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Bearcats Wrap Up Home Schedule With Pair Of Key Matches

Bearcats Wrap Up Home Schedule With Pair Of Key MatchesBearcats Wrap Up Home Schedule With Pair Of Key Matches

Nov. 1, 2007

FIRST SERVE: Another important weekend looms for the University of Cincinnati volleyball team as it closes the home portion of its schedule, hosting Pittsburgh and West Virginia this weekend in Fifth Third Arena. Action gets underway on Saturday (Nov. 3) with a visit from Pittsburgh (14-11, 7-4 BIG EAST) at 2 p.m. West Virginia (13-12, 4-7 BIG EAST) will be the adversary one day later on Senior Day for the Bearcats. That contest is also slated for a 2 p.m. start. UC is tied for fifth in the BIG EAST entering the weekend at 15-9 overall and 6-4 in league play.

NOTING THE BEARCATS:

  • UC enters the weekend in a three-way tie for fifth in the BIG EAST at 6-4, but is just one-half game behind the third-place tie between Villanova and Pittsburgh.
  • The Bearcats are led by two-time honorable mention all-American Jessie Nevitt, who ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in hitting and blocks. The junior is fifth in blocks (1.34 per game) and hitting (.346). She ranks just outside the Top 10 in kills with a team-leading 3.62 per game.
  • Three freshmen-setter Annie Fesl, outside hitter Stephanie Niemer and middle blocker Lindsay Upton-are staples in the Bearcats' starting line-up. The trio is combining for 5.72 kills, 3.72 digs, 0.94 aces and 1.60 blocks per game this season, while Fesl is averaging 13.30 assists per game.
  • Nevitt is making a charge towards becoming the second player in UC history with 1,000 career kills and 500 career blocks, a feat accomplished only by current assistant coach Myanna Hellsten. Nevitt became the 13th player in school history to reach the 1,000 kill plateau at Louisville (Oct. 20) and has 453 blocks.
  • Cincinnati is one of the top serving teams in the BIG EAST, ranking third with 1.79 aces per game. Niemer and senior Jenny Custer are the leaders, ranking second and eighth in the BIG EAST, respectively in aces. Custer is one of the top servers in school history, ranking fourth in career aces with 152.
  • Niemer's 29 kills against Seton Hall on Oct. 14 were the second-most by a BIG EAST freshman this year and represented the fourth-best mark nationally at the time. The count is the most by a Bearcat since Julie DuPont registered 33 at Butler on Sept. 25, 2004.
  • In just her first year as a Bearcat, freshman setter Fesl is already ranked among the top setters in program history. With 1,117 assists this year, Fesl is ranked ninth on UC's career list.

NOTING THE PANTHERS:

  • It has been an up and down year for Pittsburgh who is 14-11 overall and 7-4 in BIG EAST play. Pitt has BIG EAST wins over Connecticut, Marquette and Notre Dame, but has suffered losses to Georgetown, USF and Syracuse.
  • Diana Andreyko, a first-team all-BIG EAST choice last year, leads a high-powered offense with 4.03 kills, while Kelly Campbell (3.87) and Meagan Dooley (3.26) are also above three kills per game.
  • Pitt's roster has a strong local flavor with area products Dooley (West Chester) and Stephanie Ross (Dayton).

NOTING THE MOUNTAINEERS:

  • West Virginia has enjoyed a huge turnaround this season, already winning four times as many matches as it did last year. WVU is currently 13-12 overall and 4-7 in BIG EAST play after ending up 3-28 in 2006.
  • Senior Abby Tevis is the Mountaineers top offensive threat, ranking 10th in the BIG EAST with 3.76 kills per game.

ONE WILD WEEKEND: A recent five-match losing streak pushed the Bearcats all the way down to eighth in the BIG EAST standings, but one weekend put UC right back in the race. The Bearcats did their part, sweeping Rutgers, but a myriad of upsets bumped UC within one-half game of third place. The upsets included: USF over Villanova, Connecticut over Notre Dame, Syracuse over Pittsburgh, Seton Hall over USF and West Virginia over Marquette.

HOME COURT HEROES: Cincinnati has enjoyed a strong home court advantage since the opening of Fifth Third Arena in 1989. In the 17-plus years the building has been in existence, the Bearcats have posted a 155-60 (.721) record at home and are 90-13 (.874) since Reed Sunahara took over as head coach in 2000. The Bearcats ended last year with a 13-2 home mark and are 7-2 at home this season, with their only losses coming to No. 2 Stanford (Sept. 12) and No. 18 St. John's (Oct. 7).

ON THE HORIZON: If all goes according to plan, head coach Reed Sunahara will add another milestone to his coaching resume this season. Now in his eighth-year as the Bearcat boss, Sunahara needs just five more victories to reach 200 for his career. Already the winningest coach in program history, Sunahara has guided UC to four NCAA Tournament appearances and three conference regular season titles.

TRYING FOR THREE STRAIGHT: Junior Jessie Nevitt is making a push for her third straight all-American honor with her play in 2007. A look at some of Nevitt's accomplishments this season:

  • Ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in hitting percentage (5th-.346) and blocks per game (5th-1.34), while placing just outside the Top 10 in kills per game with 3.70.
  • Became the 13th player in program history with 1,000 career kills during the Louisville match on Oct. 20.
  • Named MVP of the State Farm Bearcats Invitational and to the all-tournament team at the Panther Invitational.
  • Tabbed BIG EAST Player of the Week on Aug. 27 and to the weekly honor roll on Sept. 3 and Sept. 10.
  • Recorded a career-high 21 kills in just three games in UC's win over Bradley (Sept. 7). Has double figure kills in 20 of the Bearcats' 24 matches this season.
  • Has 15 performances of at least five blocks in a match, including a season-best nine at Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Sept. 7) and again vs. St. John's (Oct. 7). Nevitt had six blocks in game one of the St. John's match alone.
  • Cracked the Top 10 on the UC career block assists (5th-397) and total blocks (9th-453) charts. Ranks fourth on the blocks per game list with 1.47.
  • Is on the fast track to becoming the second UC player ever with 1,000 kills and 500 blocks in her career. Nevitt holds current totals of 1,000 kills and 453 blocks.

MAKING A FIRST IMPRESSION: The Bearcats' freshmen trio of Annie Fesl, Stephanie Niemer and Lindsay Upton have made quite the first impression during their first season of collegiate competition. A look at each's first taste of college:

  • Fesl has won a BIG EAST Freshman of the Week award (Sept. 3) and is ranked second in the league with 13.30 assists per game. Against TCU on Sept. 1 and again vs. Seton Hall on Oct. 14, Fesl finished with a career high 69 assists. Her first career match against Southern Miss on Aug. 24 was a good one, as she finished just three assists shy of a UC three-game record with 55 assists. Through matches of Oct. 28, Fesl is listed 13th nationally in assists per game. Fesl has also done a solid job defensively with 1.94 digs and 0.54 blocks per game, including highs of 13 digs (twice) and five blocks (twice).
  • Niemer also has a BIG EAST Freshman of the Week award (Sept. 24) and ranks second on the team with 3.62 kills per game. She has been at her best in BIG EAST play, averaging a team-leading 4.10 kills per game, including three 20+ kill performances Niemer posted a career-high and the fourth-highest total by a freshman in the nation this season with 29 at Seton Hall on Oct. 14. She has also been outstanding from the service line, holding the team lead with 43 aces (including seven at Villanova on Oct. 13) and ranking second in the BIG EAST with 0.49 per game.
  • Upton cracked the starting six against Maryland on Aug. 25 and has been a solid player in the middle opposite of Jessie Nevitt. She has reached double figures in kills seven times and is averaging 1.79 kills, 0.70 digs and 0.62 blocks per game. Twice this year, Upton has tallied a career-high with 12 kills offensively and six blocks at the net.

UP NEXT: Cincinnati wraps up BIG EAST play, taking to the road for matches at Notre Dame (Nov. 9) and DePaul (Nov. 11).