No. 22 Volleyball Faces Road Test at No. 20 Kentucky

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 22 University of Arkansas volleyball team continues its conference slate Wednesday night with a road match at No. 20 Kentucky. The midweek matchup is scheduled for a 7 p.m. (CT) start at Memorial Coliseum in Lexington, Ky., and will be televised on the SEC Network. Riding a five-match win streak, the Razorbacks enter the match with a 13-2 overall record and a 3-0 mark in SEC play.

Tying the best start in program history (with the 1998 team), Arkansas earned its first AVCA national ranking since the 1999 season when it entered Monday’s poll as the No. 22 team in the country. The Razorbacks are also off to a 3-0 start in the SEC for the first time since 2003. In the series against Kentucky (11-5/4-0 SEC), the Wildcats own a 20-15 advantage with win in the last three meetings. Arkansas swept the season series in 2012 including a straight-set win in Lexington.

Along with the television broadcast, Wednesday’s match will be streamed live online through ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app. Tiffany Greene and Missy Whittemore are set to handle the play-by-play and color commentary duties, respectively. This marks Arkansas’ third of eight television appearances during the SEC season.

In their last outing, the Razorbacks registered a five-set win over then-No. 9 Florida at Barnhill Arena to give the program its first win over the Gators since 2007. Pilar Victoria led all players with 21 kills, good for her fifth 20-kill performance of the season, while Chanell Clark-Bibbs added 17 kills, five total blocks and two service aces. Six different Razorbacks had at least one ace in the match. Okiana Valle paced the floor defense with 17 digs against the Gators.

Statistically, Arkansas maintains its position among the most efficient teams in the country with its .267 hitting percentage which is good for 22nd in the country. Behind the direction of junior setter Adrien Wohlschlaeger, the Razorbacks are 42nd in the NCAA with 12.98 assists per set as a team. Wohlschlaeger is second in the SEC and 26th among the nation’s setter at 11.15 assists per set.

The Razorbacks are also represented in the NCAA statistical rankings by Clark-Bibbs and Victoria. From the outside, Victoria remains 14th in the NCAA with 4.47 kills per set and 18th among the nation’s attackers with 5.01 points per set. In the middle, Clark-Bibbs is 38th nationally with her .396 hitting percentage. Overall, the Houston, Texas, native is also ranked in the top six of three—hitting percentage, blocks per set and points per set—SEC statistical categories.

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