Trojans look to carry winning momentum into UCA Invitational

LITTLE ROCK – The Trojans' volleyball squad takes momentum from opening weekend to Conway this weekend for the UCA Invitational, where Little Rock will face off with Southeastern Louisiana, ACC foe Boston College, and in-state rival Central Arkansas at the Prince Center on Friday and Saturday.
 
The Trojans (2-1) open Friday at 11 am against SE Louisiana (3-0), then wrap up the first day of competition with a rivalry clash against the 0-2 Sugar Bears in this year's edition of the Governor's I-40 Showdown presented by Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield. First serve is slated for 6 pm. Little Rock concludes the weekend Saturday afternoon with a 4 pm tilt against Boston College (3-0).
 
Friday's contests will be available to stream on ESPN+.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Little Rock dropped its opener last weekend during the Lion Invitational but bounced back to drop the host school, East Texas A&M, and Providence to finish 2-1. A'lanae Margaritha gave the Trojans a huge spark during the event and earned All-Tournament honors as well as being named Offensive Player of the Week by the Ohio Valley Conference on Monday. In addition, she was one of six players to post new individual single-game highs when she put down 17 kills during each of the two wins. Dariana Valencia (35 assists), Crismeyli Rodriguez (11 digs), Jaycee Kennedy (11 kills), Bella Cherry (23 kills), and Avery Fearnley (11 kills) were the others. 
 
CAREER MILESTONE
Junior libero Andrea Roman continues to climb the program record book after notching career dig number 1,000 over the weekend. She is now ninth all-time in Little Rock history (1,005) and on pace to break the program record. Roman picked up the 2025 season where she left 2024, when she ranked sixth nationally in total digs with 624 – a single-season program record.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA
Under new head coach Lee McBride, the Lions opened the season with a bang, sweeping three matches during their own invitational, the Southeastern Showdown. SE Louisiana swept both ULM and Louisiana Tech before ending the weekend with a 3-2 win over Jackson State. Junior outside hitter Kyra McKelvey was named Offensive Player of the Week by the Southland Conference on Monday after hitting .484 with 40 kills and eight blocks. The Lions have won the last two SOCON regular-season titles. – (Series tied 1-1)
 
RIVALS COLLIDE
Central Arkansas lost each of its first two matches last weekend, but those losses came against tough programs in Texas A&M and Rice during the Rice Invitational. The Sugar Bears took Texas A&M to five sets before being swept by the host Owls. Benton native Laci Bohannon leads the team with 23 kills, Caylan Koons (Harber HS) has a team-high 51 assists, McKinzee Haas (Cabot HS) leads the way with 10 blocks, and Alexis McDaniel paces the team with 30 digs. The winner of this contest earns three points toward the Governor's Trophy. – (UCA leads series, 9-6)
 
HELLO, STRANGER
Little Rock and Boston College will meet for the first time when the two programs take the floor Saturday afternoon in Conway. The Eagles obliterated three opponents last weekend during the Iona Invitational, sweeping NJIT, Stonehill, and Iona, all in straight sets. Boston College hit a whopping .310 as a team over the three matches and held opponents to just .030 hitting. Among the team leaders are Audrey Ross (25 kills), Lucy Mott (40 assists), Brooklyn Yelland (30 digs), and Cornelia Roach (13 blocks). – (First meeting)