By Courtney Madden

Last weekend the Mustangs had a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over then-No. 24 Oklahoma to win the SMU Doubletree Invitational in Moody Coliseum. Not only was it SMU Volleyball’s first time in program history to beat a nationally ranked team, but they also had the second-largest home crowd in program history with 1,049 in attendance.

And now the SMU Volleyball Team is receiving votes in the latest edition of the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll. This is also the first time the Mustang program has received votes in the poll.

The Mustangs are 5-1 so far this season after also defeating Georgia Tech (3-0) and Texas Southern (3-1) at the tournament for a 3-0 record and the Doubletree Invitational tournament championship. SMU also has wins over Georgia and Fordham this season.

SMU will travel to Arkansas for the University of Arkansas Invite against Stoney Brook. This will be the Mustangs final game before conference play begins. The game should be a good one as Stony Brook is 4-4, winning back-to-back matches after three straight losses.

The Mustangs will also play South Dakota which is entering the tournament 2-4. And of course the home team Arkansas enters the tournament at 3-4.

SMU was a preseason favorite, picked to win the American Athletic Conference this season. The Mustangs collected nine of 11 first-place votes. UCF came in second and Tulane came in third.

SMU Volleyball returns to Moody Coliseum Sept. 19 against Houston Baptist in its first game of the SMU Classic.

By Demetrio Teniente

SMU’s Caroline Young has been nominated for the 2014 Senior CLASS Award.

Young is one of 30 NCAA Division I volleyball players selected as candidates.

In order to be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.

Young, a three-time all-conference selection and All-American honorable mention, ranks ninth all-time at SMU with 1,109 career kills, and is seventh in the American Athletic Conference this season with 3.59 kills per set.

The Brenham, Texas, native had 18 kills in a 3-2 win over No. 24 Oklahoma, including eight in the third set.

Young, was named team captain by her teammates, has a 3.52 GPA as a double-major in management science and math with a minor in business administration, is enrolled in the EMIS 4+1 program, and will have earned a master’s degree by the time she graduates.