Tag: Arkansas volleyball

No. 1 Wisconsin squeaks by Arkansas volleyball in thriller

Arkansas volleyball took No. 1 ranked Wisconsin to five sets, but ultimately came up short in a thrilling match on Wednesday night.

The No. 21 Arkansas Razorbacks showed the volleyball world that they could hang with the elite teams in the country on Wednesday, nearly knocking off No. 1 Wisconsin in five sets.

The two teams split the first two sets before Wisconsin took a 2-1 advantage following the third set. To the Hogs’ credit, they were able to fight back in the fourth and win, 25-22, to force the fifth and final set. The fifth set saw nine lead changes and was very much a back-and-forth affair until the top-ranked Badgers were able narrowly escape in the end with a 15-13 victory.

Wednesday night’s thrilling match marked the first time in school history that the Razorbacks had ever gone to five sets with the No. 1 ranked team in the country.

4,299 fans were in attendance at Barnhill Arena to watch the match, shattering the program’s previous attendance record of 3,015.

Arkansas will have another chance to knock off the Badgers tonight at 7:00 p.m. The match can be seen live on ESPNU.

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Hogs push No. 1 team in the nation to the brink in front of record crowd

Arkansas gets another shot at the top-ranked Badgers on Thursday night, perhaps in front of another 4,300 fans.

Outside of the national championship, Thursday may have been the biggest day in college volleyball history.

In Fayetteville, that was especially true.

No. 21 Arkansas, long a mid-pack in the SEC with a modest fan base, had a record crowd for its match against No. 1 Wisconsin in Barnhill Arena. The Razorbacks nearly pulled the massive upset, too, ultimately falling in the maximum five sets and by minimum points in the final – 21-25, 25-20, 26-24, 22-25, 13-15.

Hannah Hogue, the reigning SEC Setter of the Week, had three blocks, 14 digs and a career-high 57 assists. Twenty-two of those assists were to Jill Gillen, whose 22 kills placed her third in school history in that statistic.

Arkansas, which has not beaten a No. 1-ranked team in volleyball before, did take its first-ever No. 1-ranked opponent to five sets. Ultimately the Badgers had a total one single more point in the first match of the series.

The Hogs will get another shot Thursday night at 7 p.m. on ESPNU and it may be in front of even more than the record-setting 4,299 fans at Barnhill on Wednesday.

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Arkansas volleyball to get 7 national TV games

The Razorbacks will face reigning Big Ten champions Wisconsin on the national stage on Aug, 30 and Aug. 31.

The Arkansas volleyball team’s 21 victories last season was the program’s most in 10 years. Now the Razorbacks will set out to improve on that mark in 2023, and will get to do so with some expanded national exposure.

Arkansas will play on national television seven times this season, with a slate featuring non-conference and SEC opponents. The televised matches will include showdowns with a pair of reigning conference champions, as well as three NCAA Tournament teams.

After opening the season at home against Michigan State on Aug. 25 and Tulsa on Aug 27, the Razorbacks will be nationally televised on back-to-back nights against 2022 Big Ten champion Wisconsin in Barnhill Arena. Their Aug. 30 match with the Badgers will be aired on the SEC Network, before the two teams face off the following night on ESPNU. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m.

The Hogs will open conference play on the SEC Network Sept. 22, hosting South Carolina at 7 p.m.

The Razorbacks are coming off their best season under 8th-year head coach Jason Watson, finishing 21-9 overall and 11-7 in the SEC. They defeated Utah State in the opener of the NCAA Tournament, before falling to No. 3 Oregon.

Conference matches not broadcast on linear television will be featured on SEC Network-Plus, while streaming information for non-conference contests will be announced by the university when available.

Arkansas Volleyball TV Schedule (All CT)

Aug. 30 vs. Wisconsin: SEC Network (7 p.m.)

Aug. 31 vs. Wisconsin: ESPNU (7 p.m.)

Sept. 22 vs. South Carolina: SEC Network (7 p.m.)

Sept. vs. Auburn: SEC Network (7 p.m.)

Oct. 15 vs. Alabama: SEC Network (3 p.m.)

Oct. 22 @ Kentucky: SEC Network (12 p.m.)

Nov. 15 @ Ole Miss: SEC Network (8 p.m.)

Preseason poll has Arkansas volleyball finishing fifth in SEC

Arkansas volleyball was picked to finish fifth in the SEC and two Razorbacks received preseason honors ahead of the 2023 season.

After a strong finish last season, Arkansas volleyball has been picked to finish fifth in the preseason SEC poll. The Razorbacks received 101 votes in the poll, which is voted on by all of the SEC coaches.

This is the fifth time in Jason Watson’s eight seasons as head coach that Arkansas is projected to finish in the top five of the conference. Only Georgia, Tennessee, Florida and Kentucky were picked ahead of the Razorbacks.

On top of the ranking, two Arkansas players were named to the preseason All-SEC team – outside hitters Jill Gillen and Taylor Head. It’s the second career All-SEC nod for Gillen  and Head’s first.

Both players were also named AVCA South All-Region, which is a repeat honor for the duo. Before Gillen and Head, the Razorbacks had not had an All-American since 2017.

[autotag]Arkansas volleyball[/autotag] will begin the 2023 season on August 25 when they host Michigan State in Barnhill Arena.

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Razorbacks announce schedule featuring nine NCAA Tournament teams from 2022

Arkansas volleyball announced its 2024 schedule and it features nine teams that joined the Hogs in the NCAA Tourney last year.

The Arkansas volleyball team, fresh off a round-of-32 NCAA Tournament appearance, will look to take the next step in 2023 following the team’s schedule announcement for next year.

Arkansas will play nine teams that joined them in the NCAA Tournament last year among the 30 games on the slate. In all, the Hogs will play 12 different teams from nine leagues with 15 matches coming from Barnhill Arena on-campus.

The highlights of the season include a visit from 2021 national champion Wisconsin on August 30 and 31, and the Wooo Pig Invitational the following weekend with Colorado State and Michigan in town. Arkansas will also open its season with an exhibition match at Alma High School against Missouri State on August 19.

Arkansas went 21-9 last year, its highest win total in 10 years and most under coach Jason Watson. The Razorbacks made the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nine years and won a match in the tourney for the first time since 2004.

The complete schedule is below.

2023 Arkansas Volleyball Schedule

8/19: Missouri State (exhib) – Alma HS

8/25: Michigan State

8/27: Tulsa

8/30: Wisconsin

8/30: Wisconsin

9/1: Colorado State

9/3: Michigan

9/8: College of Charleston

9/8: Western Kentucky

9/9: Troy

9/15: Buffalo

9/15: St. John’s

9/16: Troy

9/22: South Carolina*

9/24: Texas A&M*

9/27: Auburn*

10/4: LSU*

10/8: Missouri*

10/13: Ole Miss*

10/15: Alabama*

10/20: Tennessee*

10/22: Kentucky*

10/27: South Carolina*

10/29: Florida*

11/1: Georgia*

11/5: Mississippi State*

11/10: Alabama*

11/15: Ole Miss*

11/19: Florida*

11/22: Kentucky*

11/24: Auburn*

Arkansas drops ANOTHER Top 10 team as Hogs race up polls

At what point does Arkansas considered a contender for a deep NCAA Tournament run?

Just get out of their way at this point.

Arkansas volleyball is on a roll like no other in this, the 2022 season. The Razorbacks, which cracked the Top 25 for the first time in seven years earlier this week, beat their second Top-10 team this year on Thursday.

No. 7 Georgia Tech visited Barnhill Arena having lost only two games of their 20 so far this year en route to a 6-0 record. But after falling to sixth-ranked Ohio State on Sunday, 3-1, the Hogs went ahead and handed the Yellow Jackets a second straight loss by the same score, 3-1.

Arkansas knocked off then Top-10 team Washington in August, which, combined with Thursday’s victory gives the program their first-ever season with two victories over teams within that Top 10.

Knocking off the seventh-ranked Tech team gives Arkansas an upset over the highest ranked opponent the team has had since 2007.

The Razorbacks are back at it Friday night against North Carolina State.

Razorbacks crack the Top 25 for the first time in seven years

The last time Arkansas was in the Top 25 was back in 2015. The Hogs get the nation’s No. 7 team on Thursday.

Winners of seven of eight matches to start the season, Arkansas volleyball would be happy at this point of the year no matter what.

Turns out, the rest of the country is taking notice.

The Razorbacks cracked the Top 25 for the first time in seven years Monday when they checked in at No. 24 in the AVCA poll, which is voted on by coaches across the sport.

Arkansas has won six straight matches. Most recently, the Razorbacks took all nine games – a 9-0 sweep – against Little Rock, Florida International and Colorado at the Arkansas Invitational over the weekend. The weekend before that, they did the same thing – a 9-0 sweep – at the Colorado State Tournament.

The Hogs’ only loss this year came to then-No. 11, now No. 18, Washington. Arkansas took the season opener against the Huskies, 3-1, in Fayetteville, but fell the night after, 3-1.

Arkansas gets its toughest test of the season Thursday as part of the Arkansas Challenge against No. 7 Georgia Tech. The second game of the tournament will be Friday against North Carolina State.

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VolleyHogs open season against top-ten team

The Razorbacks host their first top-ten opponent since 2000.

Arkansas’ volleyball Hogs will start their 2022-23 campaign at home against the eighth-ranked Huskies of Washington.

The Huskies are the highest-ranked home opponent in the program’s history and the first top-ten season opening opponent since they took on No. 2 Penn State in 2000.

Arkansas comes into the season ranked fourth in the SEC preseason polls, the highest they’ve seen since 2014 thanks to a 20-win season last year, the first in 10 years.

Jill Gillen and Courtney Jackson return after receiving All-SEC honors from a year ago. Gillen was named to the preseason All-SEC team and Jackson was a member of the 2021 All-SEC Freshman team.

Friday’s season opener is set for 7 p.m. and Saturday’s series finale is at 4 p.m. Both matches will be streamed on SEC Network+.

Arkansas Volleyball voted to finish fourth in SEC

Arkansas Volleyball is expected to have another great season says the coaches of the conference.

Following a 20-win season, the Arkansas Razorbacks will begin the 2022 campaign with higher expectations than normal.

The Southeastern Conference released the SEC Coaches Poll, as well as the preseason All-SEC team for volleyball. Arkansas is picked to finish No. 4 in the league, and has a senior representing the Razorbacks on the all-SEC squad.

According to the press release from Arkansas athletics, Arkansas came in fourth in the coaches’ poll with 105 points, its best placement since the poll shifted from East and West Divisions to a ranking of all SEC teams in 2014. It is the fourth time in head coach Jason Watson’s seven seasons that the Razorbacks have been picked to finish in the top five of the conference.

Senior [autotag]Jillian Gillen[/autotag] was named to the All-SEC team. Gillen enters her final season at Arkansas as a three-time All-SEC honors, and has recorded over 1,000 kills in her Arkansas career.

2022 SEC Preseason Coaches Poll

  1. Kentucky
  2. Florida
  3. Tennessee
  4. Arkansas
  5. Mississippi State
  6. South Carolina
  7. Ole Miss
  8. LSU
  9. Georgia
  10. Texas A&M
  11. Missouri
  12. Auburn
  13. Alabama

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