The Teams: Tarleton Texans (1-3, 0-0 WAC) vs. Delaware (3-0, 0-0 CAA), Lamar (0-2, 0-0 SLC), UTSA (3-0, 0-0 AAC)
Where: San Antonio, Texas
Arena: Convocation Center 
Times: Friday: 12:30 p.m. CT, 4 p.m. CT; Saturday: 3 p.m. CT 
Streaming Platform: All matches will be live streamed on goutsa.com 
 
 
TEXAN VOLLEYBALL MATCH DAY
 
After hosting the Texan Invitational, Tarleton State will make their way to San Antonio for the Roadrunner Classic. 
 
On Friday, the Texans will start off their second tournament with a match against the Blue Hens of Delaware at 12:30 p.m. CT. The second match of the day will take place at 4 p.m. CT  when the Purple and White go head-to-head with the Lamar Cardinals. Tarleton will complete their run in the tournament on Saturday with a battle against the Roadrunner of UTSA at 3 p.m. CT. 
 
Quick Hits
 
• The Roadrunner Classic will be the second tournament of the season for the Texans. The Purple and White went 1-3 during the Texan Invitational Tournament which included the Cardinals of Incarnate Word, the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Lions, the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona and the Prairie View A&M Panthers. After a tough first day of the tournament, Tarleton finished with a strong day two. The Texans swept UAPB to open Saturday, outscoring them 75-42, not allowing more than 15 points in a set. They faced the Cardinals to finish out the weekend. UIW entered the match 2-0 but it was the Texans who looked like the better team early, winning the first set 25-19. After UIW bounced back to take a 2-1 match lead, sets four and five were as close as they could get. Tarleton won set four 25-23 then the fifth set needed a 22-20 result for the winner to be decided. 
• The Texan Invitational was a big weekend for the junior transfer from Palm Beach State, Allison Bryant. In her first four matches in the Purple and White, Bryant put down 63 kills, making her the leader in kills for the Texans. Bryant also leads the team in points with 69.5 points in four matches. In the battle against the Cardinals, the outside hitter racked up 24 kills, the team high.  
• It appears the Texans have found one of the top outside hitters in the nation in Allison Bryant. Through Tuesday's matches, Bryant was fifth in all of NCAA Division I in total kills with 63. Only Temple's Taylor Davenport, Texas Tech's Brynn Williams, Howard's Rya McKinnon and Louisiana's Shyia Richardson have more. In terms of points, Bryant is sixth at 69.5. Conference-wise, Bryant is first in total kills. The next closest is Abilene Christian's Ashli Edmiston at 51. Bryant ranks third in kills per set (3.71). 
• Grayson Schirpik already has eight aces through four matches. That tied third most in the WAC and tied 32nd most in the country.
• Megan Hodges has accounted for 55 percent of the team's assists so far this season. At 107 she has the second most assists in the WAC tied 51st most in the nation.
• This season, the Texans welcome 11 newcomers. The newest members of the team include six freshmen, three juniors and two seniors.
 
Notables
 
Watch List
 
In the 2023 season, Tarleton State Volleyball will welcome 11 new players to the roster. Accompanying the new members are seven familiar faces you can find on Tarleton's roster. Here are a few that are making some waves in Texan Nation. 
 
Allison Bryant joins the Purple and White as a transfer from Palm Beach State. The junior outside hitter has quickly made her mark as a member of the team as she leads the Texans in kills with a total of 63 in four matches. Bryant's season-high comes from a five-set battle against the UIW Cardinals where she racked up 24 kills throughout the duration of the match. The Kelseyville, California, native, has compiled 10-plus kills in every match played for the Texans. She also leads the team with 69.5 points on the season and sits in third place on the team for digs with 20. 
 
In her second season with the Texans, Megan Hodges has quickly put up some impressive numbers. Leading the team with 107 assists in four matches, Hodges has made it clear she is here to compete. The setter also sits in second place for digs with 40 on the season in four matches, only two under the top digs holder, Matti Theurer.
 
Sophomore Emma Burke is a vital part of the Texan's defense. Leading the team with 15.0 blocks and sitting in third place on the team with 32 kills in four matches, the returner is a consistent, key player for Tarleton. 
 
Defensive specialist Matti Theurer has seen time in each set for the Texans so far this season. Leading the defensive with 42 digs in four matches, the junior averages 2.47 digs per set. 
 
Amongst the newcomers is Madison Frank. The freshman middle blocker is tied in second for most blocks with 8.0. In the past four matches, Frank has put up 19.0 points for the team, with a season-high of 8.5 in a five-set battle against UIW. 
Another notable returner is junior Grayson Schirpik. The outside hitter from Leander, Texas, currently sits in second on the team with 46 kills on the season, averaging 2.88 kills per set. Schirpik also ranks second on the team in points with 56.5. She leads the team in service aces with eight on the season in four matches. In the 2022 season, Schirpik was a vital power for the Purple and White.
 
Tournament Time
 
Tarleton will see three opponents at the Roadrunner Classic: Delaware, Lamar, and UTSA. The Texans have never faced Delaware in program history. Tarleton is undefeated against Lamar winning both matches in 2021 (3-1 at home, 3-0 on the road). When the Texans play the Roadrunners on Saturday, this will be their first meeting since Sept. 16, 1983. UTSA won that match 2-1 at a neutral location.
 
Future Upgrades Coming Soon
 
Tarleton State is in the era of upgrades. With the groundbreaking of the new event center, Tarleton State Volleyball will part ways with the Wisdom Volleyball Gym that has been the home for the Texans since 1977. Tarleton Volleyball will move to Wisdom Gym, which has been home to Tarleton Men's and Women's Basketball since 1970, after the completion of the events center. Tarleton Volleyball will soon allow more room to accommodate fans in a familiar setting as well as give members of Texan Nation the opportunity to utilize reserved seating for future Texan Volleyball matches.
 
WAC Preseason Poll
 
Tarleton was picked to finish 9th out of 11 in the Athletic Conference. With 28 points, the Texans were picked to follow up Southern Utah (34). Tarleton State will go to battle against Grand Canyon, who is projected to win the league, on Sept. 30 in Phoenix, Arizona. 
 
 
WAC Awards in 2022
 
Freshman right side Breanna McDonough was named the WAC Freshman of the Week on Oct. 10 after she posted a career-high 14 kills in a win over Southern Utah the week prior. McDonough finished the 2022 season with a compiled 244 kills averaged 2.28 kills per set. 
 
Ranked in the WAC in 2022
 
Grayson Schirpik was a force to be reckoned with in the 2022 season. Schirpik ranked fifth in the WAC in service aces and ninth in the WAC in points, totaling 321.5 points on the season, averaging 3.42 points per set, the highest on the team for the Texans. She also led the team with 275 kills after seeing a season-high of 17 kills against the Bearkats of Sam Houston. Schirpik also racked up 16+ matches with 10+ kills and ended the season with 185 digs. 
 
Two-Way Player
 
Megan Hodges (S) racked up 107 assists in the first four matches of the season for the Texans. Hodges collected a season high of 37 assists against UIW. She plays a critical part for the Texans as she leads the team in assists and holds second place on the time in digs with 40 in four matches.