LAKE CHARLES—McNeese volleyball (6-11, 2-4, SLC) returns home this week to host East Texas A&M Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and Northwestern State on Saturday at 1 p.m. Both matches will stream on ESPN+.
 
McNeese is coming off a 3-1 road win at LSU New Orleans last Saturday and the Demons are coming off a 3-1 home win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
 
 
MATCH INFO
• Opponent: East Texas A&M
• Date: Thursday, Oct. 15
• First Serve: 6 p.m.
• Location: Lake Charles
• Venue: Townsley Law Arena
 
SERIES RECORD
• McNeese leads the series 5-2
• East Texas A&M has won the last two meetings between the two teams, a 3-2 win in Lake Charles last season and a 3-1 win in Commerce in 2024.
• Prior to the loss in 2024, McNeese had won five straight matches against East Texas A&M
• McNeese is 3-1 at home against East Texas A&M
 
Complete McNeese Schedule
 
TUNE IN
ESPN+
 
McNEESE NOTES
• McNeese returns home for two matches this week.  The Cowgirls will host East Texas A&M on Thursday and NW State on Saturday.  It the only matches between the two teams this season.
• McNeese enters the match tied for seventh place with East Texas A&M, both having 2-4 conference records.
• McNeese split its matches last week, falling at Southeastern in four sets before ending the weekend in with a 3-1 road win at LSU New Orleans on Saturday.
• Started the SLC schedule against the top five SLC preseason picks as voted by the coaches.  UTRGV (#2), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (#3), SFA (#1), Lamar (#5), and Southeastern (#4).
• McNeese was picked to finish 9th in the SLC preseason poll.
• As a team, McNeese leads the SLC and ranks 12th in the nation in digs per set (16.56).  The Cowgirls also rank second in the SLC with 11.93 assists per set and 12.79 kills per set.
• Freshman Sophia Tocmo ranks 5th in the nation with 5.23 digs per set and 34th in total digs with 298 digs heading into Thursday's match.
• Tocmo has recorded double figure digs in the last 16 matches and recorded her first career double double with a career high 33 digs and 13 assists against Oral Roberts on Sept. 19.
• Senior setter Megan Grose has dished out double figure assists in all 17 matches including a season high 24 against Grambling on Sept. 17.  Grose leads the team with 292 assists and 11 aces.
• Junior setter Corynne Hausler recorded her third double double of the season (23 ast., 10 digs) against ORU on Sept. 19.  She has dished out at least 10 assists in 13 matches including 11 of the last 12 matches. She is second on the team with 265 assists.
• Kayla Wilson leads the team with 163 kills. Wilson has recorded double figure kills in nine of the last 11 matches.  Wilson is coming off a career high five blocks at LSU New Orleans.
• Sophomore Ava Henry continues to lead McNeese with 42 blocks and is third on the team with 158 kills.
• McNeese is one of two D1 volleyball programs whose entire staff is in their first year of collegiate coaching.  Indiana State University's staff is the other school.
• The Cowgirls will play 11 home matches this season including two matches in its own Cowgirl Classic.  Of the 11 home matches, eight are conference matches.
• McNeese returns nine players (Corynne Hausler, Carli Banks, Maleah Mutterback, Sophie Twigg, Bailey Foolkes, Mary-Alice Dohmann, Neal Grace Berry, Kayla Wilson, Ava Henry) from last season and one from its 2024 team (Megan Grose).
• The 2026 team also consists of three transfers (Gabbie Maldonado, Harmony Soles, Harmony Jackson) and four freshmen (Sophia Tocmo, Danyele Wallace, Gaby Santiago, Aaniyah Kitchen) 
• Sophomores Ava Henry and Bailey Foolkes are second generation Cowgirls. Ava's mother (Eunice) played basketball and her father (Adam), who serves as the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receivers coach, played football at McNeese.  Foolkes' mother (Shannon) played volleyball while her father (Trevor) ran cross country for McNeese.  Adam and Shannon are both McNeese Hall of Famers.
• First year head coach Tayler Gray made her collegiate debut as a D1 head coach against Miami (OH) on Aug. 28 at the Bearkat Invitational. Gray picked up her first career win, a straight set win at Grambling on Sept. 11. 
• When the Cowgirls and Sam Houston met on Aug. 29 at the Bearkat Invitational, it was a mother-daughter D1 head coaches' matchup.  Tayler's mother Brenda is the Bearkats' head coach.  They are the only mother-daughter D1 head coaches this season and possibly the first in NCAA history.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENT
EAST TEXAS A&M
• Are coached by former McNeese assistant coach Joe Morales
• Picked to finish 8th in the preseason poll
• Enter the match 8-11 overall record and are 2-4 in the SLC.
• Are on a three-match losing streak and have lost eight of its last 10 matches
• Coming off home losses against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and UTRGV last week.
 
UPCOMING COWGIRL MATCHES
Oct. 15 East Texas A&M* (6 p.m.)
Oct. 17 Northwestern State* (1 p.m.)
Oct. 22 at Incarnate Word* (6 p.m.)
Oct. 24 at Houston Christian* (11 a.m.)
Oct. 29 Southeastern* (6 p.m.)
Oct. 31 LSU New Orleans* (10 a.m.)
Nov. 5 at Stephen F. Austin (6 p.m.)
Nov. 7 at Lamar (11 a.m.)
Nov. 12 Nicholls (6 p.m.)
Nov. 14 at Nicholls (1 p.m.)
 
*- Southland Conference Match