The Teams: Tarleton Texans (11-11, 2-3 WAC) vs. Incarnate Word Cardinals (8-15, 3-6 SLC); North Texas Mean Green (14-9, 7-3 C-USA); Abilene Christian Wildcats (7-11, 1-6 WAC)
Where: Stephenville, TX; Denton, TX; Abilene, TX
Facility: Wisdom Gym; UNT Volleyball Center; Moody Coliseum
Time: 6 p.m. CT (Tue); 7 p.m. CT (Thu); 1 p.m. CT (Sat)
Streaming Platform: WAC Digital Network (Tue); C-USA TV (Thu); ESPN+ (Sat)
 
TEXAN VOLLEYBALL MATCH DAY
Tarleton will have three matches this week, including its third straight week involving Abilene Christian. The Texans will return home for the first of its final three home matches this season Tuesday when Tarleton hosts Incarnate Word for 'Pink Out' night in Wisdom Gym. Then the Texans will close out the week with a traditional Thursday-Saturday road trip in Denton and Abilene against North Texas and ACU.
 
Live stats will be available at all locations. Links to follow the game can be found on the volleyball schedule page at TarletonSports.com. Live streams will be available at the WAC Digital Network, C-USA TV, and ESPN+, respectively. Streaming links are available at TarletonSports.com, as well.
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This is the third straight week with Tarleton and ACU having some sort of volleyball crossover. The Wildcats came to Stephenville to renew the series for the first time since 2012 on Oct. 16 then last weekend, Tarleton visited Moody Coliseum for two neutral matches at the home of the Wildcats. This Saturday, the Texans will visit ACU for a road match.
• Tarleton and Incarnate Word have squared off 31 times since the series began in 1978, including one meeting earlier this season. The Texans and Cardinals were rivals in the Lone Star Conference from 2006-12 and UIW holds an all-time lead in the series 18-13. The series is tied 5-5 all-time in Stephenville and the Texans defeated UIW in four sets in San Antonio earlier this season.
• Tarleton and North Texas have met once in the history of their volleyball programs. The Texans and Mean Green met in 1983 at a neutral site tournament. UNT won the match 2-0 in the pre-rally scoring era of collegiate volleyball.
• After nearly a decade between meetings, Tarleton and Abilene Christian will now meet for the second time in as many weeks when the Texans visit Moody Coliseum. Tarleton has rekindled a longstanding rivalry with their foe from just over 90 miles down I-20. Tarleton and Abilene Christian have a rich history of competition across all sports and date as far back as 1978 on the volleyball circuit. The Wildcats hold a 44-11 lead in the all-time series, including 22-2 advantage in Abilene. Tarleton won the final two meetings against ACU in 2012 as D2 rivals in the Lone Star Conference and the first meeting this year as WAC foes in Division I.

 
HOME MATCH FESTIVITIES

• Tarleton Volleyball will host its annual 'Pink Out' game for breast cancer awareness. Tarleton will be giving away 200 free T-Shirts for fans at the game and honoring the Pink Warrior Angels foundation. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to the game and share photos on social media tagging @TarletonVB on Twitter or @tarletonvolleyball on Instagram.

 
QUICK HITS

• As a team, the Texans enter this weekend ranked No. 3 in the Western Athletic Conference in hit percentage (.231). Tarleton is one of five schools across both divisions with over 1,000 kills (1,012) as a team and boasts the fourth-fewest errors in the league.
• Of the top 10 individual leaders in total kills in the WAC, six of them reside in the Southwest Division with Lauren Kersey at No. 2 in the division and No. 3 in the WAC at 287 kills. Her 3.50 kills per set is ranked No. 4 in the division and No. 6 in the WAC. She is 13 kills shy of becoming the third WAC player this season with 300 kills.
• Lorin McNeil has proven to be one of the elite blockers in the Western Athletic Conference. Through 22 matches, McNeil ranks No. 1 in the WAC in total blocks (96.0) and is No. 1 in the division and No. 4 in the WAC in blocks per set (1.17).
• Elise Smith continues to be one of the most efficient attackers in the WAC. The junior leads the Southwest Division and is second in the WAC in hit percentage with a .361 hit percentage. The junior Louisiana native has 95 kills on 205 attacks with a mere 21 miscues. Lauren Kersey has also moved into the league's top 10 with a .315 hit percentage.

 
WAC UPDATES

• WAC-ESPN+ ENTERS THREE-YEAR PARTNERSHIP: Continuing a relationship that spans more than 31 years, the Western Athletic Conference and ESPN have announced a new multi-year, multi-platform media rights agreement that will see over 500 annual events on ESPN+ and the ESPN App.
• FOUR NEW MEMBERS, ONE ON THE WAY: Just a year after welcoming two schools to the league in Dixie State and Tarleton, the WAC has opened its arms once again by bringing in the 'Texas 4'group of Abilene Christian, Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston, and Lamar. Tarleton will also bring in Southern Utah next year to grow by seven members over a three-year span.
• OWNING THE LONE STAR STATE: With the addition of the four Texas schools, the WAC now boasts the largest presence of any conference in the nation at the NCAA Division I level in the state of Texas.
• LEAGUE DIVISIONS: With the addition of the four Texas schools, the WAC has gone into two divisions for the first time since 2004. The Texans are a part of the Southwest Division that includes all six of the league's Texas schools – Tarleton, ACU, SFA, Sam Houston, Lamar, and UTRGV.
• PRESEASON POLL: Tarleton was picked to finish third in the Southwest Division of the Western Athletic Conference. With 15 points, the Texans were picked behind SFA (24) and Sam Houston (21) in a division that includes all six of the league's Texas schools.

 
1,000-KILL CLUB
Amber Strange and Lauren Kersey have both eclipsed 1,000 career kills for their careers and will spend the rest of the season climbing Tarleton's all-time kill list. The complete top-10 list is as follows:
 

#	Player	Years	Kills
1.	Hailey Roberts	2014-17	2389
2.	Desiree Reed	2002-05	1545
3.	Sharon Lister	1996-99	1422
4.	Lacey Adkisson	2000-03	1355
5.	Missy Castro	2004-08	1276
6.	Belinda Hardee	1990-93	1261
7.	Lauren Kersey	2018-21	1222
8.	Kathy Buckler	1983-86	1194
9.	Amber Strange	2017-21	1171
10.	Stacie Murrah	2010-13	1117
11.	Marissa Galich	1995-98	1095

 
1,000-KILL TEAMMATES
Lauren Kersey and Amber Strange have both joined exclusive company with over 1,000 career kills. They are the second set of teammates in program history to play together with over 1,000 kills. Previously, Marissa Galich and Sharon Lister at the end of the 1998 season were the only other 1,000-kill teammates to play together in program history.
 
TEXAN TRIO FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
Only one time in Tarleton's program history has a setter with at least 2,500 career assists ever played alongside a hitter with at least 1,000 career kills – Danielle Barker and Stacie Murrah in 2013. With over 2,500 career assists, Kayla Brannon becomes the second player in program history to play alongside a teammate with 1,000 career kills and the first in program history to make passes to two such teammates – Lauren Kersey and Amber Strange.
 
2,000-ASSIST CLUB
Kayla Brannon is among the top-5 all-time in the Tarleton assist leaders. Last season, she reached the 2,000-assist mark on a kill from Lauren Kersey for the 30th point (16-14) of set three against Dixie State on March 9. Brannon is the sixth player in the Tarleton top-10 list in assists to have played under head coach Mary Schindler, who is also No. 9 on the list. She passed Christina Ortiz in the win over UC San Diego on the same day that she set up Lauren Kersey's 1,000th career kill. The complete top-10 list is as follows:
 

#	School	League	Wins
1.	Danielle Barker	2010-13	3324
2.	Jessie Hartman	2008-11	3266
3.	Kayla Brannon	2018-21	2720
4.	Jordyn Keamo	2016-17	2404
5.	Christina Ortiz	2005-06	2313
6.	Didi Ebert	1997-98	2131
7.	Chandler Gow	2014-17	2020

 
NOTABLES

• WHAT THEY'RE SAYING – PROGRAM ON THE RISE: On July 6 in the El Paso Herald-Post, UTEP head coach Ben Wallis said the following about the Tarleton Volleyball program: "Tarleton State is a program on the rise who had significant wins last season and has had a long run of successful seasons under its head coach Mary Schindler."
• CAN'T SPELL KERSEY WITHOUT A K(ILL): While reclassifying student-athletes and programs are not eligible for national statistic rankings, Lauren Kersey is still proving to be one of the best in the nation for total kills. The Tarleton senior is among the top 76 players in NCAA Division I players in the country with 287 kills. She leads all NCAA Division I reclassifying players in total kills.
• BEST BLOCKER IN THE BIZ: While reclassifying student-athletes and programs are not eligible for national statistic rankings, Lorin McNeil is still proving to be one of the best in the nation for total blocks. The Tarleton senior is among the nation's top 20 players with 96 total blocks and she leads all reclassifying players in that category.
• 30-POINT MARATHON: Tarleton played just its 30-point set since NCAA rally scoring dropped the total needed down to 25 points prior to the 2008 season. The rally scoring era prior to 2008 used a 'first to 30' rule and then lowered it to 'first to 25'. Since 2008, Tarleton has been a part of seven sets where the Texans have needed to score 30 points. The most recent came Saturday against Dixie State, where the Texans defeated the Trailblazers 36-34 in the program's longest-played set in the 25-point, rally era 36-34. It was Tarleton's first 30-point set since Sept. 11, 2015 against UC-Colorado Springs (34-32).

 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
Tarleton will play its final home matches of the season on Nov. 4 and Nov. 6 when the Texans host Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston, respectively. The Texans will close out the season the following week at UTRGV and Lamar.