CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi volleyball team hosts one of the biggest events of its 2026 calendar this weekend, welcoming a trio of teams to the Dugan Wellness Center for the Southwest Showdown, presented by Texas Army National Guard.
The Islanders (0-2) bring in-state opponents Texas State, UTEP and UTRGV to town for three days of action, starting on Thursday with a neutral match between the Bobcats (1-1) and the Miners (1-1) on Thursday at 5 p.m. The hosts will play two games during the tournament, first squaring off with UTEP on Friday at 6:30 p.m. before returning the next day at 2 p.m. against Texas State.
A&M-Corpus Christi will play in front of the home crowd for the first time after opening its season on the road last weekend, getting started in Manhattan, Kansas for matches against hosts Kansas State and Campbell. The former match saw the Islanders fall in straight sets to the Wildcats, and in the latter, they nearly completed a two-set comeback against the Camels but came up just short in a decisive fifth set. Despite this, though, they still saw two players recognized at the conclusion of the weekend, with
Ally Saleh and
Brooklyn Jaeger both earning spots on the K-State Invitational All-Tournament Team.
This year's Southwest Showdown, presented by Texas Army National Guard, is the second iteration of the event after last year's event was hosted by the Vaqueros (0-2) in Edinburg with the same field. This weekend will allow the Islanders to get a measure of revenge against both the Miners and the Bobcats, as they fell to both in straight sets in 2025 despite playing competitively throughout.
Both of A&M-Corpus Christi's matches over the weekend can be watched live on ESPN+ with
Steven King on the call. The live stats for every match of the tournament can also be followed along with as they happen.
Match 3 // A&M-Corpus Christi vs UTEP
Date: Friday, September 4
Time: 6:30 p.m. CT
Location: Dugan Wellness Center // Corpus Christi, Texas
Watch Live
Live Stats
Tickets
Socials: @IslandersVB (
IG //
X)
Match 4 // A&M-Corpus Christi vs Texas State
Date: Saturday, September 5
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Location: Dugan Wellness Center // Corpus Christi, Texas
Watch Live
Live Stats
Tickets
Socials: @IslandersVB (
IG //
X)
#ShakasUp
