MONTICELLO – Following a 3-1 week, including two Great American Conference wins, the University of Arkansas at Monticello volleyball team will step out of the league portion of the schedule to participate in the Southwest Baptist Regional Crossover Tournament this weekend in Bolivar, Mo.

UAM (6-11, 2-4 GAC) recorded wins over Henderson State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Northwestern Oklahoma State last week, with the only loss coming in a hard-fought battle with Southwestern Oklahoma State.

First-year head coach Peter Cruz hopes last week’s success will carry over into this weekend’s regional crossover tournament.

Cruz visited with uamsports.com on Thursday before his team left for Bolivar. To view the entire interview, visit the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qJcgtGb_us&feature=youtu.be. The video is also available at uamsports.com.

UAM plays four matches this weekend against members of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. The Cotton Blossoms open up against Fort Hays State on Friday at 11:30 a.m., followed by a matchup against host team Southwest Baptist at 4 p.m.

On Saturday, UAM is set to face off against the nation’s top-ranked program, Nebraska-Kearney, at 9 a.m. before concluding the tournament with a 3:30 p.m. match against Lindenwood University. LWU defeated UAM 3-0 in the Arkansas Tech Spikefest on September 8.

To view the crossover tournament’s full schedule of matches, visit the tournament home page courtesy of the Southwest Baptist Athletics Department at the following link: http://www.sbubearcats.com/sports/2012/7/12/VB_0712120027.aspx?path=wvball.