TicketsSept. 10, 2009
Illinois State Farm Classic Notes
ILLINOIS STATE FARM CLASSIC: On the heels of a tough five-set loss at No. 17 Kentucky, Cincinnati looks to rebound at the Illinois State Farm Classic where it will face two more ranked opponents in No. 14 Illinois and No. 16 Saint Louis, and Missouri Valley Conference foe Illinois State. The Bearcats open the tournament with the No. 14 Fighting Illini on Friday, Sept. 11, at 8 p.m. (ET) in a re-match of last year's second-round NCAA Tournament match-up. On Saturday, Sept. 12, UC meets No. 16 Saint Louis at 1 p.m. (ET) and closes the tournament out with Illinois State at 5:30 p.m. (ET). All of the matches will be played at Huff Hall on the University of Illinois campus.
ABOUT THE FIELD: Illinois, Saint Louis, Illinois State, and Cincinnati all enter the tournament with winning records. The Fighting Illini are ranked 14th in the AVCA poll, while Saint Louis is 16th. Illinois is 3-1 on the young season, with its lone loss vs. Florida State, and the Fighting Illini are coached by first-year coach Kevin Hambly. Laura DeBruler leads the team offensively, averaging 5.08 kills per set, while Erin Johnson paces the squad on the other side of the net with 1.08 blocks per set. Thus far, Saint Louis has played four Top 10 teams in six matches and the Billikens are 1-3 in those matches with its win coming in three sets over No. 10 California. Overall, SLU is 3-3 and they have four players averaging over 2.0 kps, led by Megan Boken's 3.05. Finally, Illinois State boasts a 4-3 record and they enter the tournament averaging more digs per set than the other squads. Mallory Leggett leads the way with 3.27 kps and owns a team-best 17 service aces.
THE SERIES WITH THE FIELD: Friday will be the ninth meeting between Illinois and Cincinnati as the series is tied at 4-4. In the most recent meeting, Illinois defeated Cincinnati in a tough three-set match at the 2008 NCAA Tournament to advance to the Sweet 16. Over the years, UC has typically fared well against Saint Louis owning a 23-5 lead in the all-time series, while owning just a 2-11-1 record against Illinois State. Saturday's meeting with the Redbirds will be the first meeting between the schools in 26 years.
UNLUCKY NO. 17: In both of its matches against nationally-ranked opponents this season, Cincinnati's opponents have been ranked No. 17 and the Bearcats have played them both on the road. At No. 17 Utah and at No. 17 Kentucky, UC went five sets but fell short on both occasions. Despite the losses, junior Stephanie Niemer has shined averaging 5.60 kills per set, 2.40 digs per set, and 0.90 blocks per set against Top 25 foes. Additionally, freshman Jordanne Scott has stepped her game up against ranked opponents averaging 1.70 blocks per set.
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.
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 seven matches into the season, Niemer has accumulated 152 kills and needs 48 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 in school history to reach the milestone.
Name (Yrs. Played) No. of Matches to Reach 1,000 Kills Career Kills
Julie DuPont (2001-04)... 66 matches.......................... 2,137
Becky Tenkman (1995-98) 76 matches........................ 1,843
Chrissy Smith (1994-97). 78 matches.......................... 1,546
Jessie Nevitt (2005-08).. 78 matches......................... 1,498
Bonita Wise (1999-02)... 88 matches.......................... 1,534
Trish Ladusaw (1999-02) 92 matches......................... 1,465
Cathy Guye (1987-90)... 97 matches.......................... 1,636
Stephanie Niemer (2007-pr.) 72 matches................. 952
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.
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.