UTEP Volleyball Set for CUSA Home Opener Against Sam Houston  

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- UTEP Volleyball (12-2, 2-0 Conference USA) will kick off its CUSA home slate with a two-match series against Sam Houston (7-6, 2-0 CUSA) on Oct. 4-5 at Club Memorial. The action begins Friday at 6 p.m. with a Pink Out, followed by a Saturday noon match celebrating Parents' Weekend. 

  TICKETS    
Season ($85) and single-game tickets ($10) can be purchased through the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office by calling (915) 747-UTEP, emailing tickets@utep.edu, visiting www.UTEPMiners.com/Tickets or in person at 201 Glory Road (Brumbelow Building, UTEP campus) Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Group tickets are also available for $5 (minimum of 10 tickets).    

  SCHEDULE      

DATE	TIME	MATCHUP	WATCH	STATS	PROMO
Fri. Oct. 4  Sat. Oct. 5	6pm  12pm	UTEP vs. Sam Houston  UTEP vs. Sam Houston	ESPN+  ESPN+	Live Stats  Live Stats	Pink Out  Parents’ Weekend

^All Times Mountain Daylight 

  PARKING     
Fans will have access to Glory Road 2 for both games on Friday and Saturday. However, there might be some congestion due to an event happening the same night on Oct. 4.  To accommodate the production, Glory Road 5 will be closed, and Glory Road will be closed off from Oregon to Randolph. 

  HITTING WITH CONSISTENCY      
UTEP is hitting .287 paced by two Miners who are killing it at or above the mark. Kaya Weaver (.443) leads the team among players with at least 90 kills. The UTEP offense sits 15th in the nation in hitting percentage while leading CUSA.        

  BLOCK PARTY      
The Miners registered 16 blocks in the 3-0 sweep against Utah State on Sept. 1. Kaya Weaver leads the team with 71 blocks. Nationally, UTEP is 11th in blocks per set (2.92) while leading CUSA and 15th in team total blocks (140.0).   

  BALANCED ATTACK      
UTEP showed a balanced attack against FIU, with four Miners blasting home at least 2.0 kills per set. Among players with at least 15 kills over the weekend, Ema Uskokovic (3.00k/s) led the way with Torrance Lovesee and Kaya Weaver (2.67k/s) getting after it as well. 

  IN THE CUSA SPOTLIGHT      
Mattie Gantt and Kalia Kohler – Co-Setters of the Week (Sep. 23, Week 4)  

• Led the Miners in UTEP's perfect 3-0 record at the UTEP Southwest Showdown, earning them spots on the All-Tournament Team. Gantt recorded 65 assists, averaging 5.42 assists per set, and registered her second double-double of the season with 25 assists and 11 digs against Texas State. Kohler, meanwhile, tallied 64 assists (5.33 assists per set) and posted her third double-double of the season with 27 assists and 10 digs against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Together, they combined for 129 assists (10.75 assists per set), directing the Miners' offense to an impressive .282 hitting percentage. 

Mattie Gantt and Kalia Kohler – Co-Setters of the Week (Sep. 16, Week 3)   

• Directed the Miners' offense at the South Dakota Classic, combining for 126 assists (11.45 per set) to help lead UTEP to a 2-1 record, including a dominant sweep over Power 4 opponent Iowa State. Gantt contributed 62 assists (5.64 per set), 23 digs (2.09 per set), two aces, and one kill, while Kohler added 64 assists (5.82 per set), 27 digs (2.45 per set), and four kills. Together, they guided the Miners to a .262 hitting percentage throughout the tournament.   

Mattie Gantt and Kalia Kohler – Co-Setters of the Week (Sept. 9, Week 2)   

• Played pivotal roles in UTEP's 3-0 weekend at the Borderland Invitational. Gantt tallied 50 assists, averaging 5.00 assists per set, while adding 2 kills, 4 aces, and 14 digs. Kohler, who started all three matches, recorded 62 assists (6.20 per set), a team-high 5 aces, and 19 digs. Together in UTEP's 6-2 system, the duo combined for 112 assists and guided the offense to 14.10 kills per set with a .307 hitting percentage.    

Kaya Weaver – Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 9, Week 2)   

• Had a standout weekend for UTEP at the Borderland Invitational, helping the team go 3-0 and was named the All-Tournament Team MVP. Weaver made three starts and played in 10 sets, delivering 27 kills. She led the team with a remarkable .641 hitting percentage and contributed 3 aces and 19 blocks. Her career high 14 kills with a .765 hitting percentage were crucial in UTEP's win over Air Force for a four consecutive sweep.    

Kaya Weaver – Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 2, Week 1)   

• Delivered an impressive performance, earning all-tournament team honors at the Utah Classic. She led UTEP to a 2-1 record sweeping both Green Bay and Utah State. Against Utah, she recorded 11 kills with a .529 hitting percentage. Against Green Bay, she added 5 kills and 6 blocks. Her standout performance came against Utah State, where she notched 5 kills, hit .364, served 3 aces, and set new program records with 10 block assists and 12 total blocks in a 3-set match. Overall, Weaver tallied 21 kills, hit .366, a team-high 21 blocks, and accumulated a team-high 36.0 points.   

  MINER RANKINGS      
Nationally, UTEP is ranked in the top 65 in nine categories:      
11. Blocks per Set (2.92)* 
14. Aces per Set (2.00)* 
15. Hitting Percentage (0.287)* 
15. Team Total Blocks (140.0) 
16. Opponent Hitting Percentage (0.146)* 
17. Match W-L Percentage (0.857)* 
32. Kills per Set (13.63)* 
38. Team Service Aces (96) 
61. Assists per Set (12.33)* 
*CUSA Leader     

UTEP has two players ranked in the Top 20 in NCAA while holding the top 2 spots in the conference.     

STATISTICS	PLAYER	NCAA/CUSA RANK	VALUE
Blocks/Set  Hitting %  Total Blocks	Kaya Weaver  Kaya Weaver  Danika Washington  Kaya Weaver	6/1  15/1  17/2  13/2	1.48 bk/s  0.443 H%  0.436 H%  71 TB

  THE OPPONENT      
Sam Houston 

• SHSU enters the weekend at 7-6 (2-0 CUSA).   
• Last Week: SHSU opened CUSA play with a strong 2-0 performance, securing back-to-back victories over Middle Tennessee at Johnson Coliseum. After a 3-1 win on Thursday (22-25, 25-17, 25-23, 25-21), the Bearkats completed the sweep with a 3-0 victory on Friday (25-18, 25-22, 29-27). Middle blocker Michaela Panekova was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week for her standout performance, recording 27 kills and four aces across seven sets during the weekend. 
• Team Ranks: Sam Houston ranks 11th in the NCAA in team attacks per set (38.33) and 26th in digs per set (16.63), leading Conference USA in both categories. 
• Player Ranks: Sam Houston’s standout players are ranked in the top 100 nationally, with Avery Flower sitting 75th in total assists (447) and 82nd in assists per set (9.31), both 2nd in Conference USA. McKenzie Morvant ranks 46th in total blocks (62) and 48th in blocks per set (1.29), holding top-4 positions in CUSA. Hannah Baker shines at 21st in the NCAA and 1st in CUSA in digs per set (4.77) and 53rd nationally in total digs (229), ranking 3rd in the conference.
• Series: Sam Houston leads the all-time series 5-4, with the teams first meeting in 1982 when UTEP won 2-0. Before becoming Conference USA opponents, all matchups were held on neutral courts, with no contests between the teams since 1991 until UTEP swept last season’s two-match series in Huntsville, Texas (3-1, 3-2). Both teams have won 16 sets throughout the series.

“Sam Houston is coming off two home wins over Middle Tennessee, so they’re confident and feeling good. But coming into Club Memorial and playing against our group, who just earned two sweeps on the road against a tough FIU team, will be a challenge for them,” head coach Ben Wallis said. “We’re excited to be back home at 2-0 in conference play, and our focus remains on proving our worth in CUSA as we push for a championship. We’ll be prepared both physically and tactically for what’s ahead this weekend.”