With the regular season wrapped up, Texas State volleyball now turns its attention to the Sun Belt Conference tournament.
Beginning Thursday, Nov. 21, the top 10 teams in the Sun Belt will travel to Foley Sports Tourism Complex in Foley, Alabama, to compete in a single-elimination tournament. The champion will clinch an automatic qualifier bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Bobcats enter the tournament as the second seed in the Sun Belt’s West Division. They will begin play on Friday, Nov. 22, with a rematch against their most recent opponent, James Madison University. Texas State is coming off a two-match sweep against JMU, dropping only one set combined.
At 13-3 in conference play, Texas State will be one of the favorites to run the table, but in a conference as evenly spread out as the Sun Belt, anything could take place over the four days in Alabama. Here’s what to know about the teams that stand in the Bobcats way:
The #1’s
Arkansas State University and Appalachian State University (App. State) enter the tournament as the number one seeds in their respective divisions.
Arkansas State boasts the best record overall and in conference play at 24-4 and 14-2, respectively. The Red Wolves have also proven challenging to score on this year, as they lead the conference with the lowest opponent hitting percentage and are second in blocks per set. Arkansas State split their season series with the Bobcats this year 1-1.
Despite being in the middle of the pack in many statistical categories, App. State has found a way to play itself into the No. 1 seed in the Sun Belt’s East Division. Sitting at 11-3 in conference play, App. State has the third-best winning percentage in the Sun Belt behind Texas State and Arkansas State. However, it may be worth mentioning that the Mountaineers avoided both TXST and Arkansas State in the regular season.
Serious threats
The University of South Alabama and Georgia Southern University appear to be the biggest threats to the No. 1 seeds and the Bobcats.
Aside from Arkansas State, Georgia Southern is the only other 20-game winner in the Sun Belt. Among the Sun Belt, the Golden Eagles are ranked in the top three in hitting percentage, kills, assists and aces.
South Alabama is responsible for two of the Bobcats’ three conference losses this year. Much like GASO, South Alabama is at or near the top of many statistical categories in the Sun Belt and could very well make a run at a conference tournament championship.
Rest of the field
Coastal Carolina, JMU, Georgia State, Troy and Southern Miss round out the remaining teams that punched a ticket to the Sun Belt tournament.
Troy is the only team in the grouping to have a winning record in conference play throughout the season, whereas Georgia State is the only squad to have an above .500 overall record in 2024.
The odds are long for these five teams, but stranger things have happened in collegiate athletics, so don’t close the book on any of these groups just yet.
The first match of the Sun Belt tournament is between Troy and Georgia State and is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, at Foley Sports Tourism Complex in Foley, Alabama. Texas State will open the tournament against JMU at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 22. The tournament will be available to stream on ESPN+.
