FIRST SERVE –
ULM volleyball opens Sun Belt conference play against Arkansas State in Jonesboro. The Warhawks and Red Wolves will face off on Thursday, Sept. 24 and Friday, Sept. 25. Each match is slated for 6 p.m.

FOLLOW THE WARHAWKS – 
Live streaming on ESPN+ will be available for each match. Links to the live stream can be found at ulmwarhawks.com, and a link to live stats can be found on ulmwarhawks.com as well. Navigate to the volleyball schedule and select the desired match.

SCOUTING THE RED WOLVES – 
Arkansas State enters conference play coming off of three straight sweeps to FGCU, Arkansas and Illinois. Outside Hitter Kaitlin Whitlock leads the Red Wolves' offense with 120 kills on the season, and eight matches in double figures. Middle Blocker Haley Glunz leads her team at the next with 44 total blocks. She recorded a season-high nine blocks in Arkansas State's win over Wichita State, as well as hit .538 (8-1-13). 2025 Third Team All-Sun Belt honoree Erin Madigan has a team-high 278 assists, and is averaging 7.13 per set. 

The Red Wolves and Warhawks each played Grand Canyon during their non-conference slate, and each team fell 0-3. 

FRESHMAN PHENOM –
Tatum Clay continues to impress as she settles into the season. She hit a career-high .636 (7-0-11) against North Dakota, and added four aces for another personal best. She recorded 14 total blocks across 11 sets of action last week, averaging of 1.27 blocks per set. The first-year made a career-high four solo blocks against Sam Houston, and put up six total blocks in two straight matches this weekend to match her career-high. She added another solo block in ULM's sweep over Lamar, in addition to her five block assists against the Cardinals. Clay is up to 51 total blocks on the season, a team-high for the Warhawks. The middle blocker is hitting .353 (60-12-136) on the season. 

CLEAR THE HALL –
Outside Hitter Aniya Hall made 37 kills across the Warhawks' three matches this week, averaging 3.36 kills per set. She put up a stellar first set against North Dakota, making nine kills and hitting .615 (9-1-13). She notched double digit kills in back-to-back matches against Lamar (12) and North Dakota (16), bringing her to eight double-digit matches on the season. Hall made three aces for a career high against North Dakota, and added two more against Lamar. She accounted for 43 of the Warhawks' points of the weekend, averaging 3.91 points per set. She hit .225 in the win over Lamar, and .273 in the match against North Dakota.

Hall picked up the 2026 season right where she left off in her freshman campaign. She's started the season with four consecutive matches with kill totals in the double digits. She hit a season-high 16 in the first match of the Lion Invitational against Southern Illinois, and once again in the Warhawks' most recent match against north Dakota. Hall is up to 94 digs and 14 aces on the season heading into conference play. 

CONFIDENT CUNNINGHAM –
Transfer fourth-year right side/outside hitter Abby Cunningham continues to establish herself at the net for the Warhawks. She has notched double-digit kills in seven of ULM matches this season, leading the team with 129 in total, and has started in each match she has appeared in.

She set a career-high 22 kills in ULM's match against East Texas A&M, a number that led all players on the court. She set career-highs in points, with 23 for Warhawks, and in attacks with 49. She hit a season-high .306 against the Lions. Cunningham added four digs and two total blocks on the defensive side of the ball during the match. In ULM's season-opener against Southern Illinois, Cunningham contributed seven kills and an assist for 8.5 points of the Warhawk offense. She added three digs and three total blocks against the Salukis. She made two aces, her only ones of the year, against San Francisco, and added a season-best nine digs. Cunningham is up to 22 blocks, with a season-high four coming against Grand Canyon. 

STEPPING UP TO THE PLATE –
Second-year Eden Pietrzak is taking her turn at the libero position, having stepped into the role during ULM's match against GCU, and starting all five matches there since. Since taking over, she's notched double-digit digs in each match (eight consecutive), with a career-high 19 against Northwestern State. She checks into Sun Belt play with 158 digs on the season thus far. Pietrzak has also made 14 aces for second most on the team, and made a career-high four against McNeese (9/10).

EARN YOUR STRIPES –
The Warhawks' victory 3-1 win over Mississippi Valley State saw the first-year class lift ULM to victory. Grace Troxell played both sides of the ball, making nine kills and 17 digs, while Zharia Alleyne hit .556 (6-1-9) for a season-high six kills. Alleyne and Tatum Clay contributed a team-high five blocks each, and Taylor Reid made her Warhawk debut. Reid and Kennedy Scott each notched their first career kills, with Scott adding a block as well. Myla Matavao made a career-high seven kills, five digs and two blocks during the match as well. 

Clay leads the team with 51 total blocks, and ranks first with 17 aces. Troxell has the fourth-most kills on the team (73) and Clay has the fifth-most (60). 

UP NEXT –
ULM returns home to b1Bank Fant Coliseum to host Marshall on Friday, Oct. 2 and Saturday, Oct. 3. First serve for Friday's match is 6 p.m., and the two teams will face off on Saturday at 1 p.m.