Follow @american_vball
COMPLETE NOTES • 2017 STATISTICS

> With three weeks left of the regular season, five American Athletic Conference volleyball teams remain in contention for the regular season title. Wichita State²⁰ is unbeaten in league play and enters week 12 on a 14-match winning streak. SMU, Temple, ECU and Cincinnati join the Shockers in the pursuit for first place with six contests left to play. Teams will compete on four days this week, with the action stretching from Thursday, November 9, through Sunday, November 12.

> Wichita State has spent nine weeks in the AVCA National Coaches’ Poll on the way to its best conference start since 2008. The Shockers are riding their fourth-longest winning streak in program history and have secured at least 20 wins in 15 consecutive years under head coach Chris Lamb. Senior middle blocker Abbie Lehman has earned three-straight American Player of the Week honors as part of the Shockers’ nine weekly conference accolades this season. Wichita State is atop the conference statistical standings in kills (15.21) and assists (14.30) per set to fuel an unstoppable offense in league action. The Shockers average the highest hitting percentage (.335) in the conference, while holding its foes to a hitting a league-low .138.
 
> Wichita State will travel to fourth-place ECU on Friday and fifth-place Cincinnati on Sunday. A win for the Shockers over either team will knock Cincinnati, who is 8-6 in The American, out of the race for the conference crown. Cincinnati has the conference’s top hitter in Carly Nolan on its roster. The junior outside hitter leads the conference with 4.10 kills and 4.58 points per set through 16 matches played this season—each stat is good for ranking in the nation’s top-40. Wichita State swept the Bearcats earlier this year, as the all-time series between to two squads is locked at 1-1.
 
> Coming off a 3-0 week with a 9-5 league record, ECU enters the weekend in a must-win scenario against the Shockers to remain in the conversation for earning its first league title. The Pirates have enjoyed a historic season under head coach Julie Torbett, who became the program’s winningest coach last week, while guiding her team to its most wins since 2007. Wichita State won in three sets against the Pirates to snap ECU’s six-match winning streak on Oct. 22.
 
> SMU is second place with a 12-2 mark, standing two matches behind the Shockers. The two-time defending conference champion has won four consecutive matches and will host its next four opponents. The Mustangs are 6-2 in Dallas against conference foes this season, winning their last six consecutive home matches. SMU will take on third-place Temple on Thursday night and UConn on Saturday afternoon. With a league-leading 130 blocks in conference matches and 17.85 digs per set, defense has been the emerging theme for the Mustangs.
 
> Temple holds the third-place spot in league standings with a 10-4 record and has won seven of its last 10. The Owls own the most total kills (777) and assists (738) across the league in conference matches and possess the second-best overall offense behind the Shockers. Temple takes the No. 2 spot in hitting percentage, kills per set and assists per set, which sets up a true battle between offense and defense when the Owls head to SMU this week. Temple came out on top, 3-1, in the teams’ most recent meeting in Philadelphia on Oct. 22. Temple’s Dana Westfield put down 17 kills, while hitting .371 in that win.

Upcoming Schedule/Results
 
Thursday, November 9
UConn vs. Tulsa • 8 p.m.*
Temple vs. SMU • 8 p.m.*
 
Friday, November 10
Memphis vs. Cincinnati • 3 p.m.*
Houston vs. USF • 3 p.m.*
Wichita State²⁰ vs. ECU • 4:30 p.m.*
Tulane  vs. UCF • 7 p.m.*
 
Saturday, November 11
Temple vs. Tulsa • 1 p.m.*
UConn vs. SMU •2 p.m.*
 
Sunday, November 12
Wichita State²⁰ vs. Cincinnati • Noon *
Tulane vs. USF • Noon *
Memphis vs. ECU • 1 p.m.*
Houston  vs. UCF • 1 p.m.*
 
All times Eastern and subject to change
*Denotes conference matches