@RazorbackVB Hosts Texas A&M on SEC Network

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas volleyball team continues its final home stand of the 2014 regular season Wednesday when it hosts Texas A&M at Barnhill Arena. The conference matchup is slated for a 6 p.m. (CT) start and will be televised on the SEC Network. General admission is $5 for all home matches while UA students and fans 17 years and younger receive free admission.

Fan Promotions | Wednesday vs. Texas A&M
• FREE pizza for the first 100 UA students in attendance
• FREE team knit hat giveaway while supply lasts
• Can the Aggies: Bring four (4) or more canned good items for the University of Arkansas Full Circle Food Pantry to receive a FREE hot dog voucher
• Student Organization Challenge: Winning organization—based on highest attendance and participation—receives a $250 donation

In their last outing, the Razorbacks played in front of 2,349 fans at Barnhill Arena which stands as the second-largest home crowd in program history. Nine of the top-10 home crowds at Barnhill Arena have come over the past five years. Students attending volleyball matches this season are asked to use the street-level entrance on Stadium Drive. Vouchers and knit hats will be located at that entrance. Doors at Barnhill Arena open at 5 p.m.

Wednesday’s match will be Arkansas’ fifth television appearance on the SEC Network this season. In its previous four appearances, Arkansas is 3-1 which includes a four-set win over then-No. 20 Texas A&M on Oct. 15 in College Station. The Razorbacks made their debut on the newly launched network on Oct. 8 with a straight-set victory over Ole Miss in a match played in Fayetteville. Adam Amin and Missy Whittemore will handle the play-by-play and color commentary duties, respectively.

Arkansas enters the midweek match with a 14-13 overall record and an 8-6 mark in SEC play. The Razorbacks have won three in a row and are just one game behind Texas A&M (17-8, 9-5 SEC) in the conference standings. The two programs have met just four times prior to Wednesday’s match with the Aggies holding a 3-1 advantage. All four previous matches have gone at least four sets.

The middle duo of Chanell Clark-Bibbs and Ana Sofia Jusino have been instrumental in the Razorbacks’ recent streak. In SEC play, Clark-Bibbs is the only player in the league ranked among the top 10 in five statistical categories. She is fourth in hitting percentage, fifth in blocks per set and eighth in kills per set, service aces per set and points per set. Jusino is hitting .561 with 23 kills and no attack errors in Arkansas’ last three matches.

In its last outing, the Razorbacks won their third in a row with a five-set victory over South Carolina at Barnhill Arena. Liz Fortado led all players with 19 kills to pace a quartet of Razorbacks—Fortado, Clark-Bibbs, Jusino and Meredith Hays—with double-digit kills while Bailee Hankenson notched her sixth double-double of the season.

Hankenson and Hays enter Wednesday’s match within reach of milestones. Hankenson is 33 assists shy of becoming the sixth setter in program history with 1,000 assists in a single season and just the second freshman (Tina Rico in 1994) to reach that mark. Hays needs just two kills to become the 16th player in program history with 900 career kills. In less than two seasons, she is fifth on the SEC active kills leader list.

For more information on Arkansas volleyball, follow @RazorbackVB on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.