MATCH #26: No. 3 TEXAS (22-3, 17-1 Big 12) vs. Iowa State (15-12, 9-8 Big 12)
When: Wednesday, Nov. 21 at 6:30 p.m. Central
Where: Ames, Iowa (Hilton Coliseum; 14,356 capacity)
SERIES INFO
All-Time Series Record: Texas leads Iowa State, 21-2 (13-0 home, 0-0 neutral, 9-2 away)
Last Meeting: Sept. 19, 2007 -- Texas won, 3-0 (30-20, 30-24, 30-28) in Austin
Last Iowa State Victory: Sept. 17, 2005 -- Iowa State won, 3-1 (22-30, 31-29, 30-23, 30-27) in Ames
Current Streak: Texas has won the last four meetings.
HEADLINES
· Texas was ranked No. 3 in the CSTV/AVCA poll, released Monday, Nov. 19, holding that position for the fourth straight week ... The Longhorns ranking is their highest ranking since Sept. 17, 1996 when Texas was ranked No. 3 ... UT has been ranked in the top seven every week this season ... Texas opened the season ranked No. 4 in the preseason poll, equaling its best preseason ranking in program history (1998).
· The Longhorns extended their season-best winning streak to 18 matches with their 3-0 victory over Baylor on Nov. 17 ... sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker and freshman outside hitter Juliann Faucette paced UT with a pair of 14-kill performances, while Faucette added 14 digs for her sixth kill/dig double-double of the season.
· Head coach Jerritt Elliott recorded his 200th career win (150th at UT) when the Longhorns notched a 3-0 victory over Texas Tech (Nov. 14) ... Sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker highlighted Texas' attack with a match-high 14 kills, helping the Horns out-hit the Red Raiders .358-to-.034 ... Hooker added 10 digs and three service aces to her performance, recording the sixth kill/dig double-double of her career.
· Sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle was named Big 12 Player of the Week on Nov. 12 after posting 4.57 points and 3.57 kills per-game and hitting at a .512 clip against Kansas and Texas A&M ... Engle averaged 2.00 digs, 0.86 blocks and 0.57 aces per-game and committed just three attack errors on 43 swings ... the honor is the seventh POW award for Texas this season ... Engle is the fifth UT player to garner league honors in 2007, making UT the only school in Big 12 history to have five players earn POW accolades in the same season.
· Three Longhorns were named to the 2007 CoSIDA/ ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 6 squad ... senior setter Michelle Moriarty and sophomore defensive specialist Heather Kisner earned first team honors, while junior middle blocker Lauren Paolini garnered second team accolades ... the award was the third of Moriarty's career after earning first team honors in 2005 and second team honors in 2006 ... as first team selections Moriarty and Kisner are now eligible for ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America honors.
· Texas placed three players on the 2007 Academic All-Big 12 Volleyball First Team, the league office announced ... senior setter Michelle Moriarty, junior middle blocker Lauren Paolini and sophomore defensive specialist Heather Kisner all earned spots on the first-team, while Kisner was one of six league players carrying a perfect 4.00 grade point average.
· The Longhorns are currently tied atop the Big 12 Conference with No. 2 Nebraska and are vying for a co-championship ... in its 12 Big 12 Conference matches, Texas has been impressive, ranking near the top of virtually every league statistical category in conference play ... The Longhorns rank first in the league with 3.41 blocks p/g and .361 hitting percentage ... Texas' 18.05 kills p/g and 16.74 assists p/g rank second in league play.
· Individually, Juliann Faucette and Destinee Hooker rank second and third in the Big 12 in kills p/g with 4.91 and 4.71 respectively ... Faucette ranks third in the conference with 5.59 points p/g and tenth in hitting percentage (.336) ... Hooker ranks second in points (5.72) and sixth in hitting percentage (.365) ... Senior setter Michelle Moriarty paces the conference with 15.03 assists p/g in league play and middle blockers Lauren Paolini and Brandy Magee rank first and third in hitting percentage at .465 and .421 ... sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle ranks ninth with a .341 attack mark.
LAST TIME OUT VS. BAYLOR (11/17/07)
Texas used a pair of 14-kill performances by sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker and freshman outside hitter Juliann Faucette to knock off Baylor, 3-0 at the Ferrell Center ... the Longhorns' 30-21, 30-20, 30-25 sweep marked their 18th straight victory and their 15th sweep in Big 12 Conference play ... the Longhorns posted their lowest attack mark in a victory this season, but out-hit the Bears .276-to-.093 and out-killed Baylor 54-to-34 ... Hooker and Faucette paced the Horns with 14 kills apiece and Faucette added 14 digs, notching her sixth kill/dig double-double of her career ... junior middle blocker Lauren Paolini added 12 kills on .550 hitting and sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle posted 12 kills, a .357 attack mark, nine digs and two service aces in the win.
LAST TIME AGAINST IOWA STATE (9/19/07)
Texas used a career-best hitting performance by freshman outside hitter Juliann Faucette to knock off Iowa State, 3-0 (30-20, 30-24, 30-28) at Gregory Gymnasium ... Faucette equaled a career-high with 23 kills in the match and hit a career-high .583 in the Longhorns' three game sweep ... the Longhorns out-hit the Cyclones on the night .357-to-.198 and held a 10-to-4.5 edge in team blocking ... sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker tallied 15 kills and 12 digs on the night and senior middle blocker Brandy Magee posted a season-high 11 kills on .500 hitting ... Faucette added nine digs to her career hitting performance, while Hooker posted her third career and third consecutive kill/dig double-double with 15 kills and 12 digs.
