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ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – After a brief stint in conference play, Henderson State opens its Great American Conference portion of the schedule with its next four contests coming against in-conference opponents.
 
The Reddies get conference play started with a massive early-season conference bout against the Arkansas Tech Golden Suns inside Tucker Coliseum in Russellville, Arkansas, Tuesday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m.
 
Henderson State (11-2, 1-0)
Henderson is currently sporting a seven-match win streak, during which it has posted three sweeps and has not allowed its opponent to pick up more than one set in each match. In that stretch, HSU got its first GAC win after defeating Ouachita Baptist, 3-0.
 
In the course of this winning streak, Mya Robinson has registered 83 kills and has posted three consecutive double-doubles. Violeta Mendoza Quintana has seen 77 kills and has herself claimed three double-doubles. The Chihuahua, Mexico, native has carried an attack percentage greater than .220 in five of the seven matches.
 
Makenzie Thoman and Taylor Scalzi keep moving their way up the record books, as Thoman has 1421 career digs after posting 73 in this past weekend's Reddie-Tiger Invitational. The junior libero is currently eighth all-time. Scalzi moved up a slot on the all-time set assists list over the weekend, now sitting at ninth with 1601 career assists.
 
As a team, the Reddies' defense has been what has led them thus far as they are first in the GAC in opponent hitting percentage with .117 and first in blocks with 116 on the season. Kaitlyn Sykes and Brae Denton hold the top two spots in the conference with 51 and 50 total blocks, respectively.
 
On the offensive side of the ball, Henderson is third in the conference in hitting percentage with .230, a mere .006 behind second-place Harding. Christiane Uzoh is fourth among the league leaders, hitting .324 through 13 matches.
 
Last season, both of Henderson State and Arkansas Tech regular season matchups were instant classics, with both going five sets before the home team won each meeting. Tech was able to get the last laugh, however, as they knocked the Reddies out of the GAC Tournament in the quarterfinals.
 
In the overall series, the Golden Suns lead the way, 31-21. The last 10 matchups have been fairly evenly split, with ATU getting the slight nod at 6-4. Winning inside Tucker Coliseum has been a tall task for HSU, however, as the Reddies are 6-12 all-time in Russellville.
 
Henderson State currently holds the top spot in the GAC, which is one spot ahead of Arkansas Tech, who is currently second.
 
Scouting Arkansas Tech (7-3, 1-0)
Arkansas Tech is sporting its own winning streak coming into this conference battle, having won four in a row, including a 3-2 victory over GAC-foe Arkansas-Monticello. In ATU's last outing, it swept Christian Brothers in the Union Invitational, a team Henderson also swept earlier this month.
 
Emily Ragsdale leads the Golden Suns as she is third in the GAC with a .329 hitting percentage as she is second on her squad with 76 kills. Tymber Riley leads Tech with 97 kills, averaging 2.77 per set for tenth in the conference.
 
On the outside looking in, this match will be a defensive battle, as Arkansas Tech is third in the GAC in blocks and opponent hitting percentage compared to HSU's first-place hold in each of those categories.
 
What To Watch For…
-Henderson State, after dropping its first road match of the season, has won both of its road matches by a combined score of 6-0. On the other side, Arkansas Tech has won four straight home matches with its last loss inside Tucker Coliseum coming on Feb. 23, 2021.