LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (November 4, 2026) – The University of North Alabama volleyball team heads to Arkansas to face the Little Rock Trojans and Central Arkansas Bears in United Athletic Conference matchups on Thursday and Friday.
North Alabama faces the Trojans first on Thursday at 6 p.m. in Little Rock, Ark. inside the Jack Stephens Center. The Lions will then turnaround to play the Bears on Fridayat 6 p.m. in Conway, Ark. inside the Prince Center.
Both matches will be broadcast on ESPN+. Live stats will be available through StatBroadcast for the match against Little Rock and SIDEARM for the match against Central Arkansas.
Tickets for the match against Little Rock are available through Little Rock's ticket office or at the link here. The match against Central Arkansas will be free of charge to all spectators.
MATCH 1
North Alabama at Little Rock
Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026
6 p.m.
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
MATCH 2
North Alabama at Central Arkansas
Friday, Nov. 6, 2026
6 p.m.
Watch | Live Stats
NOTES
SCOUTING THE LIONS: North Alabama enters the weekend with an 18-7 overall record and an 8-4 UAC record. The Lions are tied for third in the UAC standings with Central Arkansas. Junior Reese Ricketts continues to lead the conference in kills and kills per set, averaging 4.03 and totaling 363. Junior Kinslee McGowan ranks second in assists and assists per set, averaging 9.71 and totaling 864. The Lions collectively rank second in the conference with a .224 hitting percentage.
LAST TIME OUT: North Alabama's last match was against UAC leader, Eastern Kentucky, who the Lions took to a competitive five sets. The Colonels came out victorious, 3-2, but the Lions still had a lot to be proud of, one being only the second UAC team to take EKU to five sets. The Colonels remain undefeated in conference play, 12-0. North Alabama was up 13-10 in the final frame, but EKU went on a 5-0 run to secure the win.
A HISTORIC SEASON: North Alabama has had their best season in Division I program history. The Lions earned their 18th win of the season against Tarleton State on Oct. 29, marking the most wins in a season since joining the NCAA Division I in 2018. The Lions also had the best start to a season in program history. They opened the season with eight straight clean sweeps, breaking the 2002 team's record of six sweeps to open a season. UNA was also the second-to-last team to drop a set, only behind undefeated Nebraska.
UAC SETTER PAIR OF THE WEEK: McGowan and sophomore Landri Ross earned the UAC Setter Pair of the Week award on Monday, Nov. 2. This is now the ninth UAC weekly award North Alabama volleyball has received this season, with McGowan earning three Setter of the Week awards, senior Ava Martindale earning three Defensive Player of the Week awards, junior Reese Ricketts earning two Player of the Week awards and now Ross and McGowan earning the team's first Setter Pair of the Week award. The duo combined for 102 assists and 11.33 assists per set in the matches against Tarleton State and Eastern Kentucky. McGowan totaled 53 assists and averaged 5.89 assists per set, while Ross totaled 49 assists and averaged 5.44 assists per set. In just her third appearance of the season, Ross tied her career high of 28 assists in the match against Tarleton State on Oct. 29. McGowan also recorded double-doubles in both matches last week, marking her 13th and 14th of the season.
DYLANN DOES IT ALL: Junior Dylann Garner has played in every match this season as an outside hitter, until recently stepping up as a middle blocker. She totals 248 kills, averages 2.79 kills per set, hits for .239 and totals 45 blocks.
SOPHOMORES STEPPING UP: Sophomores Paris McQuirter and Landri Ross have stepped up to the net in recent games for the Lions. Outside hitter McQuirter earned her first career start against Tarleton State last Thursday and started again on Saturday against EKU. Setter Ross has stepped up in the last three games for the Lions, tallying 74 assists and earning UAC Setter Pair of the Week with Kinslee McGowan.
FANTASTIC FRESHMEN: Freshmen Kaylee Maikranz and Anna Hoffmayer have helped North Alabama power through the season, stacking up crucial minutes for the Lions and leading them into their best season in the Division I era. Defensive specialist Maikranz has competed in all 25 matches, tallying 155 digs, with a game high of 24 digs against UT Arlington on Oct. 15. Middle blocker Hoffmayer has played in 24 matches and leads the Lions in blocks, smacking down 68 on the season so far and a career high of seven against Abilene Christian on Sept. 24.
SCOUTING THE TROJANS: Little Rock enters the match with a 9-15 overall record and a 3-9 UAC record and have been eliminated from the UAC championship. They rank third in blocks per set (2.22), fifth in points per set (15.69) and sixth in hitting percentage (.197).
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST LITTLE ROCK: The Trojans and Lions have an even 2-2 series history. The last time these two teams met was in 2024, when UNA won 3-2 in the Central Arkansas Invitational. UNA also won, 3-0, in 2023 in the Arkansas State Invitational. The third time they met was in 2018, when the Trojans defeated the Lions, 0-3. The first ever meeting was in 1986 when the Trojans won 2-0 in the Missouri Tournament.
SCOUTING THE BEARS: Central Arkansas currently has an 8-14 overall record and an 8-4 UAC record, tied with North Alabama for third in the conference standings. The Bears rank eighth in points per set (15.25), eighth in hitting percentage (.163), eighth in kills per set (11.59) and first in blocks per set (2.32).
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST CENTRAL ARKANSAS: The Lions lead the series history over the Bears, 10-8. The last time these two teams faced each other was earlier this season on Oct. 3, when the Lions defeated the Bears, 3-1. In the 2025 season, Central Arkansas won both matches, 3-1. They split in the 2024 season. The first time the two teams met was in 1993, and Central Arkansas won 3-0.
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