ARKADELPHIA, Ark. — Henderson State volleyball returns to Arkadelphia this weekend to host the Reddie-Tiger Invitational after splitting four matches at the Washburn Invitational last Friday and Saturday. The Reddies started slow before bouncing back on both days of the tournament. Henderson fell 3-0 to the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs in the season opener before defeating William Jewell College 3-0. The following day, HSU came up short versus Northwest Missouri State, but rebounded with a dominant performance, and a 3-0 victory, over Colorado State University – Pueblo.

Courtney Bolf was named to the All-Tournament Team after notching 36 kills throughout the weekend. Three other Reddies eclipsed the 20 kill plateau, with Zuzana Ondruskova, Adrianna Hartmann and Tyasia McGruder collecting 25, 24, and 22 kills, respectively. Sophomore setter Abby Blackburn racked up 62 assists to lead the team through four games, while fellow underclassman, freshman Taylor Scalzi, racked up 34 assists in 10 sets, good for second on the team.

Game 1: Mississippi College – August 31 – 10:00 A.M.
Mississippi College comes into the weekend with a 2-2 record after playing in the Dr. Margaret Downing Invitational, hosted by Southern Arkansas this past weekend. The Lady Choctaws won their first two contests of the tournament, taking down both Texas – Permian Basin and Cameron University in five sets. Fortunes changed quickly for the Lady Choctaws, however, as they fell to Quincy University 3-0, and tournament hosts Southern Arkansas, 3-1. Mississippi College will be one of the youngest teams at the Reddie-Tiger Invitational, as 12 of the 19 players are newcomers. Two of those newcomers, Jamie Boros and Kendall Platt, were placed on the Gulf South's preseason watch list. The Lady Choctaws are led by first year head coach Shawna Laurendine.

Game 2: Union University (TN.) – August 31 – 6:00 P.M.
Union University also competed in the Dr. Margaret Downing Invitational, but came away from weekend without a win, dropping matches versus Southern Arkansas, Quincy University, Cameron University and Texas – Permian Basin. Its closest contest came against Cameron, but the Lady Bulldogs fell in the fifth set, 15-9. The Lady Bulldogs return three starters from the 2017 squad, and were picked ninth in the GSC preseason poll. Head coach Darrin McClure is entering his fourth season at the helm of Union volleyball.

Game 3: Southwest Baptist University – September 1 – 12:00 P.M.
The Southwest Baptist Bearcats enter the Reddie-Tiger Invitational looking for their first win of the season, having dropped their first four contests of the 2018 season. Fourth year head coach Caira Dortch has the difficult task of turning around a Southwest Baptist program that has won only four conference matches in the past three seasons. The Bearcats are led by seniors Bailey Baumann, Mikhaela Cochran and Dana Neal.

Game 4: Dallas Baptist University – September 1 – 6:00 P.M.
Like the Reddies, the Dallas Baptist Lady Patriots split four matches at the Washburn Invitational, and arrive at the Reddie-Tiger Invitational sporting a 2-2 record. While the Lady Patriots' weekend was bookended by 3-0 defeats to Washburn and Northwest Missouri State, they picked up 3-1 victories over the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs and William Jewell College. Dallas Baptist finished 2017 with a 10-16 overall record, and fell one game short of postseason play with a 5-7 record in the Heartland Conference. The Lady Patriots' most accomplished returner is junior Kasey Holand, who was named Second-Team All Heartland following the 2017 season. Dallas Baptist is led by head coach Cath Kokel, who is entering her 16^th season the helm of Lady Patriots Volleyball. This will be the second-straight season the Reddies and Lady Patriots will meet in an early season tournament. The two squads faced off at the East Central Tournament last year, with Henderson prevailing 3-1.