TicketsAug. 31, 2008
CINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati's volleyball team earned the 2008 State Farm Bearcats Invtitational crown after defeating Marshall University in three sets Sunday afternoon in Fifth Third Arena. Sophomore Stephanie Niemer (Erlanger, Ky./St. Henry) led Cincinnati (3-0) with 17 kills en route to earning Tournament MVP honors.
The first set saw five ties, with the last occurring at 10-10, before Marshall used two kills and two Cincinnati miscues to pull ahead, 14-11. The Bearcats quickly responded with three straight points on consecutive kills by senior Jessica Elley (Gilbert, Az./Gilbert) and a Marshall attack error. With the score tied at 16-16, Cincinnati captured six of the next seven points highlighted by a service ace from senior Jessie Nevitt (Kennesaw, Ga./Kennesaw), to take its biggest lead of the set, 22-17. Marshall closed to within one point, 23-22, forcing a Bearcat timeout, but kills by freshman Missy Harpenau (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mother of Mercy) and Niemer gave Cincinnati a 25-22 set-one victory.
Marshall jumped out to an early cushion courtesy of three Cincinnati attack errors. The Thundering Herd lead reached as many as five points, 17-12, forcing a Bearcats timeout. Following the timeout, a Marshall attack error sandwiched between two freshman Kelsey Brandl (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) kills aided a Bearcat rally that eventually tied the set at 20-20. Still tied at 21-21, two Niemer kills and two Marshall attack errors handed the Bearcats a hard-fought 25-21 come-from-behind set-two win.
The Bearcats used the momentum gained from its set-two victory to catapult out to a 7-3 set-three advantage. With its four-point advantage still in tact, a four-point spurt gave Cincinnati its biggest advantage of the set, 20-12. From there, Cincinnati cruised to a 25-20 third-set win and the 2008 State Farm Bearcats Invitational Championship.
Niemer led the Bearcats with 17 kills, while Nevitt and Elley collected nine kills apiece. The Bearcats hit at a .365 clip for the match.
For the Bearcats, Nevitt and Brandl were named to the 2008 State Farm Bearcats Invitational all-tournament team, while Niemer was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Joining Niemer, Nevitt and Brandl on the all-tournament team was Marshall's Jalicia Ross and Emily Sullivan, Wright State's Becca Awaa and Tennessee Tech's Leah Meffert.
The Bearcats head to Hawai'i for the Honolulu Advertiser Volleyball Classic hosted by the University of Hawai'i. The Bearcats begin action on Thursday, Sept. 4 versus Wyoming at 11 p.m. ET (5 p.m. HT). The Bearcats also will face No. 12 Hawai'i and No. 16 Minnesota during the tournament.
2008 Bearcats Invitational All-Tournament Team
Cincinnati - Stephanie Niemer (MVP)
Cincinnati - Kelsey Brandl
Cincinnati - Jessie Nevitt
Marshall - Jalicia Ross
Marshall - Emily Sullivan
Tennessee Tech - Leah Meffert
Wright State - Becca Awaa