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Bearcats Face Old League, New Foe Tonight

Bearcats Face Old League, New Foe TonightBearcats Face Old League, New Foe Tonight

Sept. 20, 2005

Contact: Shawn Sell

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SETTING THE SCENE: Marshall, one of Conference USA's newest members, is the University of Cincinnati's opponent as the Bearcats take the court in Huntington, W.Va. tonight (Sept. 20) at 7 p.m. After a slow start to the season, UC has won four straight contests, including all three at last week's State Farm Bearcat Invitational presented by the Vernon Manor Hotel, to improve to 5-4 on the year. Marshall has won seven of its last nine to improve to 7-4 on the year.

NOTES FROM THE BEARCAT INVITATIONAL:

  • For the third consecutive year, Cincinnati won the Bearcat Invitational, winning the championship in five games over Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In the three years the tournament has been held, UC is a perfect 9-0 and holds a games record of 27-2.
  • UC set a school record for points in a three-game match with 104 in its win over Jacksonville State. The mark was aided by a 44-42 win over the Gamecocks in game two of the Sept. 15 match.
  • For the first time since Oct. 30, 2004 at Tulane, the Bearcats put all five of their primary hitters into double figure kills in the Wisconsin-Milwaukee match. Maria Pongonis led UC with 19 kills, while Jenny Custer and Erin Maldo each had 15. Jessie Nevitt (13) and Myanna Hellsten (11) rounded out the big five.
  • Sophomore Jenny Custer became the first player other than Julie DuPont to win the Bearcat Invitational MVP award with a stellar three-match performance. For the event, Custer averaged 4.00 kills, 1.91 digs and 0.64 blocks per game, while hitting .441.
  • Sophomore Natalie Dossman, UC's starting libero in 2004, made her first appearances of 2005 as a defensive specialist, playing extensively in all three matches. She averaged 1.45 digs per game in her first weekend of play.

ABOUT MARSHALL: The Thundering Herd have won seven of their last nine contests to bring a 7-4 mark into the match-up with Cincinnati. Marshall competed in the Penn State Tournament over the weekend, winning matches over Penn and Seton Hall, but falling in three games to the fourth-ranked Nittany Lions. Kelly-Anne Billingy was named the Conference USA Preseason Player of the Year and has been outstanding, averaging 5.33 kills, 2.25 digs and 0.50 blocks per game, while hitting .321. Stephanie Cahill has also been solid, ranking second on the squad in both kills (3.84) and digs (3.47) per game. The Herd's defense gets 4.09 digs per game from libero Maggie Arias and 1.19 blocks from Amber Sims. Marshall, which finished 22-11 a year ago, was selected to finish second in its first year as a member of C-USA.

OUT FOR REVENGE: The six returning members of the Bearcats' roster will have added motivation in tonight's contest at Marshall as they look to gain retribution for a loss to the Herd last season. During a match played at Wisconsin's InnTowner Invitational, the Bearcats jumped to a 2-0 lead after winning by scores of 30-26 and 30-23. Marshall came back, however, winning games three (30-20) and four (30-28) to set up a deciding game. Game five went right down to the wire as Marshall pulled out the 16-14 triumph.

COMING TO LIFE: After getting off to a slow start against several top teams, the Bearcat offense has started to come to life. During the State Farm Bearcat Invitational presented by the Vernon Manor Hotel, UC showed significant improvement in every offense category compared to earlier in the season. A full look at the improvement is shown on the right.

NEVITT EARNS BIG EAST AWARD: Jessie Nevitt has been tabbed the BIG EAST Conference Rookie of the Week for her play during the State Farm Bearcat Invitational presented by the Vernon Manor Hotel. Nevitt helped UC to the team title at the Bearcat Invitational for the third straight year with victories in all three matches. For the tournament, Nevitt averaged 2.82 kills and 1.36 blocks per game, while hitting .351. She earned a spot on the all-tournament team for her efforts. Nevitt had 13 kills in UC's tournament-clinching win over Wisconsin-Milwaukee and added 10 kills on .500 hitting and seven total blocks in a victory over Jacksonville State. The award marks the first BIG EAST accolade for the Bearcat volleyball program.

SCORING RECORD: The Bearcats' Sept. 15 match with Jacksonville State provided a memorable moment as UC recorded a 44-42 game two win over the Gamecocks. Since the inception of rally scoring in 2001, the 44 points scored by the Bearcats was the most a UC team had ever scored. UC's 104 total points in the match was also a school record for a three-game contest. Both of the previous highs (39 points in one game and 99 points for the match), occurred in UC's win over Wright State on Sept. 14, 2002.

BALANCE, BALANCE: For the first time this season, the Bearcats placed all five of their primary hitters in double figure kills in UC's Sept. 16 win over Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Maria Pongonis led the way with 17 kills, while Jenny Custer and Erin Maldo each tacked on 15. Jessie Nevitt had 13 vs. UWM and Myanna Hellsten contributed 11. The Bearcats accomplished the same feat three times last season with the most recent outburst coming in a four-game win at Tulane on Oct. 30, 2004.

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 leads the squad with 3.94 kills per game. Pongonis has reached double figure kills in all but one match this season, including a season-high 19 against both Texas-Pan American and Tulsa, and has also added seven double-doubles. Against Cal State Northridge on Sept. 10, Pongonis recorded a career-high 23 digs.

TOURNAMENT HONORS: A total of four different Bearcats have earned all-tournament honors as UC competed in three tournaments to open the 2005 season. A look at the award winners and their performances:

  • Maria Pongonis (Las Cruces Hilton Classic)-4.82 kills and 3.00 digs per game; 19 kills against both Texas Pan-American and Tulsa.
  • Melissa Zenz (Waikiki Beach Marriott Challenge)-6.17 digs per game; three 20-plus dig performances, including career-high 29 vs. Cal State Northridge.
  • Jenny Custer (State Farm Bearcat Invitational MVP)-4.00 kills, 1.91 digs, 0.64 blocks per game, .441 hitting percentage; hit .500 twice with 17 kills and 11 digs vs. Jacksonville State.
  • Jessie Nevitt (State Farm Bearcat Invitational)-2.82 kills, 1.36 blocks, 0.64 digs per game, .351 hitting percentage; 10 kills, eight blocks, .500 hitting vs. Jacksonville State.
  • Pongonis (State Farm Bearcat Invitational)-3.36 kills, 4.09 digs, 0.73 blocks per game; 17 kills, 22 digs vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

THE NEXT QUEEN?: While she is still nearly 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 three weeks of collegiate competition, Zenz has averaged a BIG EAST leading 6.00 digs per game and has 20-plus digs in six of this year's nine matches, including a career-high 29 twice. 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. Her six 20-plus dig efforts are the most by a Bearcat since Lindsey Garrison had nine in 2002.

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. Nevitt has been outstanding early this season, averaging 2.52 kills and 1.57 blocks per game, while hitting a team-best .265. Her 14 kills vs. UCLA on Sept. 9 were also a career high.

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.

MOST IMPROVED: Sophomore right-side hitter Jenny Custer has been the team's most improved player thus far after a stellar start to her second collegiate season. This season, Custer is averaging 3.47 kills, 2.26 digs and 0.74 blocks per game, while tallying the first four double-doubles of her career. Custer was at her best during the State Farm Bearcat Invitational presented by the Vernon Manor Hotel as she earned MVP honors. She turned in one of her most brilliant performances against Jacksonville State, racking up 17 kills on .500 hitting and adding 11 digs.

AT THE CONTROLS: Junior Noel Olson has been solid in her second year as the Bearcats setter, ranking third in the BIG EAST this week with 12.21 assists per game. Earlier this year, 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 7.32 assists per game in two-plus season of action and has registered 1,948 assists. It will be awhile before Olson challenges for sixth on the assists chart, as her total is almost 700 behind Beth Herman's 2,638 collected from 1993-96.