RICHARDSON, TX (11.04.21) - After a first-round bye, the UT Dallas volleyball team will open its 18th straight ASC Championship Tournament Friday at 7:30 p.m. on the campus of event-host Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton.

ASC TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

The Comets posted a 15-9 overall record and earned the No. 2 seed in this week's tournament with a 13-4 league mark this fall. UTD will face the No. 3-seeded LeTourneau, a 3-1 winner over Concordia Texas in a Thursday quarterfinal. Top-seeded UMHB will play the opening semifinal match at 5 p.m. Friday against No. 5 Sul Ross State, which defeated East Texas Baptist, 3-1, Thursday night.

UTD will be competing for its ASC-record seventh league title this weekend and enter the 2021 event with a 29-18 all-time record in the Comets' previous 17 trips to the tournament. The Comets hold the ASC record for tournament wins (29) and rank second all-time in appearances (18). UTD claimed the league title in 2008, 2009, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019.

The Comets lead the league in kills per set (13.01) and assists per set (12.23) while ranking second in the ASC in team hitting percentage (.203), service aces per set (2.15) and third in digs per set (17.21).

Individually, Gabi Sommerfield sits third in the ASC with a .312 hitting percentage while teammate Erin Rogers is fifth at .281. Allison Owen (3.08) and Catherine Croft (2.99), who were both recently named first team All-ASC, rank eighth and ninth in the ASC, respectively, in kills per set. Croft also ranks fifth in the ASC with 33 aces.

Admission is free for the event and live video and stats will be provided for each match.