TicketsSept. 7, 2005
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SETTING THE SCENE: The University of Cincinnati volleyball team faces one of its stiffest stretches of the season as they compete in the Waikiki Beach Marriott Challenge, hosted by the University of Hawai'i. Action gets underway on Thursday (Sept. 8) as part of a three-day stretch that will see UC face two of the nation's top-10 ranked teams. The Bearcats, 1-2 on the young season, will face No. 7 Hawai'i, No. 10 UCLA and Cal State Northridge during this week's action.
NOTES FROM NEW MEXICO STATE:
- Senior Maria Pongonis and sophomore Jenny Custer each earned spots on the all-tournament team for the Las Cruces Hilton Classic.
- In the Bearcats' match-up with New Mexico State, redshirt freshman Jessie Nevitt set a school record with 11 block assists in a four-game match. The performance also matched the school record for total blocks in a four-game contest.
- Melissa Zenz's 28 digs vs. Tulsa were the most by a Bearcat since Lindsey Garrison recorded 30 against Tulane on Oct. 26, 2003.
- UC's win over Texas-Pan American in the season-opener marked the third year in a row and the fourth time in six seasons under Reed Sunahara that the Bearcats have started the season with a victory.
ABOUT THE TOURNAMENT: The four-team field for the Waikiki Beach Marriott Challenge features traditional powers from across the country. Hawai'i, ranked seventh in this week's CSTV/AVCA Coaches' poll, is 2-3 on the season, but has played two of the top-five teams in the country, including No. 1 Nebraska. UCLA is 10th in this week's rankings after a 3-0 start to the year. Cal State Northridge will also join the fray after qualifying for the NCAA Tournament last season. The tournament schedule for the week follows:
Thursday, Sept. 8
Cal State Northridge vs. UCLA, 4:30 p.m. HT
Cincinnati at Hawai'i, 7 p.m. HT
Friday, Sept. 9
Cincinnati vs. UCLA, 4:30 p.m. HT
Cal State Northridge at Hawai'i, 7 p.m. HT
Saturday, Sept. 10
Cincinnati vs. Cal State Northridge, 4:30 p.m. HT
UCLA at Hawai'i, 7 p.m. HT
ABOUT HAWAI'I: The Rainbow Wahine have gotten off to a slow start this year at 2-3, but have faced two of the nation's top-five teams, including a pair of match-ups with No. 5 Penn State and one with top-ranked Nebraska. Hawai'i has four players averaging over three kills per game, led by Jamie Houston with 3.61. Victoria Prince is right behind at 3.56 and is hitting a team-best .429. Defensively, Hawai'i gets 1.33 blocks per game from Prince and a team-high 3.94 digs from Ashley Watanabe.
ABOUT UCLA: The Bruins, ranked No. 13 in the nation in the preseason, are up to 10th in this week's CSTV/AVCA rankings after a 3-0 start last week. UCLA opened with a sweep of Eastern Kentucky, while also toppling No. 18 San Diego and Nevada. Three players currently average over three kills per game, led by Nana Meriwether at 3.45. She also paces the squad in hitting (.397) and blocks (1.45). Jordan Smith has also been solid defensively, averaging a team-best 3.00 digs per game.
ABOUT CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE: The Matadors enter the weekend holding a 2-4 record after dropping two of three last week at the Pepperdine Classic. CSNU's one victory was a big one as they upset No. 25 Pepperdine on its home court. Jenn Brobert is the early season offensive leader for the Matadors, averaging 3.08 kills per game. Jamie Crawford has gotten her season off with a bang, as she holds an average of 5.73 digs per game. Darla Donaldson has been the star at the net for the CSNU, averaging 1.00 blocks per game.
SUNAHARA'S CONNECTIONS: This weekend is a big one for head coach Reed Sunahara as he not only returns to his native Hawaii, but also will square off with his alma mater. Sunahara is a native of Hilo, Hawaii which is 210 miles from Honolulu, site of the tournament. While in his native state, Sunahara will also square off with UCLA, where he was a two-time All-American and a 1989 graduate. The contest with the Bruins will mark the first time in his coaching career that a Sunahara-led squad will face UCLA.
THE NEXT QUEEN?: While she is still over 2,000 digs away from the school record, freshman libero Melissa Zenz may be the next UC player to challenge the program's "Queen of Digs," Trish Ladusaw. In her first weekend of collegiate competition, Zenz averaged a stout 6.45 digs per game, including two 25-plus dig efforts. In recording 28 digs vs. Tulsa and 26 vs. New Mexico State, Zenz became the first Bearcat since Ladusaw in 2002 to total over 20 digs in two consecutive matches. In this week's BIG EAST rankings, Zenz leads the conference in digs per game.
RECORD BREAKING DEBUT: In just the third match of her collegiate career, redshirt freshman Jessie Nevitt etched her name in the UC record books with 11 block assists vs. New Mexico State. The total set a new school record for block assists in a four-game match, breaking the mark of 10 shared by Rachel Torblaa (2002) and Myanna Hellsten (2003). Nevitt's performance also matched Torblaa's record for total blocks in a four-game match which was set in 2002. In this week's BIG EAST rankings, Nevitt's 2.00 blocks per game average leads the conference.
NEW LEADER: With the graduation of four-year mainstays Julie DuPont, Leslie Newell and Rachel Torblaa, Maria Pongonis has stepped forward as a team leader for the 2005 season. The only senior on the Bearcat roster, Pongonis led the squad with 4.82 kills per game in the first weekend of play on the strength of two 19-kill performances. She also added a pair of double-doubles to earn a spot on the Las Cruces Hilton Classic All-Tournament Team. Pongonis also finds herself ranked second in the BIG EAST in kills per game this week.
AT THE CONTROLS: Junior Noel Olson is the unquestioned starter at setter this year and in her second year at the controls, she has gotten her year off to a solid start. After averaging 11.64 assists per game in three matches, Olson climbed to sixth on UC's career assists per game chart and moved into seventh on the total assists list, passing Carrie Smith on both. Olson is averaging 6.84 assists per game in just over two seasons of action and has registered 1,661 assists. It will be awhile before Olson challenges for sixth on the assists chart, as her total is almost 1,000 behind Beth Herman's 2,638 collected from 1993-96.
HOME COURT HEROICS: Cincinnati has enjoyed a strong home court advantage since the opening of Fifth Third Arena in 1989. In the 16 years the building has been in existence, the Bearcats have posted a 126-52 (.708) record at home, with 25 of those losses coming in a three-year span from 1991-93. A handful of those contests have also taken place outside the Arena at both the former Laurence Hall and, more recently, at St. Ursula Academy. During the program's time in Fifth Third, it has enjoyed two lengthy win streaks, including a school-record 23 match string that ended last season. At the time the streak was snapped, it represented the third-longest active streak in the nation.
UNFAMILIAR FACES: The Bearcats' move into the BIG EAST this year will give the squad a whole net set of rivals to meet up with. Of the 14 BIG EAST schools UC will face, three are new opponents (Connecticut, St. John's and Seton Hall). With the exception of Conference USA holdovers DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and South Florida, it's been awhile since UC has faced any of the new look BIG EAST members. A look at the last time UC faced each of the league schools: Georgetown 1990 W, 3-1 Notre Dame 2002 L, 0-3 Pittsburgh 1989 L, 0-3 Rutgers 1996 W, 3-0 Syracuse 1990 L, 0-3 Villanova 1991 L, 1-3 West Virginia 1995 W, 3-2
MOST IMPROVED?: Sophomore right-side hitter Jenny Custer may be the team's most improved player thus far after a stellar performance in the opening weekend of play. In three matches, Custer averaged 3.45 kills, 2.73 digs and 1.09 blocks per game, while tallying the first two double-doubles of her career. Against New Mexico State, Custer turned in a career day, with a personal-best 16 kills, along with 10 digs and a career-high six blocks.