TicketsSept. 30, 2010
Setting the Stage
· The Cincinnati Bearcats (13-3; 2-0 BIG EAST) hit the road for their first BIG EAST Conference weekend as they play at St. John's on Friday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. and then at Connecticut on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 1 p.m.
· UC is coming off a league opening weekend sweep of Seton Hall and Rutgers. The Bearcats swept both matches, 3-0, thanks to solid play from the entire squad, including Stephanie Niemer (33 kills), Jordanne Scott (25 kills), and Becca Refenes (20) who all posted 20 or more kills. As a team, Cincinnati hit .281 on the weekend.
Series History
· The series with St. John's is tied at 2-2 after the Bearcats knocked off the Red Storm 3-0 last season in Fifth Third Arena. The win also stopped a St. John's three-match winning streak vs. UC. Cincinnati is 0-2 in matches played at St. John's.
· Sunday's meeting between UC and UConn will be the sixth meeting all-time between the schools with Cincinnati owning a 4-1 edge in the series. UConn's lone win in the series came in UC's last visit to Storrs in 2008 in five sets.
Bearcats Climb the AVCA Rankings
· After a win at Morehead State and a pair of BIG EAST wins last weekend vs. Seton Hall and Rutgers, the Bearcats climbed three posts to No. 22 in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association Poll. It is UC's second week in the poll.
· Before last week, the last time UC was ranked in the AVCA Top 25 on Nov. 17, 2003 when they were No. 23, three spots behind the all-time highest ranking of No. 20, the week prior.
· This is just the sixth time UC has appeared in the coaches poll since it started in 1982.
· UC owns a record of 13-3 this season, including a pair of wins vs. Top 25 squads. The wins vs. No. 16 Kentucky on Sept. 7 and No. 5 Illinois on Sept. 17 mark the first time in the program's 37-year history Cincinnati has knocked off two ranked teams in the same season. The 3-0 win over Illinois this past weekend also marks the highest-ranked team the Bearcats have beaten.
Niemer Continues to Pile Up the Hardware
· Senior outside hitter Stephanie Niemer (Erlanger, Ky./St. Henry) was named BIG EAST Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for the third straight time, the conference office announced Monday.
· Niemer earns BIG EAST Player of the Week honors for the fifth time in her career after leading the Bearcats to a 3-0 record last week, including a 2-0 start in BIG EAST play.
· The senior helped Cincinnati to straight-set victories over Morehead State, Seton Hall, and Rutgers, averaging a conference-best 5.67 kills per set.
· Niemer started the week with an 18-kill, six-dig performance against Morehead State on Sept. 21. She registered a double-double with 20 kills and 10 digs in the BIG EAST opener against Seton Hall on Sept. 24. She followed that with 13 kills, six digs, and three blocks against Rutgers on Sept. 26.
· Niemer was named the Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week for her performance at the BIG EAST/Big Ten Challenge on Sept. 17-18. In the upset of No. 5 Illinois, she notched her seventh double-double of the season with 28 kills and 15 digs, but it was in UC's three-set sweep of Purdue Niemer posted her strongest performance of the year, putting away a BIG EAST season-best 32 kills. It was her second 30-kill performance in Cincinnati's last three matches. She also totaled eight digs, three blocks, and two service aces vs. the Boilermakers.
Bearcats Picked to Win BIG EAST Conference
· The University of Cincinnati volleyball team was unanimously picked to finish first in the BIG EAST Conference by leaque coaches in the annual BIG EAST Volleyball Preseason Poll. The Bearcats earned 196 points, including 14 first-place votes, followed by Louisville with 176 points.