COMMERCE – Southland Conference schedule begins in full force this weekend for the Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team when it faces Lamar on Saturday afternoon, beginning a stretch of four matches in eight days.   
 
WHO: A&M-Commerce at Lamar
WHERE: Beaumont | McDonald Gym
WHEN: Saturday, September 23 | 11 a.m.
RECORDS: The Lions are 4-10 on the season and 0-1 in conference play, while Lamar is 0-11 on the season. The Cardinals face A&M-Corpus Christi on Thursday night in their conference opener.
 
LIVE STATS: https://lamarcardinals.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE LIONS
The Lions host Northwestern State on Tuesday, before heading to Louisiana to face New Orleans next Thursday and Southeastern next Saturday.   
 
DOWNED IN CONFERENCE OPENER
The Lions fell to McNeese last week in the Southland Conference opener at home with the Cowgirls winning in three. That match was the rematch of last season's SLC Tournament quarterfinal.
 
TIDE ROLLED
A&M-Commerce downed Alabama in a five-set match on September 8 for A&M-Commerce's first win over a Power Five conference opponent. The Lions fell behind 2-1 in the match, but took the final two sets. It is the first ever win over an SEC opponent in school history in any sport.
 
BLAZERS TAMED
The Lions followed the win over Alabama with a win over UAB the next day. The Blazers took the first set, but A&M-Commerce took the next three sets, including a comeback from being down 23-17 in the second set.

YOU CAN'T TOUCH THIS
Reese Fetty (Farmersville) has served up 15 aces this season. She is tied for first in the Southland Conference for that category. 
 
A THRILLING WIN IN ABILENE
The Lions fought till the end and pulled out a five-set win over Abilene Christian, which was the first meeting between the two former conference rivals since 2012. A&M-Commerce has won three straight meetings against the Wildcats.
 
AN UTTER DOMINANCE OF THE TIGERS
The Lions hit .321 percent in the win over Texas Southern, which is the third highest in the program's Division I era and it was the first three-set win since October 29, 2022.
 
SMITH KEEPS SHINING
Libero Jade Smith (Mayde Creek), a Temple College transfer, shined bright in her debut by earning UTSA Invitational all-tournament honors after the first week of the season. She has 195 digs on the season, which is second in the SLC.
 
NEW ERA BEGINS WITH A BANG
Joe Morales began his tenure as the Lions coach last week and it did not take long for him to earn his first career head coaching win. A&M-Commerce swept Texas Southern in their second match of the season.
 
NEW FACES ON THE BENCH
Morales is joined by Morgan Williams on the coaching staff as an assistant coach, while Makenna Hanssen returns as the program's graduate assistant coach.
 
INTERNATIONAL LOVE
Four countries are represented on the 2023 roster for the Lions. Fourteen players are from the United States, while one each hail from Brazil, Poland, and Germany.
 
GOING STREAKING
This season, the Lions are looking to make the postseason for the 12^th season in a row, which is the longest active streak of any program at A&M-Commerce.
 
BUILDING UPON 2022
Last season was A&M-Commerce's first season in NCAA Division I and the Southland Conference. The season was filled with many historical wins for the Lions, who beat Prairie View A&M for their first Division I win, swept Southeastern, who won the 2023 SLC Tournament and played in the NCAA Tournament, and downed New Orleans in the SLC Tournament.
 
SOUTHLAND PRESEASON POLL
Entering their second season in the Southland Conference, the Lions were picked seventh in the preseason conference poll.
 

1.	HCU (8)	120
2.	Southeastern Louisiana (8)	118
3.	Texas A&M-Corpus Christi	96
4.	McNeese	93
5.	Northwestern State	82
6.	UIW	58
7.	A&M-COMMERCE	55
8.	New Orleans	53
9.	Nicholls	23
10.	Lamar	22

 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
The Cardinals have yet to win a match this season and only won three sets all season, winning two against Little Rock and one at Louisiana Tech. Last week, the Cardinals played at the UNLV Tournament and fell in straight sets to Portland, Coppin State, and UNLV.
 
Lamar went 9-20 last season, which included a 3-1 win at home over A&M-Commerce. Both teams won on their home court last season. For the Cardinals, Wiktoria Warpechowska leads the way with 65 kills, while Sydnee Griffen and Lryic Jordan have 64 and 63, respectively. Freedom Stephenson has 100 digs to lead the team.