Back at Barnhill for the Razorback Invitational

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas volleyball team returns to Barnhill Arena for this weekend’s Razorback Invitational which begins Friday with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m. (CT) against Northwestern State. The Razorbacks are also set to face Southeast Missouri and UT Arlington during the two-day tournament. Arkansas enters the weekend with a 5-1 record after an undefeated run in its last outing at the SIUE Cougar Classic.

Individual match tickets are $5 at the Barnhill Arena ticket window one hour prior to each match while UA students (with valid ID) and fans 17 years and younger receive free admission. Students are asked to use the street-level entrance along Stadium Drive. Among Friday’s promotions, the first 50 UA students will receive a free team knit hat. Click HERE for a full list of this weekend’s promotions.

Arkansas carries a 7-1 combined advantage against the other teams in the Razorback Invitational field with all-time records of 2-0 against Northwestern State, 2-1 against Southeast Missouri and 3-0 against UT Arlington. Northwestern State is one of 10 Razorback opponents that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament.

Through the first two weeks of the 2015 campaign, Arkansas ranks 16th in the NCAA with its .286 hitting percentage to go along with being tied for 24th at 13.81 assists per set and 45th at 13.33 kills per set. Individually, Chanell Clark-Bibbs is 22nd nationally with her .449 hitting percentage while Pilar Victoria is tied for 35th among NCAA attackers with 4.29 kills per set; she leads the SEC in that category.

With her second dig against SIUE on Sept. 4, senior Monica Bollinger moved into sole possession of 15th place on Arkansas’ all-time digs list. She enters the Razorback Invitational with 827 career digs, just eight behind Eftila Tanellari (1999-01) for 14th place on the list. Defensively, Arkansas is ranked fourth in the SEC in opponent hitting percentage (.163)

Following Friday’s match, the Razorbacks return to the court Saturday at 11 a.m. to face Southeast Missouri and 7 p.m. to play UT Arlington. All three of Arkansas’ matches this weekend will be streamed live on SEC Network+, the network’s digital platform. Web broadcasts are available online at SECNetwork.com, ESPN3.com or though the WatchESPN app.

During the season-opening Arkansas Invitational, the Razorback fans continued their trend of re-writing the program’s attendance records book with the seventh- and eighth-largest home crowds in Barnhill Arena. Nine of the top 10 crowds in program history have come since the start of the 2010 season.

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