Tickets// FIRST SERVE
UC begins the 2018 season this weekend with three matches in two days at the Miami Best Western Sycamore Inn Invitational in nearby Oxford, Ohio. The Bearcats start with a 3 p.m. matchup with UC Santa Barbara on Friday afternoon. Saturday will see two matches being played. UC will play Saint Louis at noon and host Miami at 7:30 p.m.
// FOLLOW US
For up to the minute updates, follow UC Volleyball (@GoBearcatsVB) and Coach Alvey (@CoachAlveyUC) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Facebook (GoBearcatsVB) and Instagram (GoBearcatsVB).
// GOING LIVE
Live stats for all three matches will be available at MiamiRedHawks.com. Live video will be provided for Saturday's evening match with Miami on ESPN+.
// PRESEASON RANKING
• The Bearcats are selected to finish second in the American Athletic Conference in this year's preseason coaches' poll
• UC received 108 total points and five first place votes, trailing leader Wichita State who had 113 and six, respectively
• Temple was voted on to finish third. The Shockers went 20-0 in 2017 to win the conference championship. The Bearcats finished 13-19 and 11-9 in conference play, ending sixth overall
// THOMPSON TIMES THREE
• For the third consecutive year, UC's Jordan Thompson was named the AAC Preseason Player of the Year
• Thompson earned the recognition despite missing the entire 2017 season due to injury
• The redshirt junior was the AAC Player of the Year and AVCA All-American in 2016, her sophomore year, becoming just the third Bearcats volleyball player to earn All-America honors as an underclassman
• As a freshman, Thompson was named the AAC Freshman of the Year
• She garnered unanimous First Team All-AAC honors both seasons she has been on the court
• Thompson has already achieved 1,000 career kills and currently ranks second in kills per set and eighth in hitting percentage in the UC record book when looking back through all seasons to 1972
// NOLAN NOTES
• Carly Nolan was a unanimously voted onto the AAC Preseason Team, marking the third time she has landed a spot on the list
• The senior has been an AAC First Team honoree every year of her career so far, including a unanimous selection last season
• With 985 digs in her career, Nolan is closing in on being just the seventh Bearcats player in history to amass 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her time as she eclipsed the 1,000 kill mark last season
// ROSTER REPORT
• The Bearcats' 2018 roster features a lot of familiar faces
• In addition to preseason honorees Thompson and Nolan, 2017 Second Team All-AAC recipient Erica Kostleac is back in action
• Seniors Jasmine Jones, Jade Tingelhoff and Abby Williams will continue to lead the team
• Junior Sabrina Wolf and sophomores Chrysanthi Stamatiou, Emily Azzara, Maya Eller and Dasha Cabarkapa will all vie for time on the court
• A strong freshmen contingent of Shannon Williams, Maria Mallon, Sarah Pruner, Armania Heckenmueller, Georgia Tselepi, Nevena Santrac and Hannah Bolinger will add value to the lineup
// KNOW THE FOE: UC SANTA BARBARA
UCSB went 8-20 last season, finishing fifth in the Big West standings with a 7-9 conference record. The Gauchos return last season's NCAA kills per set leader, Lindsey Ruddins, and two-time Big West digs champion Emilia Petrachi to their lineup this season. UCSB has eight newcomers on the roster this season. The team was voted to finish fifth in the Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll for the 2018 season.
// SERIES HISTORY: BEARCATS vs. GAUCHOS
Cincinnati won the only previous meeting between the two teams. UC took a 3-0 decision from UCSB on the road in Santa Barbara, Calif., in 2010.
// KNOW THE FOE: SAINT LOUIS
Saint Louis finsihed the 2017 season with a 13-15 overall record, going 10-4 in Atlantic-10 action. The Billikens return three postseason conference honorees this year: junior outside hitter Sien Gallop, sophomore outside hitter Maya Taylor and sophomore setter Kennedy Cordia. The team was selected to finish third in conference play in the preseason poll.
// SERIES HISTORY: BEARCATS vs. BILLIKENS
Cincinnati s 25-5 all-time against Saint Louis. The two teams last met in 2009 when UC upset the No. 16 ranked Billikens at a neutral site by a score of 3-0.
// KNOW THE FOE: MIAMI
Miami went 23-9 last season and 13-3 in the Mid-American Conference to capture its second consecutive conference championship. From the MAC postseason, the RedHawks went on the face No. 12 Baylor in the NCAA Tournament, where Miami fell 3-0 to end its season. Miami returns two seniors and five juniors on the roster this year.
// SERIES HISTORY: BEARCATS vs. REDHAWKS
Cincinnati is 22-14 all-time against Miami. The two teams last met in a match in 2016 in Cincinnati where the RedHawks won 3-0. Prior to that, the teams met at the end of the 2012 season when Miami won 3-1 on home court in Oxford, Ohio.
// SUMMER TOUR
The Bearcats had the privilege of traveling overseas this summer to The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia and Italy. The trip was an experience that allowed the team to prepare for the season and to learn about numerous European cultures. UC played in five matches and had a lot of success on the court throughout the duration of the trip.
// SMARTY PANTS
• UC excelled in the classroom last school year, earning numerous academic accolades
• The team was honored as an AVCA Team Academic Award recipient for having one of the top-25 GPAs in the country for the combined fall and spring semester of 2017-18
• The award honors teams who achieve a 3.30 cumulative GPA or higher during the academic year
• The Bearcats posted a 3.58 GPA last fall with five student-athletes, one third of the team, recording perfect 4.0's for the semester
• The team then topped that with a 3.69, its highest ever, this past spring
// COMING UP NEXT
• Next weekend the Bearcats head West for a tournament at Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colo.
• On Saturday, September 1 UC will play host Colorado State at 1 p.m. EST and TCU later that day at 7 p.m. EST
• The tournament will conclude with a match against Florida State on Sunday, September 2 at noon EST
// WE'RE COMING HOME
• UC will play at home for the first time on Friday, September 14
• The Bearcats will host Eastern Kentucky at 1 p.m. and Indiana at 7 p.m.
• UC will then host Xavier on Alumnae Day at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 15
• Home matches will continue to be played down the road at St. Ursula Academy as Fifth Third Arena renovation wraps up
• The Bearcats are scheduled to be back in Fifth Third Arena on campus on Friday, November 2 for the match with Wichita State
UC begins the 2018 season this weekend with three matches in two days at the Miami Best Western Sycamore Inn Invitational in nearby Oxford, Ohio. The Bearcats start with a 3 p.m. matchup with UC Santa Barbara on Friday afternoon. Saturday will see two matches being played. UC will play Saint Louis at noon and host Miami at 7:30 p.m.
// FOLLOW US
For up to the minute updates, follow UC Volleyball (@GoBearcatsVB) and Coach Alvey (@CoachAlveyUC) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Facebook (GoBearcatsVB) and Instagram (GoBearcatsVB).
// GOING LIVE
Live stats for all three matches will be available at MiamiRedHawks.com. Live video will be provided for Saturday's evening match with Miami on ESPN+.
// PRESEASON RANKING
• The Bearcats are selected to finish second in the American Athletic Conference in this year's preseason coaches' poll
• UC received 108 total points and five first place votes, trailing leader Wichita State who had 113 and six, respectively
• Temple was voted on to finish third. The Shockers went 20-0 in 2017 to win the conference championship. The Bearcats finished 13-19 and 11-9 in conference play, ending sixth overall
// THOMPSON TIMES THREE
• For the third consecutive year, UC's Jordan Thompson was named the AAC Preseason Player of the Year
• Thompson earned the recognition despite missing the entire 2017 season due to injury
• The redshirt junior was the AAC Player of the Year and AVCA All-American in 2016, her sophomore year, becoming just the third Bearcats volleyball player to earn All-America honors as an underclassman
• As a freshman, Thompson was named the AAC Freshman of the Year
• She garnered unanimous First Team All-AAC honors both seasons she has been on the court
• Thompson has already achieved 1,000 career kills and currently ranks second in kills per set and eighth in hitting percentage in the UC record book when looking back through all seasons to 1972
// NOLAN NOTES
• Carly Nolan was a unanimously voted onto the AAC Preseason Team, marking the third time she has landed a spot on the list
• The senior has been an AAC First Team honoree every year of her career so far, including a unanimous selection last season
• With 985 digs in her career, Nolan is closing in on being just the seventh Bearcats player in history to amass 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her time as she eclipsed the 1,000 kill mark last season
// ROSTER REPORT
• The Bearcats' 2018 roster features a lot of familiar faces
• In addition to preseason honorees Thompson and Nolan, 2017 Second Team All-AAC recipient Erica Kostleac is back in action
• Seniors Jasmine Jones, Jade Tingelhoff and Abby Williams will continue to lead the team
• Junior Sabrina Wolf and sophomores Chrysanthi Stamatiou, Emily Azzara, Maya Eller and Dasha Cabarkapa will all vie for time on the court
• A strong freshmen contingent of Shannon Williams, Maria Mallon, Sarah Pruner, Armania Heckenmueller, Georgia Tselepi, Nevena Santrac and Hannah Bolinger will add value to the lineup
// KNOW THE FOE: UC SANTA BARBARA
UCSB went 8-20 last season, finishing fifth in the Big West standings with a 7-9 conference record. The Gauchos return last season's NCAA kills per set leader, Lindsey Ruddins, and two-time Big West digs champion Emilia Petrachi to their lineup this season. UCSB has eight newcomers on the roster this season. The team was voted to finish fifth in the Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll for the 2018 season.
// SERIES HISTORY: BEARCATS vs. GAUCHOS
Cincinnati won the only previous meeting between the two teams. UC took a 3-0 decision from UCSB on the road in Santa Barbara, Calif., in 2010.
// KNOW THE FOE: SAINT LOUIS
Saint Louis finsihed the 2017 season with a 13-15 overall record, going 10-4 in Atlantic-10 action. The Billikens return three postseason conference honorees this year: junior outside hitter Sien Gallop, sophomore outside hitter Maya Taylor and sophomore setter Kennedy Cordia. The team was selected to finish third in conference play in the preseason poll.
// SERIES HISTORY: BEARCATS vs. BILLIKENS
Cincinnati s 25-5 all-time against Saint Louis. The two teams last met in 2009 when UC upset the No. 16 ranked Billikens at a neutral site by a score of 3-0.
// KNOW THE FOE: MIAMI
Miami went 23-9 last season and 13-3 in the Mid-American Conference to capture its second consecutive conference championship. From the MAC postseason, the RedHawks went on the face No. 12 Baylor in the NCAA Tournament, where Miami fell 3-0 to end its season. Miami returns two seniors and five juniors on the roster this year.
// SERIES HISTORY: BEARCATS vs. REDHAWKS
Cincinnati is 22-14 all-time against Miami. The two teams last met in a match in 2016 in Cincinnati where the RedHawks won 3-0. Prior to that, the teams met at the end of the 2012 season when Miami won 3-1 on home court in Oxford, Ohio.
// SUMMER TOUR
The Bearcats had the privilege of traveling overseas this summer to The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia and Italy. The trip was an experience that allowed the team to prepare for the season and to learn about numerous European cultures. UC played in five matches and had a lot of success on the court throughout the duration of the trip.
// SMARTY PANTS
• UC excelled in the classroom last school year, earning numerous academic accolades
• The team was honored as an AVCA Team Academic Award recipient for having one of the top-25 GPAs in the country for the combined fall and spring semester of 2017-18
• The award honors teams who achieve a 3.30 cumulative GPA or higher during the academic year
• The Bearcats posted a 3.58 GPA last fall with five student-athletes, one third of the team, recording perfect 4.0's for the semester
• The team then topped that with a 3.69, its highest ever, this past spring
// COMING UP NEXT
• Next weekend the Bearcats head West for a tournament at Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colo.
• On Saturday, September 1 UC will play host Colorado State at 1 p.m. EST and TCU later that day at 7 p.m. EST
• The tournament will conclude with a match against Florida State on Sunday, September 2 at noon EST
// WE'RE COMING HOME
• UC will play at home for the first time on Friday, September 14
• The Bearcats will host Eastern Kentucky at 1 p.m. and Indiana at 7 p.m.
• UC will then host Xavier on Alumnae Day at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 15
• Home matches will continue to be played down the road at St. Ursula Academy as Fifth Third Arena renovation wraps up
• The Bearcats are scheduled to be back in Fifth Third Arena on campus on Friday, November 2 for the match with Wichita State