The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team is set to head to Springfield, Mo., for the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational hosted by Missouri State and will face a trio of stiff competition on Thursday through Saturday.
Chattanooga is coming off a Scenic City Showdown title after going 2-1 and winning the tie-breaker after three teams tied in overall records.
The Mocs, who are 7-4 on the season, will face tournament-hosts Missouri State, Big Ten member Illinois and Washington State of the Pac-12.
All three opponents received votes in the most recent AVCA Coaches Poll, with Illinois and Washington State both receiving 25 votes while Missouri State pulled in 16. Both Missouri State and Washington State appeared in the 2016 NCAA Tournament as at-large selections with the Cougars advancing to the Round of 32.
"I like the way our fourth weekend shaped up and that was by design, to have our toughest competition of the preseason right before conference play so we can know where we are and what we have to continue to work on," said head coach Travis Filar.
UTC hasn't won a match against the powerful conferences' of the Missouri Valley, Big Ten and Pac-12 in program history (0-14), but the Mocs are confident in their ability to be among the nation's top teams.
"This weekend will give us an awesome opportunity, one in which we are grateful for, to compete against great programs who are all receiving top 25 votes and will be in the mix for NCAA Tournament at-large bids," added Filar.
"I know we will come out each match with great fight and a mindset to focus on competing the right way consistently, and because of that, this will be a great weekend leading into conference play, in addition to getting a chance to take our senior captain, Maddie Marshall, back to her hometown of Springfield."
The Mocs will face Missouri State on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET. The match will be broadcasted LIVE on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN App. UTC and Illinois meet on Friday at 4:00 p.m. ET while the concluding match against Washington State is slated for Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET. For tickets, game day links and more, check out the schedule page.
Previewing the Mocs
On the offensive side, Sarah Root was named the Scenic City Showdown's Most Outstanding Player over the weekend after totaling 34 kills on a .386 attacking percentage while adding 12.0 blocks. She registered a career-high 16 kills at a .393 clip against Georgia State and totaled eight kills at a .500 percentage against Jackson State.
Ally Ford ranks 24th in NCAA DI and second in the Southern Conference with 156 total kills. Lauren Greenspoon ranks 31st in the nation with 388 total assists and 46th with a 10.78 per set average. Those numbers are good for first and second-best in the Southern Conference, respectively.
Defensively, true freshman Megan Kaufman has been stellar. Kaufman ranks second in the NCAA with 247 total digs, first among freshmen, and is fourth in the country with a 6.33 digs per set average.