TicketsSept. 8, 2009
TOUGH STRETCH: Cincinnati begins arguably its toughest portion of its schedule on Tuesday, Sept. 8, when UC travels to Lexington, Ky., to face the No. 17 Kentucky Wildcats at 7 p.m. in Memorial Coliseum. Following its mid-week meeting with Kentucky, the Bearcats travel to Champaign, Ill., to play in the Illinois State Farm Classic. At the tournament, Cincinnati competes against No. 14 Illinois, No. 16 Saint Louis, and Illinois State. It is the first time in program history that Cincinnati will play three consecutive ranked opponents.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS: Kentucky enters the week as the No. 17 team in the country in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association poll (AVCA). The Wildcats record is unblemished at 6-0, which includes wins over two Big Ten squads (Northwestern and Indiana). Offensively, UK has five players averaging over 2.0 kills per set, led by Sarah Mendoza's 4.05 kps. Sarah Rumley has been in total control of the Kentucky offense thus far this season, leading the Wildcats to a .321 hitting percentage while averaging 12.45 assists per set.
THE SERIES WITH KENTUCKY: Tuesday's meeting between the Wildcats and Bearcats is the 20th meeting between the schools, with UK owning a 13-6 lead in the all-time series. UC has won the last two meetings against Kentucky, including a four-set win in Lexington on Nov. 26, 2005.
UC CAPTURES TOURNAMENT TITLE: With three-set wins over Youngstown State and Evansville, and a four-set win over the College of Charleston, Cincinnati captured the 2009 Bearcats Invitational tournament crown. For their stellar play at the tournament, junior Stephanie Niemer, sophomore Missy Harpenau, and freshman Jordanne Scott were all named to the all-tournament team with Niemer taking home MVP honors.
GREAT SCOTT: An integral part of its run to a Bearcats Invitational title last weekend, freshman middle blocker Jordanne Scott was named the BIG EAST Volleyball Freshman of the Week on Sept. 7. Scott averaged 3.10 kills per set and was named to the Bearcats Invitational All-Tournament Team. The freshman recorded 31 kills, three digs, and seven blocks for the week, which helped UC to wins over Youngstown State, Evansville and College of Charleston. Against the Penguins, the Indianapolis native connected on 13 kills en route to a .647 hitting percentage. For the tournament, Scott made the most of her opportunities, as she posted only seven errors on 58 chances for a .414 hitting percentage.
MILESTONE WEEKEND: Two Cincinnati players eclipsed career milestones during the 2009 Bearcats Invitational. With 21 digs against the College of Charleston, senior Jaime Frey moved past the 1,500 digs plateau for her career. Frey currently has 1,513 digs for her career, making her just the second player in UC history to reach 1,500 digs for a career joining Trish Ladusaw, who complied 2,074 digs from 1999-2002. Alongside Frey, junior Annie Fesl broke into the Top 5 in UC history in assists. Fesl moved above 3,000 assists for her career, becoming the sixth player in UC history to accomplish that feat.
CLOSING IN: Coming in to the 2009 season, Stephanie Niemer needed 200 kills to become the 15th player in UC history to reach 1,000 career kills. Just six matches into the season, Niemer has accumulated 130 kills and needs 70 kills to reach 1,000 kills. Niemer looks to become just the eighth player in UC history to reach 1,000 career kills as a junior and the second fastest player to reach 1,000 kills.
OH SO CLOSE: Junior Stephanie Niemer could not be stopped during UC's match against No. 17 Utah at the Utah Classic. The Erlanger, Ky., native posted a career-high 34 kills, which tied her for second place on Cincinnati's single-match kills list with UC Hall of Famer Sonja Jackson, who put down 34 kills against Dayton on Nov. 5, 1986. Niemer's 34 kills are the most since 2003, when Julie DuPont had 33 kills at Butler on Sept. 25, 2004. Heather Augustine owns the UC single-match kills record with 36 kills against Marquette on Nov. 22, 1991.
UC PICKED TO FINISH IN A TIE FOR SECOND; NIEMER, FESL EARN PRESEASON HONORS: One year after capturing a share of the BIG EAST Conference regular-season championship, the University of Cincinnati volleyball team was picked to finish in a tie for second place in the 2009 BIG EAST Coaches' Preseason Poll, joining the University of Notre Dame with 178 votes. The University of Louisville was chosen as the preseason favorite with a 186 votes and the Cardinals earned six of 15 first place votes. Notre Dame garnered five first-place votes compared to four for UC. Last season, Cincinnati was picked third in the 2008 preseason poll. Cincinnati junior outside hitter Stephanie Niemer (Erlanger, Ky./St. Henry) and junior setter Annie Fesl (Arlington Heights, Ill./John Hersey) represented the Bearcats on the all-preseason team. Niemer, who was a first-team all-BIG EAST selection last season, was one of four players to be unanimously selected to the all-preseason team, joining USF's Marcela Gurgel, and Louisville's Lecia Brown and Justine Landi. Fesl was a second-team all-BIG EAST recipient in 2008.
RECRUITING CLASS RANKED 29TH ACCORDING TO PREPVOLLEYBALL.COM: Cincinnati had its recruiting class ranked in the Top 30 in the country according to Prepvolleyball.com. The group of middle blocker Jordanne Scott, middle blocker Emily Hayden, setter/right side Megan Turner, middle blocker Becca Refenes, and defensive specialist Karen Onuki give the Bearcats the No. 29 recruiting class for 2009. Scott, Hayden, and Turner all rank in the Top 150 on Prepvolleyball.com's Senior Aces list, led by Scott and Hayden, who rank No. 61 and No. 74, respectively. Head Coach Reed Sunahara has now brought in a Top 30 recruiting class for the second straight year after having his 2008 class ranked No. 15.
FOLLOW UC VOLLEYBALL AND HEAD COACH Reed Sunahara ON TWITTER: Fans can follow the Cincinnati volleyball team and head coach Reed Sunahara on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Cincinnativball and www.twitter.com/ReedSunahara.