Sports

Southern Miss Volleyball Heads to Oxford for Rebel Classic

The University of Southern Mississippi volleyball team will compete in the Rebel Volleyball Classic in Oxford, Mississippi, on Saturday. The Golden Eagles (3-0) will open against Central Arkansas (0-3) at noon and face host Ole Miss (3-2) at 6 p.m. at the Gillom Athletics Performance Center, according to school officials.

Southern Miss enters the weekend as the only undefeated team remaining in the Sun Belt Conference. The team aims to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2021 and 5-0 for the first time since 2015. The Golden Eagles have been led by their offense, hitting .331 as a team with 147 kills, 134 assists, and 17 aces through three matches, the school said.

Senior setter Allie Hazelwood leads the team with an average of 10.3 assists per set, earning Sun Belt Setter of the Week honors after the first week. Hazelwood was also named to the All-Tournament Team at the Gamecock Classic alongside senior Sadie McAda. Middle blocker Elly Stewart is hitting .532 this season, ranking eighth nationally, the school reported.

Southern Miss opened the season with a 3-0 sweep of Southern in Jacksonville, Alabama, then defeated Jacksonville State in five sets. The team’s first opponent Saturday, Central Arkansas, has lost all three matches this season, falling to Denver, Colorado, and CSUN at the Buffs Classic.

The Golden Eagles’ final match of the weekend will be against Ole Miss, which leads the all-time series 4-0. Their last meeting was a five-set loss for Southern Miss in 2018. Ole Miss has a 3-2 record after splitting matches at the Big Ten/SEC Challenge in Oklahoma. The Rebels’ Shayla Meyer leads with 80 kills, and Cameron Bradley averages 5.55 digs per set, according to the school.

Fans can watch Southern Miss at Ole Miss live on SEC Network+ and follow live stats online. The university also encourages followers to stay updated via their social media channels, including Instagram, X, and Facebook.

Source: Original Article