The Panther volleyball team travels to No. 1 Texas for Friday night non-conference action before making the trek to play at Houston. High Point carries a 7-4 record into the weekend.'

S 3| Block? then a kill from @lucydumford #GoHPU pic.twitter.com/cFRwXkAV6l

— HPU Volleyball (@HPUVB) September 14, 2022

 
GAME INFORMATION
High Point at No. 1 Texas
Gregory Gymnasium | Austin, TX
Friday, September 16^th | 8:00 PM ET
Watch | Live Stats
 
High Point at Houston
Fertitta Center | Houston, TX
Sunday, September 18^th | 2:00 PM ET
Watch | Live Stats
 
Last Time Out
HPU fell to James Madison in its home opener on Wednesday night. Ally Van Eekeren tallied 22 assists while Jenny Wessling led the Panther defense with 13 digs in the three-set match.

???????????? ???? ?????? ????????@jenny_wessling x #GoHPU pic.twitter.com/4dgQlyeBjS

— HPU Volleyball (@HPUVB) September 12, 2022

 
About the Longhorns
No. 1 Texas is the only remaining unbeaten team in the AVCA Top-25. The Longhorns are 6-0 this season, posting two wins over No. 7 Ohio State to open the year before knocking off No. 4 Minnesota and No. 12 Stanford to open the season. Four-time AVCA All-American and 2021 VolleyballMag.com National Player of the Year Logan Eggleston leads Texas with 77 kills while Saige Ka'aha'aina-Torres has tallied 198 assists. Zoe Fleck leads the defense with 101 digs while Asjia O'Neal is one of four Longhorns who has posted over 10.0 blocks this season.
 
About the Cougars
The Cougars, who received votes in Monday's AVCA Top-25 poll, are 8-1 on the year entering the weekend. After dropping its opening match to Rice, Houston has most-recently posted wins over Oregon State, South Alabama, Mississippi State, and Kennesaw State.
 
Idlebird Sets New Program-Best against Fairfield
Graduate middle blocker Gabrielle Idlebird set a new program record for single-match hitting percentage (minimum 10 attempts) on Saturday against Fairfield. Idlebird was a perfect 8-for-8 on attack attempts and finished the match 11-for-13 (.846).

S2 | We're rolling ?? @gabbyidlebird hitting 1.000 with 7 kills ??#GoHPU pic.twitter.com/GW9i7cQm8Y

— HPU Volleyball (@HPUVB) September 10, 2022

 
Meek Posts 200^th Career Win
Head coach Ryan Meek notched his 200^th career win on Saturday as the Panthers swept the Stags. Meek has posted 90 of his wins in five years at the helm for HPU.
 
Maberry, Wessling Claim Big South Weekly Awards
Dylan Maberry and Jenny Wessling earned weekly awards from the conference after their performances at the Fairfield Invitational. Maberry was named the Player of the Week after posting 38 kills and hitting over .400 through the three matches while Wessling earned the Libero of the Week nod for the second time in three weeks, tallying a match-high 28 digs against Sacred Heart.

???????????? ???? ?????? ???????? ??@dylan_maberry x #GoHPU pic.twitter.com/OCbM1mcRPr

— HPU Volleyball (@HPUVB) September 12, 2022

 
Palazzolo, Wessling Take First Weekly Conference Awards
Sophomores Sydney Palazzolo and Jenny Wessling earned Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week honors from the Big South Conference on Monday. Palazzolo finished the week with 55 kills (5.0 kps), 37 digs, three blocks, and two service aces while Wessling posted 53 digs and three service aces.
 
Four Panthers Recognized on Preseason Team
With the Big South's preseason coaches' poll also came preseason all-conference honors. Dylan Maberry, Maria Miggins, Gabrielle Idlebird, and Sydney Palazzolo were recognized on the preseason team while Maberry was named the conference's Preseason Player of the Year and Miggins earned the Preseason Setter of the Year nod.
 
HPU Selected as Unanimous Preseason Favorite
High Point received nine first-place votes to sweep the Big South's Preseason Coaches' poll. The Panthers return five all-conference members from 2021 in Dylan Maberry (Player of the Year), Maria Miggins (Setter of the Year), Jenny Wessling (Defensive Player of the Year), Sydney Palazzolo (Freshman of the Year), and Gabrielle Idlebird.
 
New Season, New Faces
The 2022 HPU roster features nine new members with four transfers and five freshmen. Ally Van Eekeren (Creighton), Kathryn Wesolich (UCF), Jillian Ziemba (Butler), and Elaina Bohnet (Iowa Western CC) all transferred in beginning last January, while BayLea Sparks, Anna Wilson, Ella Grasson, Hannah Hawkins, and Amelia Kowalska round out the 2022 freshman class.