The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Friday, September 26
Birmingham, Ala.
7:00 p.m.
UAB
vs
Wichita State
Blazers Open Conference Play with Home-and-Away Weekend
9/25/2025 2:40:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB Volleyball kicks off the American Conference season by hosting Wichita State at 7 p.m. On Friday, September 26, before making a quick trip to Denton, Texas, to face the Mean Green at 1 p.m. on Sunday, September 28.
FOLLOW LIVE
Friday, September 26, 7 p.m. vs Wichita State | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
Sunday, September 28, 1 p.m. at North Texas | Live Stats
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Madison native, Kennedy Vaughn, is the reigning American Freshman of the Week after leading the conference with 51 kills and 55.0 points. Vaughn tallied a career-high 26 kills in UAB's 3-2 win over South Alabama, the most by a Blazer since Fernanda Maida's 32 on October 1, 2021.
Vaughn was second in the conference in kills per set with 4.64 and third in the American with 5.00 points per set.
The honor is Vaughn's first career conference award and is the first American weekly honor given to a Blazer this season.
LAST TIME OUT
UAB went 1-2 last week at the Alabama Showdown, falling in straight sets to Auburn and Samford, while completing a reverse sweep to defeat South Alabama.
Outside of Vaughn, Abby Jones, Lia Beverly, and Summer Snead all stepped up offensively for the Blazers. Jones hit .243 over the weekend with 35 kills, the second most on the team. Beverly was third on the team with 16 kills, including a career-high 10 kills vs South Alabama. Snead also set a career-high with nine kills vs South Alabama, totaling 14 on the weekend.
Meg Jarrett filled the libero position all weekend long after taking over for Delaney Bowser in Evansville the week prior. Jarrett set a career-high with 22 digs vs South Alabama, following it up with 18 digs in three sets at Samford. All three setters saw playing time at the Alabama Showdown.
SCOUTING WICHITA STATE AND NORTH TEXAS
Wichita State
Wichita State begins conference play with an 8-4 record, with their signature victory coming against RV Arkansas, 3-2, just two days after losing the season opener vs Kennesaw State. The Shockers' three other losses have all come against power conference opponents, with two of them being against ranked teams. The Shockers took a set off #18 BYU to avoid the sweep, but were swept by #17 Kansas after losing the first set 28-26.
Wichita State and UAB have two common opponents, each of which the Shockers have swept. Wichita State won in straight sets at Tennessee Tech, 25-4, 25-10, 25-7, then defeated Samford 25-15, 25-20, 25-12.
Redshirt Junior Middle Blocker Maddie Wilson is the reigning American Conference Defensive Player of the Week. Wilson averaged 1.87 blocks per set with 1.73 kills per set, 0.60 digs per set, and 0.33 aces per set in four matches. Wilson recorded a career-high 11 blocks in the Shockers' 3-1 win over Drake. She also recorded a match-high six and nine blocks against South Dakota and Villanova, respectively.
North Texas
North Texas currently owns the best overall record in the conference at 10-2, winning its last seven matches. Nine of the Mean Green's 10 victories have come against teams that finished outside of the top 150 in last year's final RPI. North Texas' lone victory against a top-150 team was a 3-2 win over 8-4 UT Arlington.
The Mean Green's two losses came consecutively to Drake and RV Miami, both losses in straight sets.
North Texas ranked in the top 25 nationally in kills per set and assists per set. The Mean Green's 13.25 assists per set are the 14th best in DI, while 14.09 kills per set place them 21st in the country.
Head Coach Dave Flemming eclipsed 400 career wins at North Texas with the Mean Green's 3-0 win over Tarleton State last week.
SERIES HISTORY
The Blazers and Shockers face off for just the fourth time ever, with Wichita State holding a 3-0 lead in the series. UAB and Wichita State met for the first time when the Blazers moved to the American in 2023, where UAB lost in straight sets in Wichita. The Shockers swept the season series last year with 3-0 and 3-1 wins over UAB in 2024.
UAB trails its all-time series with North Texas 11-5, but won the programs' only meeting last season 3-0. Prior to the Blazers' win in 2024, North Texas had won five consecutive matches. The Mean Green are 4-2 on home court against UAB, including a 2022 victory, the last time the series was played in Denton.
AMERICAN OUTLOOK
South Florida and Florida Atlantic kicked off the American schedule in Tampa on Wednesday. After dropping the first set, the Bulls won three straight sets to defeat FAU, 3-1.
Projected to finish second in the American, USF played one of the toughest schedules in the first four weeks of all American squads, with six power conference losses on its schedule.
Rice, the preseason favorites to win the American, is the only other team with a losing record overall. The Owls, much like South Florida, scheduled ranked and power-conference opponents. Six of Rice's seven losses have come to ranked opposition, and the Owls can still be expected to run through the American despite starting the season three matches below .500.
Along with North Texas, Tulsa owns the best non-conference record in the American at 10-2. The Hurricanes have won 10 matches in a row and open the American season at UTSA.
FOLLOW LIVE
Friday, September 26, 7 p.m. vs Wichita State | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
Sunday, September 28, 1 p.m. at North Texas | Live Stats
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Madison native, Kennedy Vaughn, is the reigning American Freshman of the Week after leading the conference with 51 kills and 55.0 points. Vaughn tallied a career-high 26 kills in UAB's 3-2 win over South Alabama, the most by a Blazer since Fernanda Maida's 32 on October 1, 2021.
Vaughn was second in the conference in kills per set with 4.64 and third in the American with 5.00 points per set.
The honor is Vaughn's first career conference award and is the first American weekly honor given to a Blazer this season.
LAST TIME OUT
UAB went 1-2 last week at the Alabama Showdown, falling in straight sets to Auburn and Samford, while completing a reverse sweep to defeat South Alabama.
Outside of Vaughn, Abby Jones, Lia Beverly, and Summer Snead all stepped up offensively for the Blazers. Jones hit .243 over the weekend with 35 kills, the second most on the team. Beverly was third on the team with 16 kills, including a career-high 10 kills vs South Alabama. Snead also set a career-high with nine kills vs South Alabama, totaling 14 on the weekend.
Meg Jarrett filled the libero position all weekend long after taking over for Delaney Bowser in Evansville the week prior. Jarrett set a career-high with 22 digs vs South Alabama, following it up with 18 digs in three sets at Samford. All three setters saw playing time at the Alabama Showdown.
SCOUTING WICHITA STATE AND NORTH TEXAS
Wichita State
Wichita State begins conference play with an 8-4 record, with their signature victory coming against RV Arkansas, 3-2, just two days after losing the season opener vs Kennesaw State. The Shockers' three other losses have all come against power conference opponents, with two of them being against ranked teams. The Shockers took a set off #18 BYU to avoid the sweep, but were swept by #17 Kansas after losing the first set 28-26.
Wichita State and UAB have two common opponents, each of which the Shockers have swept. Wichita State won in straight sets at Tennessee Tech, 25-4, 25-10, 25-7, then defeated Samford 25-15, 25-20, 25-12.
Redshirt Junior Middle Blocker Maddie Wilson is the reigning American Conference Defensive Player of the Week. Wilson averaged 1.87 blocks per set with 1.73 kills per set, 0.60 digs per set, and 0.33 aces per set in four matches. Wilson recorded a career-high 11 blocks in the Shockers' 3-1 win over Drake. She also recorded a match-high six and nine blocks against South Dakota and Villanova, respectively.
North Texas
North Texas currently owns the best overall record in the conference at 10-2, winning its last seven matches. Nine of the Mean Green's 10 victories have come against teams that finished outside of the top 150 in last year's final RPI. North Texas' lone victory against a top-150 team was a 3-2 win over 8-4 UT Arlington.
The Mean Green's two losses came consecutively to Drake and RV Miami, both losses in straight sets.
North Texas ranked in the top 25 nationally in kills per set and assists per set. The Mean Green's 13.25 assists per set are the 14th best in DI, while 14.09 kills per set place them 21st in the country.
Head Coach Dave Flemming eclipsed 400 career wins at North Texas with the Mean Green's 3-0 win over Tarleton State last week.
SERIES HISTORY
The Blazers and Shockers face off for just the fourth time ever, with Wichita State holding a 3-0 lead in the series. UAB and Wichita State met for the first time when the Blazers moved to the American in 2023, where UAB lost in straight sets in Wichita. The Shockers swept the season series last year with 3-0 and 3-1 wins over UAB in 2024.
UAB trails its all-time series with North Texas 11-5, but won the programs' only meeting last season 3-0. Prior to the Blazers' win in 2024, North Texas had won five consecutive matches. The Mean Green are 4-2 on home court against UAB, including a 2022 victory, the last time the series was played in Denton.
AMERICAN OUTLOOK
South Florida and Florida Atlantic kicked off the American schedule in Tampa on Wednesday. After dropping the first set, the Bulls won three straight sets to defeat FAU, 3-1.
Projected to finish second in the American, USF played one of the toughest schedules in the first four weeks of all American squads, with six power conference losses on its schedule.
Rice, the preseason favorites to win the American, is the only other team with a losing record overall. The Owls, much like South Florida, scheduled ranked and power-conference opponents. Six of Rice's seven losses have come to ranked opposition, and the Owls can still be expected to run through the American despite starting the season three matches below .500.
Along with North Texas, Tulsa owns the best non-conference record in the American at 10-2. The Hurricanes have won 10 matches in a row and open the American season at UTSA.
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
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OH
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MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
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