PRAIRIE VIEW – The Prairie View A&M volleyball team enters the home stretch of the 2019 slate with the Southwestern Athletic Conference regular season crown well within reach, and the Lady Panthers begin that pivotal portion of the schedule with home dates versus Grambling State and Southern.

The Lady Panthers (12-20, 11-3 SWAC) take on the Lady Tigers (9-19, 4-10 SWAC) at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 3 -- the contest is designated as Senior Night for Prairie View A&M -- and will face the Jaguars (10-13, 10-4 SWAC) at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 4. Both contests will emanate from the Baby Dome.

Junior middle blocker and SWAC Player of the Year candidate Victoria Pearson leads the way with 325 kills (2.83 per set) on a .304 attack percentage. Pearson and junior outside hitter Tamaira Armstrong (291 kills on a .201 hit percentage, 239 digs) both rank among the SWAC's top 10 in kills and points.  Senior right side hitter CeTara Carter (231 kills) leads the team with 60 blocks, and Pearson is close behind with 51 total blocks.

Setters Erica Jimenez (480 assists; 4.49 per set) and Jakarta Hope (470 assists; 4.56 per set) direct the league's top-ranked assist team, and freshman libero Skyla Childs continues to anchor the defense with 487 digs.

In the teams' prior matchups, Armstrong put down 11 kills to lead Prairie View A&M to a sweep win over Grambling on Oct. 6, while Pearson's 11 kills powered a similar result over Southern on Oct. 7.

Scouting the Competition:

- Grambling State leads the SWAC with 2.06 blocks per set and enter tomorrow's game with four players that have amassed 100 kills or better.  Chasity Nicks is the team's top offensive threat, leading the team with 156 kills. Kalee Caldwell and Sheila Borders have combined for 453 assists. Kabria Dame paces the Tigers with 282 digs, and Grambling has five players who have cleared the 100-dig plateau.

- Southern boasts the SWAC's No. 2 ranked defense in terms of opponent hitting percentage, limiting teams to a .183 clip per match. Additionally, the Jaguars are No. 2 in the league in blocks per set at 1.89 per game. Led by Jada Carter's 179 kills, Southern has five players with 100 or more kills on the season.  

- Brianna Hawkins (139 kills, team-high 50 blocks) and Arabella Hall (122 kills, 72 blocks) anchor the Jaguars' net defense. Orchestrating the offense is Princess Stark (542 assists), and Sameera Mohammed's 250 digs are tops among Southern players.

 

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