Sun Belt student-athletes are making their mark on the national scene
While football heading into bowl season and men’s basketball season heading into its second month, many other Sun Belt student-athletes are making their mark on the national scene.
Here’s a look at how teams across the conference fared in the past week.
All rankings are accurate as of Nov. 30.
Volleyball
After waiting a week following its Sun Belt Conference Tournament title, Arkansas State learned its destination and opponent in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Red Wolves were sent to the Pittsburgh regional, where they will face No. 6 seed Baylor. The match will be held in West Lafayette, Indiana, in a four-team pod hosted by regional No. 3 seed Purdue.
The Bears, ranked No. 23 in the final AVCA rankings, hold a 5-0 series lead over Arkansas State. The teams last met in September 2012. The Red Wolves’ closest result came in 1987, a 3-2 loss.
If Arkansas State pulls off an upset, it will face either Purdue or Wright State. The Red Wolves holds a 2-0 series lead against Wright State (last meeting in 1993) and have never faced the Boilermakers.
Unlike recent seasons, the National Invitational Volleyball Championships (NIVC) will not be held this year. Three Sun Belt teams, including Arkansas State, participated last season, and the league had at least two representatives in each of the past three tournaments. To read the full statement released last week, click here.
To see the update Sun Belt conference standings and more news, click here.
Women’s Basketball
The Sun Belt had its best week of the season against Power Five opponents, earning three wins in six matchups — all played on neutral courts.
James Madison went 2-0 in the Daytona Beach Classic, defeating Boston College and Wisconsin in the process. After the Eagles opened with a 22-4 lead in the first quarter, the Dukes clamped down defensively, holding them to 14 combined points in the second and third quarters while scoring 49. In the teams’ first meeting since 2008, JMU extended its series led to 3-1 with a 73-53 victory. The next day, the Dukes beat Wisconsin 69-50 in the schools’ first-ever meeting.
In the Goombay Division of the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship, Arkansas State first opened with Houston out of the Big 12. In the schools’ first meeting, the Red Wolves controlled the game from the start. After giving up an early jumper, they never trailed again, leading by as many as 26 points in a 83-66 victory. They would defeat Kent State to win the MTE.
Troy continued their record-setting start, winning the 2025 Resorts Las Vegas Classic championship with a 74-70 victory over Florida Gulf Coast (NET ranking 157). The win moved the Trojans to 7-1, their best since 1991-92 when the program was in Division II. Ashley Baez sealed the game with free throws in the final second.
On Tuesday, Louisiana’s losing streak extened with a 74-47 home loss to East Texas A&M (NET ranking 303). It is the Ragin’ Cajuns’ longest skid since dropping 11 straight in the 2012-13 season. It was the schools’ first meeting as East Texas A&M is in its fourth season of Division I play.
James Madison’s Peyton McDaniel earned her second Player of the Week honor in three weeks. The redshirt senior averaged 23.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in the Daytona Beach Classic. Her 20.4 points per game ranks 22nd nationally.
In ESPN’s latest Bracketology, Troy is projected as the Sun Belt representative, slotted as a No. 12 seed in a matchup against No. 5 Notre Dame.
To see the update Sun Belt conference standings and more news, click here.
Wrestling
App State hosted its first duel meet of the season as No. 10 NC State visited Varsity Gym in Boone.
Jarvis Little upset No. 26 ranked Zach Redding in the 133-pound class with a 9-4 decision.
App State (2-4) also excelled in the higher weight classes.
- No. 33 Tomas Brooker defeated Don Cates at 184 pounds.
- Logan Eller and Stephan Monchery earned majority decisions at 197 pounds and heavyweight, respectively.
The only match featuring two ranked wrestlers came at 149 pounds, where No. 31 Kaden Keiser fell to No. 9 Koy Buesgens 4-2 on a tiebreaking takedown with 1:12 remaining in the third period.
The Mountaineers head to Las Vegas this weekend to participate in the Cliff Keen Invitational.
In the latest FloWrestling rankings released Dec. 1, Keiser stayed at No. 31 in 149 pounds as the only Mountaineer ranked.
To see the update conference standings and more news, visit the Southern Conference page here.
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