FLORENCE, Ala. (October 28, 2026) – The University of North Alabama volleyball team will compete at home Thursday at 6 p.m. against United Athletic Conference opponent Tarleton State inside CB&S Bank Arena.
This will be the second meeting between the two this season, as well as all-time. The Lions and Texans saw each other on Sept. 26, where Tarleton State defeated North Alabama 3-0 in Stephenville, Texas inside Wisdom Gym.
The match will be available for streaming on ESPN+ with live stats available on StatBroadcast.
"Voice of the Lions" Benjamin Ray will have play-by-play duties, Ande Jones will be the analyst and Gyvan Hammons will report court side.
MATCH INFO
Tarleton State vs. North Alabama
Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026
6 p.m.
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
NOTES
STANDOUT SEASON: UNA is currently having its best season since joining NCAA Division I in 2018. The Lions are currently 17-6 overall and 7-3 in the UAC. The last time UNA had 17 wins was in 2023, and it finished the season with 17 wins, while the 2026 team still has six regular season matches left. This team also had the most dominant start to a season in program history, opening the season with eight straight sweeps. UNA was the second-to-last team in the country to drop a set only behind undefeated Nebraska. The record was previously held by the 2002 team that opened the season with six straight sweeps.
LAST TIME OUT: The last match UNA played was on Oct. 24 against the UT Arlington Mavericks, where the Lions won 3-1. UNA had to fight back after dropping the first set 25-16. The Lions won the next three sets 25-23, 25-20, 25-23. Junior Reese Ricketts and sophomore Landri Ross led the offense, with Ricketts recording 16 kills and Ross recording 25 assists. Senior Olivia Fenoff got to see some action, tying her career high of 11 kills. Ross also led the team with three service aces, two of which were back-to-back. Defensively, senior Ava Martindale, Ricketts and sophomore Jenna Kolosta led the Lions, with Martindale recording 23 digs and Ricketts and Kolosta each recording three blocks.
SCOUTING THE LIONS: The Lions enter the match with a 17-6 overall record and a 7-3 UAC record, sitting tied for second in the standings. The team currently ranks second in the UAC with a .226 hitting percentage. They also hold opponents well, tying for second in the UAC with a .185 opponent hitting percentage. UNA is coming off a win over UT Arlington and looks to remain undefeated at home with two home matches coming up.
ASSIST QUEEN: Kinslee McGowan steps into year three as North Alabama's top returning setter. Her freshman campaign ended with the setter registering 400 assists to finish second on the team. McGowan also contributed 178 digs, 14 kills, 13 service aces and eight blocks. She had a breakout sophomore season, recording 1,164 assists to set the Division I single-season program record in assists and assists per set. She also earned four ASUN Setter of the Week awards in 2025 to break the program record. So far this season, she has 811 assists and ranks second in the conference in assists per set with an average of 10.14. She has also earned three UAC Setter of the Week awards this season and reached a career milestone of 2,000 career assists against Abilene Christian on Sept. 24.
RICKETTS THIS SEASON: Reese Ricketts is the Lions' key outside hitter, leading the team with 325 kills this season. She has won two UAC Player of the Week awards, and she currently leads the conference in kills per set with 4.01. She also leads in kills with 325. She set a new career high against UT Arlington on Oct. 15 with 32 kills, just four shy of the program's record. She also sparked the comeback win against Austin Peay on Oct. 16. The Lions were down in the fifth set to the Governors 7-13 before Ricketts scored the final nine points of the set to secure the fifth-set comeback. She had seven kills and two block assists; both blocks assisted by sophomore Jenna Kolosta.
FRESHMAN POWER: The Lions have two key freshmen making a difference this season. Kaylee Maikranz has appeared in all 23 matches this season as Libero, recording 143 digs. She also leads the team and ranks seventh in the UAC with 23 service aces. She also broke the individual single-match record after recording seven against UT Martin on Sept. 5. Anna Hoffmayer is the other freshman contributing, recording 146 kills and hitting .322 to rank sixth in the UAC.
GO-GO GARNER: Junior Dylann Garner has had her best season of her career, already having 230 kills after totaling 231 in the 2025 season. She averages 2.88 kills per set to rank seventh in the UAC. She also has a .238 hitting percentage, 71 digs and 37 blocks.
THE DIGGERS: Martindale and McGowan are the two leaders in the dig category for the Lions. Martindale leads the team with 324 while McGowan has 240. Martindale is third in the UAC with 4.70 digs per set. McGowan is eighth in the UAC with 3.00 digs per set.
SOPHOMORE LOVE: Sophomores Jenna Kolosta and Ally Greenwell are the two sophomores that have played in at least 22 matches. Kolosta brings 97 kills this season with a hitting percentage of .242. Greenwell has played in 22 matches, recording 156 digs.
KILLER QUEENS: North Alabama has four Lions who have triple-digit kills. Junior Reese Ricketts leads the way with 325 kills and ranks first in the UAC in kills and kills per set with 4.01. Junior Dylann Garner has the second-most kills on the team with 230. She also ranks seventh in the UAC with 2.88 kills per set. Senior Phoebe Reyes Fortunato is behind Garner with 198. Anna Hoffmayer has 146 kills and ranks sixth in the UAC with a .322 hitting percentage.
SCOUTING THE TEXANS: Tarleton State enters the match with a 9-15 overall record and a 5-5 UAC record to sit fifth in the standings. The Texans won their last match against West Georgia on Oct. 22, 3-1. They have a hitting percentage of .213 and have 1065 kills.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST TARLETON STATE: This is just the second meeting in history after playing each other for the first time earlier this season. The Lions and Texans faced off on Sept. 26 in Stephenville, Texas, when the Texans defeated the Lions 3-0.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
