Volleyball Hosts Texas Tech Invitational

Friday, September 9

Lubbock, Texas

12:00 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

Abilene Christian

Tickets

Volleyball Hosts Texas Tech Invitational

September 08, 2016 | Women's Volleyball

Texas Tech welcomes four teams from the State of Texas for a series of matches Friday and Saturday.

Tournament Notes | Live Stats
Streams: vs. ACU | vs. SFA | vs. UTRGV | vs. ORU

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech Volleyball looks to keep its winning streak alive as it hosts the Texas Tech Invitational Friday and Saturday, Sept. 9-10, at the United Supermarkets Arena. This year marks the sixth straight year the Red Raiders have hosted a tournament of its kind in Lubbock and boasts four other teams from the Lone Star State.

The Red Raiders (5-2) will play in the noon and 6 p.m., time slots both Friday and Saturday, facing Abilene Christian (1-7) and Stephen F. Austin (4-3) Friday, before taking on the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (4-3) and Oral Roberts (5-2) Saturday.

The Red Raiders carry a five-match win streak into the event after going 3-0 at the North Dakota State Classic last weekend and sweeping UTEP in their home-opener Monday inside the United Supermarkets Arena practice gym. The Texas Tech Invitational will be the squad's first chance to play on the main court at the United Supermarkets Arena under Head Coach Tony Graystone.

Abilene Christian is coming off its first win of the season against University of Texas at Arlington. The Red Raiders and Wildcats last met in 2014 as Texas Tech cruised to a 3-0 victory. Tech leads the all-time series, 29-2.

Stephen F. Austin has won two in a row following a pair of 3-1 wins over Kennesaw State and Louisiana-Monroe. Texas Tech leads the all-time series against the Lumberjacks 15-3, but has dropped each of the last three matchups to the Lumberjacks (2008, 2009, 2015).

UT Rio Grande Valley fell in its last outing at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 3-1. Saturday's meeting between the Red Raiders and Vaqueros will mark the first meeting between the two programs.

Like Texas Tech, Oral Roberts sports a five-match winning streak as well after the Golden Eagles posted a 4-0 mark at the University of Central Arkansas Tournament last weekend. The Red Raiders and Golden Eagles last met in 2005, with Texas Tech taking a 3-1 win. Tech holds an 11-6 lead in the all-time series with five straight wins.

Tickets to each Texas Tech match are $5 each, $3 for youth (age 17 and under). Texas Tech students receive free admission when they swipe their student ID at the door. Those who attend Texas Tech's noon contests can use their tickets for the nightcap that same day. A reminder that the clear bag policy is in effect for all Texas Tech athletic events. All matches will be streamed live on TexasTech.tv, and live stats are available at TexasTech.Statbroadcast.com.

TEXAS TECH INVITATIONAL
United Supermarkets Arena (main court)
Friday, Sept. 9
12 p.m.                 Abilene Christian vs. Texas Tech
2 p.m.                   Oral Roberts vs. Stephen F. Austin
4 p.m.                   UT Rio Grande Valley vs. Abilene Christian
6 p.m.                   Stephen F. Austin vs. Texas Tech

Saturday, Sept. 10
12 p.m.                 UT Rio Grande Valley vs. Texas Tech
2 p.m.                   Abilene Christian vs. Oral Roberts
4 p.m.                   Stephen F. Austin vs. UT Rio Grande Valley
6 p.m.                   Oral Roberts vs. Texas Tech

TOURNAMENTS IN LUBBOCK
Texas Tech has hosted a variation of the Texas Tech Invitational each of the last six seasons, posting an 18-2 overall record in those events. The Red Raiders launched the 2015 season with a home tournament, going 3-0 with wins over Utah State, Louisiana-Lafayette and Houston. Texas Tech's last loss in a home tournament was in 2013 when the Red Raiders fell to Montana and Cal State Fullerton.

STREAKING
Texas Tech responded after a pair of tough outings to open its season with five straight wins leading up to its matches at the Texas Tech Invitational. Three of the Red Raiders' five wins during the streak have been sweeps (vs. South Dakota State, at North Dakota and UTEP). The Red Raiders also took impressive road wins at Portland State (3-1) and at North Dakota State (3-2).

ALL-TIME HISTORY
Texas Tech holds a 29-2 series lead against sister-school Abilene Christian. The Red Raiders took the last meeting 3-0 at the United Supermarkets Arena. The Red Raiders are 16-1 at home against the Wildcats, with the loss coming at ACU in 2013. Texas Tech leads the all-time series versus Stephen F. Austin 11-3, but the Lumberjacks have won each of the last three contests, including a 3-0 win at SFA last season. Texas Tech's match against UT Rio Grande Valley marks the first battle between the two squads in program history. Texas Tech holds an 11-6 lead in the series against Oral Roberts, including five straight wins and a 5-1 advantage in Lubbock.

DEFENSE STEPPING UP
After surrendering hitting percentages of .326 and .404 in their two losses, the Red Raiders have shown tremendous improvement defensively, holding each opponent during its five-match winning streak to below .200. Sophomore libero Reyn Akiu has consistently been at the top of her game, leading the team with 117 digs this season while averaging 4.5 digs/set. Senior Lauren Douglass has also done well defending the net, recording 32 total blocks this season, including five in her last outing against UTEP.

IN THE RECORD BOOK
Seniors Marguerite Grubb and Lauren Douglas didn't waste any time planting themselves in the Texas Tech record book this season. In the Red Raider's first match of 2016, Grubb compiled 52 assists to crack the school's all-time top 10 list in assists. Douglas made a mark of her own in Saturday's win against Portland State, powering her way to 17 kills with a .773 hitting percentage, a clip that ranks as her career-best and sixth all-time in a single match in the Texas Tech record books.

FORCE IN THE MIDDLE
Leading the pack in the middle for the Red Raiders is two-time All-Big 12 honoree and All-Southwest Region award winner Lauren Douglass, who returns for her final year in the scarlet & black after rattling off a school-record hitting percentage of .377 last season. She wasted little time planting herself into the Texas Tech record book in 2016, powering her way to 17 kills and a .773 hitting percentage in the Red Raiders' first win of the season against Portland State, a clip that ranks as her career-best and sixth all-time in a single match in school history.

LENDING A HAND
Douglass isn't the only one providing offense for the Red Raiders this season. Sophomore Katy Keenan has followed a strong 2015, in which she put down 128 kills and 46 blocks, with a stellar start to 2016, where she currently ranks second on the team in kills (46) and blocks (18). Joining them on the attack are juniors Alyssa Ybanez (45 kills), Courtney Ensch (39 kills) and Hannah Henriksen (33 kills), while freshman Toni McDougald (42 kills) has impressed and pushed her way into the starting lineup.

SET UP ARTIST
In 2015, Marguerite Grubb put up 1,007 assists, becoming the first Red Raider to record 1,000+ assists in a single season since Emily Ruetter in 2013. She cracked the school's all-time top 10 list in assists in the Red Raider's first match of 2016, compiling 52 assists against Colorado. Overall, Grubb has dished out 276 assists in the first seven matches and ranks sixth in the conference with 10.62 assists/set.