Southern Miss will take an 8-1 record to Memphis, Tennessee, for the Rumble at the Roane, closing its nonconference schedule with matches against host Memphis and Little Rock at Elma Roane Fieldhouse.
The Golden Eagles will play Memphis (3-6) at 6 p.m. CT Thursday and Little Rock (6-3) at 6 p.m. Friday. Memphis enters the tournament after a 3-1 victory over Ole Miss on Tuesday night.
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Southern Miss opened the season by winning eight of its first nine matches, its best start since 2015. The Golden Eagles went 4-0 at the Southern Miss Invitational last weekend, sweeping Houston Christian, defeating Lamar 3-1 and beating Southern and Jackson State in straight sets.
Senior setter Allie Hazelwood is averaging 11.10 assists per set, a Sun Belt-leading figure that ranks among the top 10 nationally. She had a career-high 57 assists in the 3-1 win over Lamar.
Senior outside hitter Sadie McAda enters the tournament with 959 career kills, 41 short of 1,000. She surpassed 1,000 career digs in Saturday’s victory over Southern.
Elly Stewart, Aubrey Judd, Diana Wells and Lillie Johnson have also provided offensive production. Sunni Sheppard anchors a defense that is holding opponents to a .143 hitting percentage, the lowest mark in the Sun Belt.
Jon Ross Myers founded Mississippi News Group in 2013. Before founding the organization, he worked at The Daily Mississippian, The Marion Salute and The Southern Sentinel. A Mississippi journalist and writer based in Ripley, he received second place in poetry in the 2025 William Faulkner Literary Competition for "The Garden."
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