss to accomplish the task. It would take two wins for the Golden Eagles to surpass the Cajuns for the SBC West No. 4 spot.
Louisiana carries a three-match winning streak into the USM series, the squad's longest in SBC play. The Ragin' Cajuns are 4-2 on the road in SBC action this season.
UL is coming off a series sweep of ULM in which the offense turned in its best performance in league play. The Cajuns averaged 14.6 kills per set on a .281 series hitting percentage, hitting .250-plus in all but one of the eight sets contested.
Setter Siena DeCambra and libero Mio Yamamoto are the reigning SBC Setter and Defensive Player of the Week, awards indicative of their recent strong play. DeCambra is coming off back-to-back, 40-plus assist efforts and has turned in at least one double-double each of the last five conference series. Yamamoto is coming off a strong month-long performance in October, scooping 20-plus digs in six of the eight matches played in the month.
Balance has been the mainstay for Louisiana's success this season. Five different players have posted 100 kills, led by the duo of Shyia Richardson (313 kills) and Celeste Darling (240 kills) at outside and opposite hitter, and four different players have collected at least 150 digs, led by Yamamoto (384 digs) and defensive specialist Kennedy Gustafson (258 digs).
The Golden Eagles are coming off a sweep of their own, taking two over Georgia State last weekend in Atlanta, and have also won three straight. Junior Mia Wesley, who eclipsed 1,500 career kills last Friday, paces the offense averaging 3.8 kills per set (294 total). Defensively, USM is led by the 345 digs (4.4/set) from libero Megan Harris and the blocking trio of Cara Atkinson (52), Ari Barksdale (47) and Reagan Leinen (44).
THE MATCHUPS
Thursday, Nov. 2 at Southern Miss // Hattiesburg, Miss. // 6:00 p.m.
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Friday, Nov. 3 at Southern Miss // Hattiesburg, Miss. // 6:00 p.m.
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Match Notes (PDF): Louisiana | Southern Miss
Rosters: Louisiana | Southern Miss
Schedules: Louisiana | Southern Miss
Stats (PDF): Louisiana | Southern Miss
SERIES HISTORY
- Southern Miss: Louisiana leads, 25-13 | Last match: L, 2-3 on 11/4/2022 at E.K. Long Gym
Sun Belt Matches: Tied, 1-1
Current Streak: USM +1
SERVICE ACES
>> Louisiana begins the final month of the regular season in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, taking on Southern Miss from Thursday-Friday, November 2-3.
>> UL and USM are set to battle for ordering of seeding as the SBC West's No. 4 and No. 5.
>> The Cajuns current three-match win streak is their longest in Sun Belt play this fall.
>> UL is one win shy of setting a new benchmark in the Kristi Gray era.
>> The Cajuns and Golden Eagles play a Sun Belt series for the first time in Hattiesburg.
>> UL and USM split the series during the initial conference meeting held last season at E.K. Long.
>> Louisiana hit .281 for the series and averaged 14.6 kills per set in the sweep of ULM (Oct. 27-28).
>> Siena DeCambra's 11.4 assists per set and Mio Yamamoto's 6.1 digs per set were the top marks in the Sun Belt during the October 26-28 series.
>> Libero Mio Yamamoto has hit 20 digs in six of the last eight matches, and double digits 10 straight.
>> Shyia Richardson, sitting at 313 kills, has picked up the third consecutive 200-plus kills season of her collegiate career, and her first 300-plus campaign.
>> Shyia Richardson is the first to reach 300 kills since assistant coach Kelsey Bennett in 2021 (374).
>> Setter Siena DeCambra currently ranks Top 15 nationally with 942 assists – one of only 18 players nationwide to tally 925 assists entering the week.
>> Siena DeCambra collected her 2,000th overall assist with Louisiana during the South Alabama series (Oct. 13-14). Entering the USM series, she's 58 assists shy of her first 1,000-assist season.
>> Kara Barnes hit .310-plus the previous three seasons, tallying 150-plus kills each time. She's currently hitting .334 and has 170 kills.
>> Celeste Darling has set a new personal single-season mark in total kills, her current total of 240 surpassing the previous-best 207 from last season.
>> Cami Hicks (338) and Kara Barnes (312) rank No. 3 and 4, respectively, in UL's rally scoring era charts for career blocks. Hicks has an additional season to chase Kim Rodgers' record 396 blocks.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Ragin' Cajuns conclude regular season play and their home schedule from Friday-Saturday, November 10-11 hosting App State at E.K. Long Gym.
Louisiana will be celebrating Senior Weekend during the series with the Mountaineers. The 2023 senior class playing their final matches at E.K. Long includes: Kara Barnes, Celeste Darling, Emery Judkins and Mya Wilson.
Start times for the two-match series are 6:00 p.m. on Friday (Nov. 10) and 12:00 p.m. on Saturday (Nov. 11). Live coverage will be available on ESPN+ and CajunStats.com.
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.
Fans are also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
- www.RaginCajuns.com -
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