COMMERCE, Texas - Houston Christian opens the Southland Conference Tournament on Friday afternoon when the Huskies face No. 2 seed UT Rio Grande Valley at 1 p.m. in Commerce, Texas. The matchup marks the third meeting between the teams this season, with UTRGV winning both regular-season contests.
The Huskies enter the postseason at 12–17 overall and 7–9 in conference play. HCU closed the regular season with four straight losses but continued to see steady production from its core group.
Allana Archie leads the Huskies with 280 kills, followed by
Joya Euhus with 184 and
Hannah Redrow with 178. Setter
Peyton Fadal paced the offense with 695 assists this season before an injury, while libero
Bianca Byerly anchors the back row with a team-high 354 digs. At the net, Archie's 65.0 total blocks lead the roster, and Byerly has added a team-best 34 aces from the service line.
In their regular season finale, the Huskies fell 3–0 at home to UIW.
Cassidy Drapela recorded a double-double with 10 kills and 14 digs,
Madison Hess tallied 30 assists, and Byerly finished with 17 digs. HCU averaged 12.9 kills per set across the season and totaled 1,491 digs, nearly even with its opponents.
UTRGV enters Friday's match on a 14-match winning streak, the longest in program history. The Vaqueros, who finished 20–7 and 15–1 in conference play, secured a share of the SLC regular season championship and are seeking their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2016. In their most recent match, UTRGV swept East Texas A&M behind an efficient offensive performance, hitting .407 with 53 total kills. Martina Franco and Dimitra Nanou each posted double-doubles, redshirt sophomore Julianna Bryant added 10 kills and five blocks, and setter Isabella Costantini handed out 45 assists with three aces.
Friday's first-round matchup will be the fifth meeting between the programs in the last two seasons. HCU looks to break through against one of the league's most consistent teams and advance in the single-elimination bracket as postseason play begins in Commerce.
