UCAFANS.COM | GO UCA BEARS!

SugarBears won both games this week...........3-0 sweeps on the road of UNO and Nicholls...........ended regular season 14-2 in SLC and 24-5 overall...another excellent season.

UCA ended 2nd behind SFA who was 16-0 in SLC play and ahead of SHS at 13-3.....SLC Tourney starts Friday, 11/16 at Northwestern State.

SugarBears open vs #7 Northwestern State at 6:30pm, the last match of Day 1.
SBs defeated Lady Demons on 10/4 at Natch in a close 3-1 match.

Should they win, they would play winner of #3 SHS and #6 McNeese State at 2:30pm on Saturday, 11/17.

Go SugarBears!!!

Close call today in tourney as #7 Northwestern State wins first two games 25-20 and 25-19 then finished with a furious comeback by taking the next three games by 25-19, 25-15 and 15-12.

Pretty even hitting with SBs 280 v248............Kellen Dunn led with a very solid 21 kills but Haley Tippett at 18 and Samantha Anderson at 17.......Elizabeth Armstrong had an incredible 44 assists...

Now take on #3 Sam Houston State Saturday at 2:30in semi-finals

Vs #3 Sam Houston State in semi-finals

SHS 20-21-12
UCA 25-25-25

SBs win 3-0 and advance to finals tomorrow..............shoots 285 vs 114.........Anderson shoots 419 with15 kills....Tippetts gets 10 kills............Armstrong another 23 assists and Doss with 21 digs........Allen shot 364 with 5 kills

Go SugarBears!!

Vs #1 SFA in finals on 11/18/18

SFA 25-25-25
UCA 21-9-23

Jacks win 3-0..they certainly deserved the championship with three wins over SB this season.......

SBs were outshot today 337-146......pretty much says it all......Anderson and Dunn each had 11 kills and Tippetts added 9....

Great season with a 26-6 record........congrats to all the ladies.........Go Sugarbears!!

https://ucasports.com/news/2018/11/18/VB_111818.aspx

Natchitoches, LA – The Central Arkansas Sugar Bears returned to the Southland Conference Tournament Championship for the sixth time in nine seasons on Sunday as they faced the top-seeded Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks in a one vs. two-seed battle. The Sugar Bears could not defend the tournament title as the Ladyjacks swept them to advance to the NCAA Tournament. Samantha Anderson and Kellen Dunn led the Sugar Bears with 11 kills while Haley Tippett added 9.

The first set proved entertaining for the fans as there were six ties within the first 22 points and the biggest lead was four. Anderson's third kill of the set helped give the Sugar Bears separation as they held a 10-8 lead, but the Ladyjacks immediately responded with a 2-0 run to tie it back at 10-10. Both sides continued to trade the lead until the Lady Jacks broke a 21-21 tie and scored the last four to win set one 25-21. Central Arkansas struggled with attack errors in the first set as they finished with eight and recorded a .161 hitting percentage.

The Ladyjacks jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead in the second set and never looked back as they cruised to a 25-9 win. Stephen F. Austin dominated in the kills department as they recorded 14 in the second set to lead them to the 2-0 lead.

The Sugar Bears faced a similar situation in the third set as they fell behind 10-4, but their response was a more positive one as they went on a 9-3 run to tie it at 13-all. The big three of Tippet, Dunn and Anderson led the comeback as Tippett delivered three kills, Dunn added two and Anderson had one. Central Arkansas gained its first lead since the 2-0 start after an SFA attack error made it 18-17. They furthered their lead a few points later as back-to-back Ladyjack errors made it 20-18, but SFA responded with a kill and ace to even it at 20-all. After Anderson's 11th kill made it 22-22, the Ladyjacks got a crucial kill from Makenzee Hanna and a Sugar Bear error to hold a 24-22 lead. An SFA service error gave Central Arkansas a chance down 24-23, but a kill from Anyia Williams completed the sweep as they won the third set 25-23.

Central Arkansas will return home with two of the six members of the Southland Conference All-Tournament Team as Anderson and Dunn were named members after the match. Anderson finished the tournament with set averages of 3.91 kills, 4.14 points and a hitting average of .320%, while Dunn finished with 3.64 kills, 1.09 digs and 3.82 points per set.

The Sugar Bears' postseason success got them over the 25-win mark for the sixth time in nine seasons.

Season not over yet.........

https://ucasports.com/news/2018/11/19/VB_111918.aspx

CENTRAL ARKANSAS EARNS AQ BID TO WOMEN’S NIVC

Conway – After reaching the 25-win mark and the Southland Conference Tournament championship match for the sixth time in the past nine seasons, the Central Arkansas Sugar Bears learned on Monday that their season is not over yet. As the second-place finisher in the Southland Conference this season, the Sugar Bears have been named as the automatic qualifier to the Women's Nation Invitational Volleyball Championship.

The NIVC, which is in its second year, is an annual postseason tournament involving 32 to 40 teams, with every round played at host schools. Last season, the tournament was won by Ole Miss and former Central Arkansas head coach Steven McRoberts.

On Monday, the NIVC announced the first seven teams to earn an AQ bid, a list that features six teams with at least 20-wins. Central Arkansas (26-6, SLC) is joined by Alabama A&M (23-15, SWAC), Appalachian State (22-8, Sun Belt), Bowling Green (19-11, MAC), Fresno State (21-9, Mountain West), Radford (21-6, Big South), and Tulane (24-8, AAC). More teams will be added throughout the week, with the full field to be announced following the release of the NCAA's selections for the 2018 NCAA Tournament.

"We are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue our 2018 season," said UCA head coach Jeni Jones Chatman. "We have had a solid year, but anytime you can add postseason play to your season that makes for something special."

For more information on the Women's NIVC, visit: https://www.womensnivc.com/

State of Arkansas Volleyball RPI (pre-NCAA Tourney)

UCA 103
UALR 106
UAF 114
ASU 117

For comparison, SFA was 45.

https://ucasports.com/news/2018/11/26/VB_112618.aspx

RPIs of the Denton Regional Teams:

UCA 103
WSU 86
Tulsa 80
N Texas 124

Game 1 is Thursday at 4:30pm vs Wichita State.....need to really play well......remember that SFA is #42...SBs can get this done.......

Winner plays winner of Tulsa v North Texas on Friday

2018 Women's NIVC
Central Arkansas (26-6) and Wichita State (13-17) are joined in the Denton Regional by Tulsa (19-11) and host North Texas (17-16). UCA finished second in the Southland Conference and lost in the SLC Tournament Championship Match, while the Shockers finished seventh in the American Athletic Conference. Tulsa took fourth in the AAC, and North Texas tied for second in Conference USA. The winner's of Thursday's first round matches will meet at 5:30 PM on Friday.

https://www.womensnivc.com/

AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS
Alabama A&M (22-15) - SWAC
Appalachian State (22-8) - Sun Belt
Bowling Green (19-11) - MAC
Bradley (23-8) - Missouri Valley
​Central Arkansas (26-6) - Southland
​Fresno State (20-10) - Mountain West
Iowa State (16-13) - Big 12
Radford (21-6) - Big South
St. John’s (23-11) - Big East
Tulane (25-8) - American
​UC Irvine (16-12) - Big West

AT-LARGE TEAMS
Arkansas State (19-13) - Sun Belt vs Tulane at Tulane
Ball State (22-9) - MAC
California Baptist (19-10) - WAC
Clemson (17-14) - ACC
College of Charleston (21-11) - Colonial Athletic
Drake (21-14) - Missouri Valley
Georgia Tech (17-14) - ACC
Little Rock (19-12) - Sun Belt vs California Baptist at Tulane
Miami-Ohio (22-8) - MAC
North Texas (17-16) - C-USA
Northern Colorado (15-13) - Big Sky
Northern Kentucky (21-9) - Horizon League
Portland (18-12) - WCC
Tulsa (19-11) - American
UC Santa Barbara (17-11) - Big West
UNLV (19-11) - Mountain West
USF (20-11) - American
Utah Valley (19-13) - WAC
Valparaiso (25-10) - Missouri Valley
Wichita State (13-17) - American
Wyoming (20-10) - Mountain West

@NVIT - Denton Regional

Shockers prevail 3-2.....

UCA 25-18-13-25-11
WSU 20-25-25-23-15

Outshot 300-171.........SBs led by Samantha Anderson hitting 359 with 18 kills and 5 digs.....Abbie Harry hit 353 with 9 kills..Bailey Waddington had 17 assists....good try..........great season....Go VolleyBears

PS.........North Texas beat Tulsa 3-1.............