Razorback volleyball releases 2014 schedule

[RedRazorback15]

http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=11402&SPID=675&DB_LANG=C&ATCLID=209520088&DB_OEM_ID=6100

"FAYETTEVILLE – Head coach Robert Pulliza and the University of Arkansas volleyball team have released the 2014 schedule which features 14 matches against nine teams that advanced to last year's NCAA Tournament. The Razorbacks' 31-match season begins Aug. 29 with Day 1 of the Arkansas Invitational at Barnhill Arena. Season tickets are now on sale through the Razorback Ticket Center online at ArkansasRazorbacks.com or by calling 800-982-4647.

In addition to its matchups against NCAA teams, Arkansas is set to play 16 home matches including nine Southeastern Conference (SEC) dates. Six of the Razorbacks' matches against NCAA tournament teams—Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Michigan and Texas A&M—will also be played in Fayetteville. The Razorbacks enter the upcoming season off back-to-back trips to the NCAA Tournament.

There are two pricing options for ticket packages with reserved seats at $50 and general admission at $40. New for the 2014 season, each season ticket purchased includes an official Razorback volleyball knit hat. Single-match tickets will go on sale beginning Aug. 6.

Arkansas' non-conference schedule consists of four tournaments, two of which will be hosted by the Razorbacks at Barnhill Arena. The season-opening Arkansas Invitational will feature 2012 Final Four participant Michigan, Stephen F. Austin and Tennessee State. Arkansas' second home tournament, the Razorback Invitational, will be contested Sept. 12-13. The remainder of the non-conference season includes tournaments at Kansas and Kansas State and a home midweek match Sept. 9 against Oral Roberts.

The Razorbacks play four of their first five SEC matches at Barnhill Arena, opening the conference slate Sept. 26 against Tennessee and will close out the weekend Sunday, Sept. 28 against Mississippi State. Arkansas' home schedule during SEC play also includes Ole Miss (Oct. , Georgia (Oct. 12), Kentucky (Oct. 24), LSU (Nov. 2), South Carolina (Nov. 14), Texas A&M (Nov. 19) and Florida (Nov. 23). The regular season concludes Nov. 29 against UK in Lexington.

With the initial round of television selections announced in May, the Razorbacks will make six appearances on the new SEC Network. Three of those contests—Oct. 8 vs. Ole Miss, Nov. 19 vs. Texas A&M and Nov. 23 vs. Florida—will be played in front of Arkansas' home crowd at Barnhill Arena. More television matches will be selected later this summer. Contact your local cable provider for SEC Network availability or visit GetSECNetwork.com for more information.

The postseason begins Dec. 4-6 at selected campus host sites with the first and second rounds of the 2014 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship. The regional round of the national tournament will take place Dec. 12-13 at the four pre-determined sites in Ames, Iowa; Louisville, Ky.; Minneapolis, Minn.; and Seattle, Wash. The national semifinal (Dec. 18) and final (Dec. 20) will be played out at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.

#RazorFacts
• Schedule features 14 matches against nine teams—Alabama, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Missouri and Texas A&M—that played in the 2013 NCAA Tournament
  o Six of those matches will be played Barnhill Arena
• Home schedule features 16 dates including nine SEC matches and three appearances on the SEC Network
• Season begins Aug. 29-30 with the Arkansas Invitational at Barnhill Arena
• Season tickets now on sale through Razorback Ticket Center online at ArkansasRazorbacks.com or by calling 800-982-4647
• Each season ticket purchased includes an official Razorback volleyball knit hat
• This year marks the seventh season at Arkansas for head coach Robert Pulliza
• The program enters the season off back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances

Tweetables (140 characters or less)
• 2014 @RazorbackVB season begins Aug. 29-30 at #BarnhillArena with Arkansas Invitational #NeverYield
• .@RazorbackVB set to play 14 matches against nine teams that advanced to 2013 NCAA Tournament #NeverYield
• Season tickets for 2014 @RazorbackVB season now on sale online or by calling 800-982-4647 #NeverYield
• NEW FOR 2014 > each @RazorbackVB season tix purchased includes FREE knit hat #NeverYield


For more information about Arkansas volleyball, follow @RazorbackVB on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Stay Connected to the Razorback Volleyball Team"

16 home matches, 9 of which are against SEC teams. The Hogs square off against 14 teams that qualified for the 2013 NCAA Tournament. They include Florida, Michigan, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, and Texas A&M.

Looks like a tough slate. Hope the ladies can have a great year! WPS! 

[psycHOGlogist]

Yes, I think this is the toughest non-con schedule that Robbie has put together since he's been here -- Michigan, Kansas State, Kansas are all very solid teams that we would not necessarily be expected to beat. SMU and UCF are improving, and Middle TN State -- while probably down at the moment -- is a well-coached and solid squad. There are definitely some patsies in there, but overall it's strong.  And the conference schedule doesn't do us too many favors, either, though we do open up at home with TN and M$U, both of whom should be relatively weak this year. We play four very strong teams twice -- Florida, LSU, Kentucky, & aTm.

Will be a challenging year - we return a lot of talent, but not a lot of experience, and both our setters from last year graduated. We have a true freshman or a RS sophomore (who got very little playing time last year) running the offense. The freshman (Bethke) is supposed to be great, but I wonder if we'll see an actual 6-2 offense this year, given how many excellent, big RS hitters we can put out there (Fortado, Dapic, even Harbin).

The formation won't be the only interesting thing. The competition for the positions will be like nothing this team has ever seen. The depth that Robbie has built is very impressive to me, considering that just a couple years ago, if one of the starting OH's had been injured, we would have been totally screwed.

This year, the position battles look like:

OH - Hays is a clear starter and may get some pre-season award recognition. Voelzke got decent playing time last year as a true freshman and was clearly getting better. Harbin is an athletic freak and could be a very dynamic OH, but maybe not a 6-rotation player. And we have a junior transfer from UAB (Skinner) who could challenge for time and perhaps even be a starter (6-rotation player). We have never had 4 legit OH's that I can remember.

MB - VERY interesting what happens here. At the end of last season Jones and Jusino were starting, usually, and Morgan was first off the bench. All three are back and very dynamic athletes. To that already strong group, we added a junior transfer from GA Tech (Clark-Bibbs) who was a top 25 recruit nationally out of high school. She was not putting up all-world numbers at GA Tech, but that program has been in decline, so it may have just been a bad fit. I assume she is eligible this year and doesn't have to sit out, but I could be wrong. And Harbin can also play middle. I have no idea what to expect from this group, except some fierce competition.

RS/OPP - on the Right, I hope Fortado can bounce back from an injury-plagued sophomore season. She has a live arm and good size on the block. Dapic came on well as a true freshman last year and has a lot of potential. To be repetitive, Harbin could see time at this pin as well.

Setter - this is where the rubber will hit the road. As noted above, we have a true freshman in Bethke and a RS Soph in Wohlschlaeger. Both inexperienced, though Bethke has been involved in some national training programs. The overall quality of the season will depend on how quickly these two get squared away, and either one of them separates herself as the starter or they adapt to a two-setter offense.

Libero - Robbie seems to have anointed Bollinger as the successor to Helm. We'll see - she didn't blow me away last year, but Robbie seems to believe in her. He's also brought in a sophomore transfer from Iowa (Gajcak) and a true freshman from Texas (Ortiz), and I can't help but wonder if Kolbinskie isn't destined to be a DS, as well. There are some options, at least, if Bollinger doesn't excel.

And I haven't really talked about some of the other freshmen, either. Shelby Harper has been on campus since January (so has Bethke) and has a very big upside. It might be best for her to RS this year, but she's a top 100 recruit who may make it very hard to keep her off the floor. Dunagin is a RS Fr - not sure what to make of her, but she is an Arkansas kid and I hope she does well. Don't know too much about the Hankenson twins other than that they are short-ish and supposedly super athletes.

This is super long and way too detailed, I know, but I've followed the Razorback volleyball team closely since 1995, their second year as a program. Can't wait for the season to start!

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Awesome stuff.

I love volleyball.  I was fortunate enough to live in Honduras most of my high school years, and we had Men's Varsity Volleyball.  It was awesome, loved it.  I played setter.  Our same group of guys won National Championships in volleyball, basketball and we came 1 game short of winning it all in soccer(I one-timed, scissor-kicked a cross in the air on goal, that hit a defender in the chest, who just happened to be standing there, knocking him into the goal but not the ball - that's how close we came).  We tied the game and lost on penalty kicks.

My best friend was another American(the rest of the guys were Honduran) whose Dad worked for the United Fruit Company(Chiquita), who was our best spiker, and many of our points came from me setting him up.  He was a beast.   

Anyway, I love volleyball.  I got to see one Hogs' game a couple of years ago, and hope to go to some more this season.  I believe Ugly Uncle is good friends with the coach, and has had him on the show a few times.  I know he's followed the team closely.

Thanks for the breakdown, and good luck to our girls!

[RedRazorback15]

Great posts, both of you!

I believe the position battles will dictate whether Arkansas runs a 5-1 or 6-2. It was pointed out both setters from the 2013 team graduated. How quickly they can develop may point to whether the team utilizes one or both concurrently on the court. Same goes for the hitters. Hays and Voelzke are no-brainers to start and I would think the incoming transfers find a way to make the rotation. If Harbin does not start, she'd be great off the bench.

I'd also note Arkansas had 9 players for the incoming 2014 class, which is ranked just outside the top 30 by Prepvolleyball.com. Thus there is a lot of talent to work out. Plus the transfers should help, particularly with their experience. As pointed out it's going to be really fun to watch and see who wins the position battles. I have a feeling it is going to be a dynamic squad this year. Even though the schedule is not easy, the ladies have a shot to make some noise, after coming off an NCAA berth last season. My gut prediction is at least a top half finish in the SEC. I do not believe that is unreasonable.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

This was posted on the Ugly Uncle Show page:
www.facebook.com/uglyuncleshow


First Practice of 2014 @RazorbackVB Season

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas volleyball team opened its preseason training Saturday morning with its first practice of the 2014 season. The Razorbacks reported to campus Friday for team meetings. The season begins Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. (CT) against Tennessee State on day one of the Arkansas Invitational at Barnhill Arena. The team is scheduled to return to the court Saturday afternoon for their second practice of the day.

Fans will get their first look at this year's team Aug. 17 when the Razorbacks host their annual Red-White scrimmage. The preseason event will begin at 4 p.m., following Football Fan Day. The scrimmage is free and open to the public. Season tickets for the 2014 campaign are currently on sale. Starting at $40, each season-ticket package includes a free team knit hat. For more information, call 1-800-982-4647 or visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com.

In addition to nine matchups against NCAA teams this season, the Razorbacks are set to play 16 home matches at Barnhill Arena including nine SEC dates. Six of Arkansas' matches against NCAA Tournament teams—Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Michigan and Texas A&M—will be played in Fayetteville.

The Razorbacks return 11 student-athletes from last year's team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Arkansas enters the season off back-to-back NCAA appearances. Head coach Robert Pulliza is entering this seventh season at the helm of the program. Meredith Hays, a 2013 All-America Honorable Mention performer, is the lone senior on the 2014 roster.

Hays will share upperclassmen duties with juniors Monica Bollinger, Chanell Clark-Bibbs, Liz Fortado, Summer Morgan and Samantha Skinner. Clark-Bibbs and Skinner are transfers from Georgia Tech and UAB, respectively. Arkansas' sophomore class features Barbara Dapic, Danielle Harbin, Corinne Gajcak, Breana Jones, Ana Sofia Jusino, Savannah Voelzke and Adrien Wohlschlaeger.

Arkansas' freshman class includes redshirt Blakelee Dunagin and newcomers Sophie Bethke, Bailee Hankenson, Holly Hankenson, Shelby Harper, Krista Kolbinskie and Kori Ortiz. This year's recruiting class earned Highest Honorable Mention accolades from PrepVolleyball.com.

[RedRazorback15]

Well, if I lived closer, for $40 I'd surely be in for season tickets. Unfortunately, 1100 miles is not exactly right around the corner. 

Any of you guys want to conjure a guess as to what our starting lineup will be? I'll throw out a wild guess:

OH - Meredith Hays
RS - Liz Fortado
MB 1 - Chanell Clark-Bibbs
MB 2- Summer Morgan
S - Adrien Wohlschlaeger
DS/L - Monica Bollinger

The results of the position battles are going to be very intriguing. I would imagine Coach Pulliza is going to rotate players in and out on a match-by-match basis. Nothing to be set in stone, I wouldn't think.

On a side note, the team is picked to finish 7th in the SEC preseason poll.

"FAYETTEVILLE – The University of Arkansas volleyball team has been picked to finish seventh in the Southeastern Conference with Tuesday's release of the league's preseason coaches' poll. The Razorbacks begin their 2014 season Aug. 29-30 with the Arkansas Invitational at Barnhill Arena. The team conference schedule begins Sept. 26 with a home match against Tennessee.

Heading into its seventh year under the direction of head coach Robert Pulliza, Arkansas received 87 points in the vote, just two points behind Texas A&M for sixth place in the preseason poll. Florida was chosen as the preseason favorite while reigning SEC champion Missouri landed third in Tuesday's release. The top eight teams in the preseason poll advanced to last year's NCAA Tournament.

The Razorbacks return 11 student-athletes from last year's team that earned an at-large selection into the 2013 NCAA Tournament. Arkansas enters the season off back-to-back NCAA appearances. Among the returners, Meredith Hays was a 2013 AVCA All-America Honorable Mention performer and is the team's lone senior this season. Pulliza welcomes nine newcomers to the 2014 roster.

Fans will get their first look at this year's team Aug. 17 when the Razorbacks host their annual Red-White scrimmage at Barnhill Arena. The inter-squad event will begin at 4 p.m. (CT) following Football Fan Day and is open to the public. Arkansas is slated to face six teams either ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA preseason Top 25, including opening-weekend opponent Michigan.

Season tickets for the 2014 campaign are currently on sale. Starting at $40, each season-ticket package includes a free knit hat. For more information, call 1-800-982-4647, visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com or stop by the Razorback Ticket Center next to Baum Stadium.

For more information about Arkansas volleyball, follow @RazorbackVB on Twitter."

http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/news/sec-preseason-poll-2014-08-12

[psycHOGlogist]

Here is my first guess at the lineup - I'm gonna go ahead and predict a 6-2.

OH: Hays/Skinner (Voelzke first off the bench)
MB: Jones/Clark-Bibbs (with Jusino first off the bench)
S: Bethke/Wohlschlaeger
OPP: Fortado/Dapic (Harbin first off the bench)
L: Bollinger
DS: Ortiz or Gajcak in back row for Skinner/OH2 if passing breaks down

There is so much talent on the roster -- at least in terms of athleticism -- that it's very hard to predict how we'll go. We are totally loaded at MB, it seems to me (Clark-Bibbs, Jones, Morgan, Jusino, and Harbin are all legit SEC caliber players, I think -- very long, athletic, and physical). And RS (if you throw Harbin in here, too. Fortado, Dapic, and Harbin). How do you get all that talent on the floor? Without an established setter, my guess is the 6-2. You have to believe that Dapic and Fortado do more for your block than either setter. I know that Jones and Jusino hit in front of the setter quite well, and I don't think Morgan does, but that's what you need in a 6-2. I really wish the Red-White game were available to view online -- I'm really curious to get a look at Skinner and Clark-Bibbs, Voelzke's improvement, and both setters. Really looking foward to the season!

[RedRazorback15]

Well, I think our youth and inexperience has shown this weekend in Manhattan, KS. The Hogs were outhit and outplayed in a number of categories against Kansas State and UCF. Hitting seems to be where we are getting beat. The past 2 matches, Arkansas has been badly outhit in terms of kills and hitting %. Meredith Hays is leading the way but other players have not been able to consistently able to compliment her. I hope we can at least salvage the tournament with a win today.

[psycHOGlogist]

There are clearly a number of issues. If I had to pick 4 they would be:

1. Our serve/serve receive game is not good enough. We are not delivering the ball to the setter well enough to be in system on offense frequently enough. And our serving has been terrible -- lots of errors, and when we do serve in, our serves are very easy to pass.

2. The setting has been, in a word, awful. We have a 3rd year (RS Soph) setter who can't beat out two true freshman. That's a problem. Of the two F setters, we have been starting the unheralded, shorter-but-more-athletic one. I have been thoroughly unimpressed. She is not deceptive at all; her set location is inconsistent to all positions across the net; and she has been whistled for a very large number of double contacts. Now, Robbie knows setting, and if this is the best they can put on the floor, then okay. But she's going to have to get a lot better if this team is going to make any noise. They brought in the other freshman today, which seemed to help in some areas (no ball handling errors, no dumps out of bounds or into the net), but we didn't get the W against an inferior team.

3. The floor defense is awful. The block is big and effective, but once the ball beats the block, our diggers do not touch enough balls, and even when they do touch them, they do not control them (against UCF yesterday, the libero led the team in digs -- which is expected -- with 7. SEVEN! In 3 games. Good liberos occasionally get 7 digs in one game). This is very frustrating to watch. We seem to be out of position on defense a large portion of the time. No excuse for that.

4. Meredith Hays, while getting a very large number of kills, makes WAY TOO MANY errors to be a go-to hitter, especially on out-of-system sets (which she gets the lion's share of, because she's the "go-to" hitter). She was in double figure errors today against MTSU. You just cannot have that and expect to be a successful team. Some of that is the setting, but a good enough hitter can make up for a bad set by keeping the ball in play. Hays just does not do this well enough. She didn't do it last year either, and it is what holds her back from being an elite player for us. She has a great arm swing and hits a heavy ball, but she has a tendency to get underneath the ball on her approach, which limits her ability to see the block.

Other quibbles - Cannot understand for the life of me why Robbie has Dapic hitting left side. She looks awkward and out of place over there, and her lack of athleticism and non-existent vertical are obvious. She is much more effective on the right side, based on last year's performance. And WEHT Fortado?!

[RedRazorback15]

Pretty good analysis, psycHOGlogist.

The setting has really been awful... Hard to get good opportunities to hit when the setter(s) fail to properly locate the ball. Results in more free balls for the opponent or hitting errors for us. Going to be difficult for the team to be successful if this continues.

Actually I believe Hays has been a bright spot for the team. I know she's made errors and mistakes... but really she has carried us. I feel like she is one of the only players on the team who can be relied on for a "go to" kill or play. In a number of games, she's led rallies and strings of points that've helped Arkansas. If she would have a veteran compliment, my gut tells me the Hogs would look better out on the court.

Aside, big win over Tennessee on Friday night to open SEC play. I hope the success continues against Mississippi this afternoon. WPS!  :razorback:

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Aside, big win over Tennessee on Friday night to open SEC play. I hope the success continues against Mississippi this afternoon. WPS!  :razorback:

Great news.

How did we do against Ole Miss?

[RedRazorback15]

Great news.

How did we do against Ole Miss?

Mississippi State, my apology for the typo.

The ladies swept the lady Bulldogs, 3-0.  2-0 in SEC play has to feel good right now.  :razorback:

Next match is a week from today at LSU.

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Mississippi State, my apology for the typo.

The ladies swept the lady Bulldogs, 3-0.  2-0 in SEC play has to feel good right now.  :razorback:

Next match is a week from today at LSU.

Nice!

[RedRazorback15]

Unfortunately, the ladies fell to the Lady Tigers, 3-2 on Sunday, in Baton Rouge. We're now 2-1 in SEC play.

http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/news/razorbackvb-at-lsu-2014-10-05

"@RAZORBACKVB LOSES FIRST SEC MATCH AT LSU

BATON ROUGE, La. – Senior Meredith Hays registered her fifth double-double of the season while junior Chanell Clark-Bibbs tallied a career-high 14 kills Sunday in a five-set loss at LSU. Hays led all players with 27 kills and completed the double-double with 14 digs. Behind the block, junior libero tallied a match-high 26 digs to pace the defense. Arkansas returns to Fayetteville for a 6 p.m. (CT) match Wednesday against Ole Miss that will be televised by the SEC Network.

Hays' effort was her seventh match of the season with at least 20 kills and her fifth with 23 or more. The double-double was her first in a true road match this season and her first since Sept. 13 against SMU. Clark-Bibbs hit .462 on her way to surpassing her previous high of 13 which she established Sept. 6 against Middle Tennessee. She now has five matches this season with 10 or more kills. Clark-Bibbs added a team-high four blocks against LSU.

With her 23rd dig of the match, Bollinger moved into 23rd place on the program's career digs list. She now has 611 digs in her Razorback career which puts her just ahead of Ning Zhao (1998-98). Bollinger has three matches this season with 20 or more digs and finished just two behind her career best of 28 which she set Sept. 9 against Oral Roberts. In directing the offense to a .262 hitting percentage, freshman Bailee Hankenson dished out a career-high 55 assists Sunday.

After losing the first set, Arkansas (8-8, 2-1 SEC) trailed by seven early in the second but erased the deficit and took its first lead of the match at 16-15 on a Bailee Hankenson service ace. From that point, neither team led by more than one point with LSU arriving at set point at 24-23. The Razorbacks stayed alive with a kill from Hays and scored the final three points, securing the set when an LSU attack sailed long.

Arkansas jumped out to an early lead in the third set with a 7-0 lead out of the break. LSU (6-7, 1-3 SEC) got to within five points but the Razorbacks closed out the set, 25-14, on an attack error by their opponent. The Tigers rallied to win set four and force the decisive game.

The home team led early and went ahead 11-5 in the fifth to force an Arkansas timeout. The Razorbacks fought back to win nine of the next 12 points to pull even at 14-all and saved two match points during the run. Arkansas had match point at 15-14 but LSU closed out the match with a three-point surge for the five-set victory. Sunday's match was Arkansas' sixth five setter of the season.

Final
LSU 3, Arkansas 2 (25-17, 24-26, 14-25, 25-21, 17-15)
Attendance: 684 | Time: 2:24
Maravich Center | Baton Rouge, La.

#RazorFacts
• Stat Leaders at LSU
  o Kills: 27 – Meredith Hays
  o Digs: 26 – Monica Bollinger
  o Blocks: 4 – Chanell Clark-Bibbs
• Milestone Watch
  o Monica Bollinger: moved into 23rd place (611) on program's career digs list
  o Meredith Hays: 22nd player in program history with 700 career kills (724)
• Chanell Clark-Bibbs: Hitting .532 with 2.45 kills per set and leads team with 10 total blocks during SEC play
• Bailee Hanenson: 55 assists, most by a Razorback in one match since Nov. 20, 2011 (Santos – 61 at Kentucky)
• Meredith Hays: leading the SEC with 5.64 kills per set in conference matches
• Next match: Oct. 8 vs. Ole Miss [SEC Network]
  o First serve at 6 p.m. (CT) at Barnhill Arena
  o First SEC Network television appearance of the season"

Next match is tonight at home versus Ole Miss. The match can be viewed on SEC Network!  7 PM EDT is time of the first serve. GO HOGS!!  :razorback:

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Next match is tonight at home versus Ole Miss. The match can be viewed on SEC Network!  7 PM EDT is time of the first serve. GO HOGS!!  :razorback:

Stink!  I think I just missed it.  What was the outcome?

[arkfan81]

Stink!  I think I just missed it.  What was the outcome?

We played really well. We won in 3 matches..

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

We played really well. We won in 3 matches..

Right on, WPS!  Please keep posting when our matches are on. 

Thanks!

[arkfan81]

Right on, WPS!  Please keep posting when our matches are on. 

Thanks!

Sunday at 230 vs uga

Wed. at 7 at texas am

[RedRazorback15]

Here is a recap of the Ole Miss match. Arkansas won in a sweep, 3-0. The Lady Razorbacks are now 3-1 in SEC play. Next match is Sunday at home against Georgia.

http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/news/razorbackvb-vs-ole-miss-2014-10-08

"FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Making its television debut on the SEC Network, the University of Arkansas volleyball team beat Ole Miss in straight sets Wednesday night in front of 1,242 fans at Barnhill Arena. With the win, the Razorbacks improve to 9-8 overall and 3-1 in conference play. Arkansas got double-digit kill efforts from Meredith Hays and Samantha Skinner while limiting the Rebels to a season-low offensive output.

Having secured the first two sets, the Razorbacks scored the first two points of the third on kills by Hays and eventually led 12-8 after a kill by Chanell Clark-Bibbs which led to an Ole Miss (15-3, 1-3 SEC) timeout. The Rebels mounted a rally to go ahead 20-18 which forced a timeout by head coach Robert Pulliza. Arkansas responded by winning seven of the last eight points to seal the set and clinch the match.

Wednesday marked Hays' 11th match of the season with at least 15 kills to go along with a .308 hitting percentage against the Rebels. She finished with nine digs, just one shy of completing her sixth double-double of the year. With 10 kills in the match, Skinner reached double figures for the second time in conference play. Clark-Bibbs rounded out the top three with eight kills. Bailee Hankenson directed the offense with 35 assists.

Defensively, Arkansas held the Rebels to a season-low .142 hitting percentage. Ole Miss entered the match second in the SEC with a .271 team hitting percentage. The Razorbacks have now held nine opponents under the .200 mark this year. Clark-Bibbs, Skinner and Liz Fortado each tallied three total blocks in the match. In her third start, Savannah Voelzke tied her career high with seven digs.

From the service line, the Razorbacks picked up a season-high eight aces and have now posted a season high in three of their four conference matches. Wednesday's total surpasses the seven aces served against Mississippi State (Sept. 28) in Fayetteville. Five different players had at least one ace including a career-best three service winners for Voelzke.

The Razorbacks return to their home floor Sunday afternoon when they host Georgia. First serve of the SEC matchup is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. (CT) at Barnhill Arena. The match will be streamed on SEC Network+ which is available through SECNetwork.com, ESPN3.com and the WatchESPN app.

FINAL
Arkansas 3, Ole Miss 0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-21)
Attendance: 1,242 | Time: 1:34
Barnhill Arena | Fayetteville, Ark.

#RazorFacts
• Stat Leaders vs. Ole Miss
  o Kills: 15 – Meredith Hays
  o Digs: 12 – Monica Bollinger
  o Blocks: 3 – Chanell Clark-Bibbs, Liz Fortado, Samantha Skinner
• Season-high eight service aces against Ole Miss
  o Including career-high three aces by Savannah Voelzke
  o 25 of team's 63 aces this season have come during SEC play
• Held ninth opponent under .200 hitting percentage
  o Season-low .142 for Ole Miss
• Liz Fortado is one kill shy of 300 for her career, had four on seven swings (no errors) against Ole Miss
• Home crowd of 1,242 is 11th-largest in program history
  o Second crowd of more than 1,000 at Barnhill Arena this season
• Program collected its 30th win over Ole Miss
  o Improve to 30-11 all-time against the Rebels
  o Sixth-straight win vs. Ole Miss
  o Third-straight sweep vs. Ole Miss
• Next match: Oct. 12 vs. Georgia [SEC Network+]
  o First serve at 1:30 p.m. (CT) at Barnhill Arena

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

Tag Central"

[RedRazorback15]

http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/news/razorbackvb-vs-georgia-2014-10-12

"FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas volleyball team rattled off the last five points of the match Sunday afternoon to beat Georgia in five sets and give head coach Robert Pulliza his 100th career victory. The Razorbacks had a trio of players with double-digit kills while Chanell Clark-Bibbs and Monica Bollinger led the defensive effort. With the win, Arkansas improves to 10-8 overall and 4-1 in SEC play.

In the decisive fifth set, the Razorbacks trailed by three after back-to-back kills gave Georgia (9-8, 1-4 SEC) a 13-10 lead which forced Pulliza into this second timeout. After a service error, the Razorbacks posted consecutive blocks—both including Breana Jones—to pull even at 13-all. Meredith Hays followed with her match-high 23rd kill to set up match point. Arkansas clinched the victory when the Bulldogs sent an attack wide and out of bounds.

Hays led all players with 23 kills, good for her eighth 20-kill performance of the year and third of the conference season. She was joined in double figures by Liz Fortado and Samantha Skinner who finished with 17 and 13 kills, respectively. In just her third match of the season, Fortado established a career high to go along with a .438 hitting percentage and four total blocks. Skinner's total also represents a season high for the Razorback junior transfer.

From her setter position, Bailee Hankenson registered her third double-double of the season with 61 assists and 10 digs. The 61 assists are the most by a Razorback setter since the 2011 season when Raymariey Santos dished out the same number at Kentucky. Bollinger tied for the match lead with 21 digs, good for her fourth 20-dig effort of the season. With her performance, she also moved into a tie for 20th place on the program's career digs list.

Clark-Bibbs led all players with eight total blocks which is a season high for the Houston, Texas, native. She also had nine kills against the Bulldogs. In off the bench, Jones posted a season-high five blocks. The Razorbacks finished the match with 13.0 total team blocks and have now out-blocked their opponent in 12 of 18 matches this season.

The Razorbacks continue conference play Wednesday with a road trip to No. 19 Texas A&M. First serve of the midweek matchup is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT) and will be aired live on the SEC Network. Adam Amin and Maria Taylor will handle the play-by-play and color commentary duties, respectively. The match will also be streamed online at SECNetwork.com, ESPN3.com and the WatchESPN app.

FINAL
Arkansas 3, Georgia 2 (18-25, 29-27, 28-26, 20-25, 15-13)
Attendance: 829 | Time: 2:40
Barnhill Arena | Fayetteville, Ark.

#RazorFacts
• Stat Leaders vs. Georgia
  o Kills: 23 – Meredith Hays
  o Digs: 21 – Monica Bollinger
  o Blocks: 8 – Chanell Clark-Bibbs
• Out-blocked opponent (13.0-11.0) for the 12th time in 18 matches this season
• Monica Bollinger moved into a tie for 20th place on the program's career digs list
  o Currently tied with Jen Blankenbeckler (1994-95) with 644 career digs
• Liz Fortado collected her 300th career kill on her way to a career-high 17 kills in Sunday's match
• Bailee Hankenson tallied most assists by a Razorback setter since 2011
• Head coach Robert Pulliza collected his 100th career win Sunday
• Team had season-high kills (70), assists (68) and points (86.0) Sunday vs. Georgia
• Program picked up its 20th all-time win vs. Georgia
  o Improves to 20-9 against UGA, including 10-4 in matched played in Fayetteville
• Held Georgia to .115 hitting percentage in fifth set; Bulldogs hit .326 through first four sets
• Next match: Oct. 15 at Texas A&M [SEC Network]
  o First serve at 6 p.m. (CT) at Reed Arena in College Station, Texas

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

Lady Razorbacks defeat the Lady Bulldogs, 3-2!  :razorback:

Next match is Wednesday night at Texas A&M. WPS, GO HOGS!!!

[psycHOGlogist]

The team has really played well the last several matches. Having Fortado back is a big help, as we now have some productivity from the right side. Similarly, Skinner has really settled in as the second OH -- both these things really take some pressure of of Hays, who when she plays without the silly errors is an impressive hitter. The only things keeping her from being an elite OH are the errors and the mediocre defense she plays (and even that is improving). Her passing is much better this year, too.

I am still absolutely NOT sold on Hankenson as the setter, but she, too, is getting better. She really, really needs to stop attacking so many second balls - they will not fall against SEC defenses, and she deprives her excellent hitters of opportunities.

Robbie has done a very nice job with a team that started off very shaky, and they are rounding into shape well. They will likely lose a good chunk of matches in a row in the upcoming stretch of the schedule -- TAMU, FL, KY and a very good Bama team in a row, followed by a weaker than last year but still decent Mizzou team. If they can win two of those 5 matches and avenge the 5 game loss to LSU when we get them at home, we have a good shot of finishing in the top half of the conference. Still probably won't be enough to make the NCAA given the mediocrity of the preseason performance (losing to South Dakota, Oral Roberts, UCF, and Middle Tennessee will not be offset by beating Michigan), but we might spoil a season or two.

Really hope Robbie can land a 6-rotation OH for next year to replace Hays -- either as a freshman or a transfer. If so, next year could be fun.

[psycHOGlogist]

RedRazorback15 - I just saw your response to my comments above. I think we agree on Hays - without her, the team would have been up the river. It was just a roller coaster with her - impressive kill followed by silly error. I was amazed by the improvement in the LSU and Ole Miss matches - she was a different player. Some bad errors against UGA (and our errors were the only thing that kept UGA in that match), but she had some big kills at clutch time.

Our serve/pass game and floor defense -- to pick up on my earlier critiques -- have also improved A LOT. Bollinger seems much more squared away, and the coaches seem to have settled on a regular rotation of DS's - led by Ortiz - that has begun to click. The GA match had a lot of Voelzke/Ortiz/Kolbinskie rotation going on, so that was weird, but all of them are Freshmen/Sophs, so some inconsistency is expected.

As for the serve/pass game -- our receive has been night and day improved. I hope it's not simply a matter of playing bad-serving teams, but we have looked MUCH more solid in serve receive lately. A good sign. As for our serving, it's a bit tougher. But ... BUT ... I mean, I love her as a player, but Clark-Bibbs' service woes basically cost us the LSU match. I was screaming at my streaming video feed: "Coach, you CANNOT let her serve now!" I mean, 6 service errors in one match, for a player who serves a floater while standing on the ground ... just ... NO! NO NO NO! I know she leads the team in aces, but that's in part only because we don't have any huge, tough servers. Sigh. But when she missed her serve at the end of Game 5 in the LSU match, I wanted to die. No excuse for that. But like I said - really glad she's here and contributing. She's a force. Her connection with Hankenson is getting a little better, and she has a whip of an arm.

[psycHOGlogist]

Watching the Florida match today. It's a very solid effort by the team. We are overmatched technically and athletically, but we are scrapping.

Hankenson, while much improved in terms of decision making, continues to struggle significantly with her accuracy, especially on the slide sets to Clark-Bibbs. Her sets are 2-3 feet further off the net than they should be, leaving Clark-Bibbs no option but to reach backwards and tip the ball over the block. Hankenson is also a significant liability on the block, and the taller UF outsides are capitalizing on it again and again.

And for goodness' sake, there just HAS to be a better serving option than Clark-Bibbs. She is an error machine back there (though I like her everywhere else).

ETA - Robbie subs her out to serve in set 3! Yay!

[RedRazorback15]

Tough loss to A&M the other night. Florida is up at Barnhill on Sunday afternoon. Don't know if the ladies can challenge the Gators but it's good experience playing against a solid opponent.

:razorback:

[psycHOGlogist]

So here is my unsolicited (and rather lengthy) recap and evaluation of the somewhat disappointing volleyball season this year.  For a team that had legitimate NCAA hopes at the start of the season, finishing under .500 overall (14-16) is definitely a step backwards, but there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the team.

The post-season was pretty much out of reach as soon as the team went 0-fer the Kansas State tournament. Losing to Kansas State is an okay loss, but losing 3-0 to Central Florida and losing – period – to Middle Tennessee was a death knell for the season.  If there were any doubt about that, losing the next match to ORU cemented it. And then losing to SMU and South Dakota at home the next weekend buried it under yards of dirt. You can blame injuries if you want to – Fortado and Skinner sat out pretty much all of the preseason due to injuries – but quality teams can overcome the loss of key players. And these were not especially potent opponents that we were losing to. So, it was pretty much over by the time the conference season rolled around, but you always hold out hope that a great performance in conference might make up for some pre-season embarrassments.

However, the conference schedule did us no favors. This year, the conference's elite teams were Florida, Kentucky, LSU, and TAMU. We were the only team in the conference to play all four of them twice. Alabama, the next best team, we only played once, but it was on the road. We only won one of those matches – on the road against TAMU. We should have beaten LSU twice (both 5-set losses), imo. The weakest teams in the conference were Mississippi State, Tennessee, and Auburn, and of those we only got to play Tennessee twice.  The worst conference match for us was losing 3-0 to Mizzou on the road. That's not good, considering how mediocre Mizzou was this year, but it's not horrible.  There was a lot of talk about having a chance to get in if we won 3 of our last 4 matches against TAMU, KY, TN, and Florida. Well, a) that was never going to happen (we went 1-3), and b) even if we had gone 3-1, we still wouldn't have made the NCAA tournament with a 16-14 overall record. So, it was definitely a bit of a bummer of a season.

Okay, let's look forward – what do the Hogs lose and what's coming back? The team will only lose one player to graduation, but it's a pretty darn significant player. OH Meredith Hays was the team's only senior. She was also the team's most productive player and only non-setter six-rotation player.  She got a lot of kills and was a pretty good passer, so she will be very hard to replace. However ... Hays also made a LOT of unforced errors. Considering how many sets she got (had to have close to 50% of the team's attacks), that's probably not too surprising. But her propensity to make errors at key times hurt the team a lot. Not having her to take all the swings will force the offense to spread things out, and that could possibly be a good thing. So while losing Hays is a blow, there may be a silver lining to it.

As of now, we'll return both starting MB's. This is a major strength of the team. Clark-Bibbs proved herself to be an elite attacker as the season went on. Her blocking is very solid, too (but could be improved in the off-season).  Her serving ... jeez, where to begin? I think she ended up leading the team in aces, but there is absolutely no doubt that she also led the team in errors. She was a service error machine, and often at key points in the match (see the road loss to LSU). For someone who serves a float serve from the ground, that should just not happen. But anyway, she's a great front row player (and actually plays good defense when she is in). Between Jusino and Jones, the other MB position is pretty solid, too. Not sure what happens with Morgan. She appears to be lost in the shuffle. Wonder if she will transfer or just compete for sub minutes.  But we should be pretty solid at MB.

On the RS, Liz Fortado returns for her senior season. Her freshman year was outstanding, but injuries really detracted from her soph and junior years. You have to hope that her senior year picks up where her junior season ended – with her putting up some dominating performances. She had an ankle injury that kept her out of most of the preseason, and she was somewhat inconsistent (not surprisingly) when she got back. But she has the potential to be in double digit kills every match – if she sees enough of the ball. She is someone who may benefit from Hays's departure, as she will likely see more sets. It's hard to be a consistent attacker when you are only getting set once or twice per trip across the net.

I was happy to see Ortiz take over for Bollinger at libero in the latter part of the season. I like Bollinger and think she is a solid player, but Ortiz seems to bring a greater energy and "leave it all out on the court" mentality to the defense, and that's what you need from the libero, imo. Ortiz made several spectacular defensive plays that Bollinger just doesn't seem to make. Having both players available definitely helps on the defensive side of things, though.

So, that leaves the outside hitters and the setter. And this is where it gets a little dicey from my perspective. Let's start with the OH's. Hays was the mainstay OH1, but for the OH2 position we had pretty much a rotating cast. Skinner came on in the middle of the year and pretty much made the position hers, but a late season back injury threw things back into a muddle. One of the tv announcers said that Skinner's injury was "career-threatening," which if true would really be awful news.  Hope she is okay! Presuming that Skinner is available (a big "if" at this point), that leaves us with her, Dapic, Voelzke, and Harper all having seen time at OH2 this year. There is not a candidate among them to step into the OH1 position that Hays left – getting the majority of out-of-system sets, taking swings from the back row, etc. They are all decent players, but that's probably not enough. Elite teams have a go-to OH (like Hays). I should probably not really talk too much about Harper, here, because she got very little playing time this year, which is to be expected from a freshman who is moving from MB in high school to OH in college. Her ceiling may be very high – but we just don't know. Skinner has a great, aggressive arm, but she is not a strong back row player and is something of a liability on the block (she's listed at 5'10" but that's a stretch). Dapic is tall and hits a heavy ball, but I'm not convinced she is athletic enough to get good swings at out of system balls. I like the height she brings on the block, though. Voelzke is the best of the crop in the back row and serve receive but seems to lack the offensive oomph that Skinner and Dapic can provide. So this group is a big question mark.  Robbie needs to bring in a six-rotation OH who is ready to start. Maybe he can find another Hays on the transfer market?

As for the setting department, this one really makes me scratch my head. Early on in the year, Robbie clearly settled on Bailee Hankenson as the starter, despite having a much more highly sought after recruit (Bethke) on the roster. Hankenson is very quick and athletic, and she can do a lot of things for you on the court. But ... is she actually a good setter? I wish I knew. At times this year, she looked great, and there is no question that she improved over the course of the season. However, she continued to get called for illegal contacts WAY too many times, and frequently at critical points in games, and on fairly routine plays. Her hands seem really small, and that is a disadvantage for a setter. Her contact with the ball is not particularly soft, either, and that is going to result in a lot more double contact calls. Robbie can improve her technique, but I don't think he can make her hands any bigger. I hope he can improve her decision making, too. In the first half of the year or so, she was FAR too aggressive when it came to putting the second ball over. This got better as the season went on, but was still costly at times.  Robbie's preference for Hankenson has chased away Bethke, too, who has already announced her decision to transfer to Tulsa. That she's not heading to a bigger, better program may mean that Robbie is right about Bethke's abilities at the D1 level, but I really hope that this doesn't come back to bite us. The other setter on the roster is rising RS junior Wohlschlaeger, who looked pretty decent in the latter games of the season when Hankenson got benched. She is inconsistent with her set location (though so is Hankenson), but that can improve.

Other players:
Harbin – fantastic athlete who has yet to settle into a position. Have to hope Robbie can figure out a way to use her. Needs to improve her vision when attacking.
Morgan – seems buried on depth chart but has proved herself to be a solid contributor.
Dunagin – Hard to say; not sure she has played at all?
Gajcak – saw limited action this year in DS role. Not sure there's enough information to assess.
Kolbinskie – played a lot of minutes at the beginning of the season then seemed to disappear. Not sure if injured or just not preferred.
H Hankenson – was a preferred DS as the season went on. Great athlete, needs to improve volleyball IQ and ability to read the game, imo.
Harper – mentioned briefly in OH section; hope she develops well. Looked good, though obviously raw, in the limited minutes I saw. Hope she can be part of the answer at OH.

Recruiting – There is no question that Robbie and his staff have done a great job, year in/year out, with recruiting. Lots of Top 100 players in the program. However, this year, our signing class so far has been virtually non-existent. There has been no press release from the program about fall signees. One site has us having only one commit – a 5'4" DS from Rogers. That is in part because the roster was ginormous this year (20 athletes) with only one senior. Hays's and Bethke's departures, however, should open up two spots for big-time contributors. I hope Robbie can find someone between now and the spring signing period who can help immediately with the OH situation. I know he is excited about next year's (2016) recruiting class, which already has a stud or two in it. But he really needs to address the hole in OH recruiting.

He did tweet something the other day about "Razorbacks on board" from France, so maybe he has found an international player to come in and help. Fingers crossed....

Sorry for the length – I know VB is not exactly a marquee sport at the UA, but some of us have been solid fans since the Chris Poole days... 

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

Thanks for the post.  Sounds like we are headed in the right direction.

Proud of these student-athletes and their effort.

[psycHOGlogist]

An additional update - just saw today that Shelby Harper is transferring as well, to Houston. That may not be a big loss, considering that she couldn't crack the lineup and there is talent ahead of her. And Houston isn't that great a program. Plus, it frees up a scholarship.

In addition to his tweet about having someone from France on board, he also tweeted something similar from Puerto Rico, so that seems like two additions for the spring signing period (if they are both 2015 players, which seems likely).

Hard to keep everyone happy with 20 athletes on the roster.

[RedRazorback15]

PsycHOGlogist - I agree with your assessment. The Lady 'Backs lost too many winnable matches early on in the season. No way they should've let some of those lesser schools beat them, especially at home.

I think going in to conference play we knew the SEC wasn't going to be easy. Breaks had to be made in the non-conference schedule. This team did not seize it. As a result, there was too much to overcome for any hopes of the postseason. Kind of a shame considering the influx of incoming talent.

There is promise for 2015, I can agree. I'm interested to see where the team is at come spring ball.

:razorback:

[psycHOGlogist]

After my last post, he also tweeted a similar thing about a Razorback on board in Mexico. So that's France, Puerto Rico, and Mexico - next year's class may have a distinct international flavor.

At Christmas, I tweeted at him that I hoped Santa was bringing us a 6-rotation OH from France, Puerto Rico, or Mexico, and he favorited it. I'm not sure what that means, but I hope I'm right. :-)

[dj shanon "Notshavin" smeya]

After my last post, he also tweeted a similar thing about a Razorback on board in Mexico. So that's France, Puerto Rico, and Mexico - next year's class may have a distinct international flavor.

At Christmas, I tweeted at him that I hoped Santa was bringing us a 6-rotation OH from France, Puerto Rico, or Mexico, and he favorited it. I'm not sure what that means, but I hope I'm right. :-)

Will be interesting to watch...

[psycHOGlogist]

Some additional updates:

One addition to the roster has been announced already: Pilar Victoria is transferring from Texas to Arkansas. She will be a junior and have two years of eligibility. She didn't get too much playing time at Texas, though she did get some. Texas has some fantastic OH's in their program, so I don't view her lack of star power there as a big negative. She was a VERY heralded junior player out of Puerto Rico, and I'm pretty confident that she will step into the role vacated by Meredith Hays -- six-rotation OH.

That covers the "Puerto Rico" reference above; still waiting to see if anything follows from the "France" and "Mexico" tweets Robbie made in the off-season.

There appear to be some roster deletions, as well, which probably shouldn't be a surprise. Summer Morgan is not listed on the roster for the spring. Neither is Sam Skinner or Krista Kolbinskie. Skinner might be taking the semester off for rehab following her injury, but usually players that are doing that are still listed on the roster. Based on a quick look at their twitter feeds, all three are still enrolled at Arkansas, so it may just be that they have decided to stop competing in volleyball?

Holly Hankenson is also not on the spring roster, but that's almost certainly because she is busy with the track team. Not sure if she will return to volleyball in the fall or not.

So, with Hays' graduating, Bethke and Harper transferring, and Morgan, Kolbinskie, Skinner, and H Hankenson either done or temporarily not competing, the roster has shrunk from an unmanageable 20 to a much more reasonable 13. There is still depth in most positions - 3 MB's with good experience, 3 OH's (a position of need) + the Texas transfer, 2 setters, one excellent OPP and several players who can play OPP if needed, and 3 DS/L's.  Plus the mystery tweets about France and Mexico (maybe 2016 kids? who knows?).

Finally - there has been a coaching change. Ben Boldt, who was hired last year after being AC at Iowa for several years is no longer with the team. Can't find anything about why; but Robbie announced today that Sarah Rumely, who was an absolute STUD setter at UK (who was recruited there and coached by Robbie before he came to Arkansas), has joined the staff as Assistant Coach and recruiting coordinator. I don't know much about Boldt and his departure, and I don't know much about Rumely as a coach (though it seems she did well at Wake Forest), but she was an awesome player, and I think it's a great thing when a coach's former players come to work with him and can bring a little extra knowledge of him (or her) to the recruiting trail.

Excited to see what else develops in the spring season and the off-season. WPS!

[RedRazorback15]

Great update. Thanks.  :razorback:

[psycHOGlogist]

One additional update - Summer Morgan is transferring to Memphis. Sad to see her go, as an Arkansas kid, but she was pretty low on the depth chart. Wish her the best. 

[psycHOGlogist]

I know that everyone is more interested in who else CJD is going to bring in for the basketball team (and that interests me a lot, too!), but Robbie Pulliza just announced the remainder of the recruiting class, finally answering the riddles about having "Razorbacks on board" from France, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.

The signees include:

Juliette Fidon 6-1 || OH || France
Excited about this one. Has been in the French National Team program on the junior level, which suggests that she is a 6-rotation player, and has played in several international championship qualification tournaments with pretty good statistics. Sounds like a banger on the outside who can play all the way around. Which is just what this team needs more of.

Fernanda Güitron 6-0 || OPP || Mexico
Also has international experience -- apparently on the senior level -- having been on the Mexican World Grand Prix team in 2014, as well as several junior international championship tournaments.  Not as huge a position of need, given that we have some good options on the right side, but if she is a serious baller, then bring her in!

Okiana Valle 5-2 || L/DS || Puerto Rico
Seems like a very strong DS/libero likely to challenge Ortiz and Bollinger. Currently on the Puerto Rico Junior National Team and has been recognized at international tournaments for excellent serve receive skills. Always a bonus to have depth at defensive positions.

Kimi Davis 5-5 || L/DS || Rogers, Ark.
The one we "knew" about - has been listed as an Arkansas commit for a while now. Local kid with very impressive defensive statistics in high school. Love to see the local kids signing with the Hogs. (There are two young players at FHS right now who are nationally elite level players, and it would be SO GREAT to see them stay home. Huge for the program.) And as I said above, it's always a bonus to have quality defensive depth.

Along with the transfer from Texas mentioned upthread, Pilar Victoria, this looks like a very solid class that hits strongly on positions of need for the team. I know we have a blue-chip setter committed for 2016, so it will be interesting to see what happens with the program from this point on. I'd think Robbie needs to start making the NCAA tournament regularly (which he has done 2 of the last 3 years) to feel truly secure in his job, but what do I know? ;-) This class looks like it helps in that direction. It won't be ranked, because the ranking services generally ignore both transfers and international recruits, but it seems pretty solid. If the new players gel and the foreign players adjust quickly to the college game, we have the makings of a good season.

Here's the link to the release: http://arkansasrazorbacks.com/news/razorbackvb-adds-talented-class-of-four-04-16-2015