TicketsUniversity of Cincinnati volleyball begins the 2019 season on Friday with two matches at the Panther Challenge in Pittsburgh. The Bearcats will face South Carolina at 10 a.m. and #12 Pitt at 7 p.m. on opening day. The tournament will conclude on Saturday with UC playing Cleveland State at 4 p.m.
// GOING LIVE
• All three matches will have live stats via PittsburghPanthers.com
• Friday night's match against the host Panthers will stream live on ACC Network Extra
// OPPONENT OVERVIEW
• South Carolina finished 20-10 last year after reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament
• Like UC, USC received votes in the preseason AVCA top 25 poll
• The NCAA Tournament appearance for the Gamecocks in 2018 was the first for the program in 16 years
• All-SEC honorees Mikayla Robinson and Mikayla Shields return this year along with senior setter Courtney Koehler
• Pitt enters the 2019 season with its highest preseason ranking ever, coming in at No.12 in the AVCA Coaches Poll
• The Panthers won the ACC for the second-straight time last year and reached 30 wins before being upset on home court in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by No. 18 Michigan
• The Panthers return Third Team All-American Nika Markovic along with All-American Honorable Mention honorees Kayla Lund, Layne Van Buskirk and Stephanie Williams
• Cleveland State finished last season with a 17-12 overall mark and 11-5 record in the Horizon League
• The Vikings return nine letterwinners and four all-conference honorees
• Cleveland State will show a lot of youth with eight newcomers that includes seven true freshman this season
• The Bearcats are 5-4 all-time against South Carolina, 9-8 against Pittsburgh and 10-7 versus Cleveland State
// PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
• UC was voted to finish second in the American Athletic Conference by the league's head coaches, trailing only 2018 conference champ UCF
• Jordan Thompson, two-time AAC Player of the Year, was named the AAC Preseason Player of the Year for the fourth-straight season
• Maria Mallon was selected as a member of the Preseason All-Conference Team after making the All-AAC First Team as a freshman last season
// STARS AND STRIPES
• Redshirt-senior Jordan Thompson had a busy summer as a member of the U.S. National Team
• Thompson, who was one of three players with college eligibility on the team, made the 14-player roster all five weeks of the Volleyball Nations League tournament
• She made an impact in the final pool in China as the US won its second consecutive VNL championship
• Thompson led the US National Team in points during the three-match pool to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
• After subbing in the third set of the opening match, she played in four of five sets in match two then started on Sunday, August 4 to lead the US to an Olympic berth
// ROSTER REPORT
• Along with 2018 postseason honorees Thompson and Mallon, the team returns some familiar faces to the court this season
• Damjana Cabarkapa, Chrysanthi Stamatiou, Emily Azzara, Armania Heckenmueller and Hannah Bolinger all have playing experience
• Shannon Williams and Nevena Santrac both redshirted last season and will look to contribute this year
• The 2019 team features four college transfers in Mackenzie Conner, Dimitra Tziarli, Ashley Kozer and Adria Oliver
• The Bearcats' future looks bright with freshmen Kerstin Ficker, Sheilah Purcell, Maria Tobergte, Karoline Fauske and Madison Waters all vying for playing time
// BUILDING ON A SUCCESSFUL 2018
• The Bearcats advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season for just the fifth time in program history
• After beating Illinois State in straight-sets, UC's season ended against #15 Marquette
• The team finished 26-8 overall and 15-3 in conference play for a second-place finish
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
Follow the Bearcats on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. You can follow Head Coach Molly Alvey on Twitter.
// GOING LIVE
• All three matches will have live stats via PittsburghPanthers.com
• Friday night's match against the host Panthers will stream live on ACC Network Extra
// OPPONENT OVERVIEW
• South Carolina finished 20-10 last year after reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament
• Like UC, USC received votes in the preseason AVCA top 25 poll
• The NCAA Tournament appearance for the Gamecocks in 2018 was the first for the program in 16 years
• All-SEC honorees Mikayla Robinson and Mikayla Shields return this year along with senior setter Courtney Koehler
• Pitt enters the 2019 season with its highest preseason ranking ever, coming in at No.12 in the AVCA Coaches Poll
• The Panthers won the ACC for the second-straight time last year and reached 30 wins before being upset on home court in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by No. 18 Michigan
• The Panthers return Third Team All-American Nika Markovic along with All-American Honorable Mention honorees Kayla Lund, Layne Van Buskirk and Stephanie Williams
• Cleveland State finished last season with a 17-12 overall mark and 11-5 record in the Horizon League
• The Vikings return nine letterwinners and four all-conference honorees
• Cleveland State will show a lot of youth with eight newcomers that includes seven true freshman this season
• The Bearcats are 5-4 all-time against South Carolina, 9-8 against Pittsburgh and 10-7 versus Cleveland State
// PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
• UC was voted to finish second in the American Athletic Conference by the league's head coaches, trailing only 2018 conference champ UCF
• Jordan Thompson, two-time AAC Player of the Year, was named the AAC Preseason Player of the Year for the fourth-straight season
• Maria Mallon was selected as a member of the Preseason All-Conference Team after making the All-AAC First Team as a freshman last season
// STARS AND STRIPES
• Redshirt-senior Jordan Thompson had a busy summer as a member of the U.S. National Team
• Thompson, who was one of three players with college eligibility on the team, made the 14-player roster all five weeks of the Volleyball Nations League tournament
• She made an impact in the final pool in China as the US won its second consecutive VNL championship
• Thompson led the US National Team in points during the three-match pool to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
• After subbing in the third set of the opening match, she played in four of five sets in match two then started on Sunday, August 4 to lead the US to an Olympic berth
// ROSTER REPORT
• Along with 2018 postseason honorees Thompson and Mallon, the team returns some familiar faces to the court this season
• Damjana Cabarkapa, Chrysanthi Stamatiou, Emily Azzara, Armania Heckenmueller and Hannah Bolinger all have playing experience
• Shannon Williams and Nevena Santrac both redshirted last season and will look to contribute this year
• The 2019 team features four college transfers in Mackenzie Conner, Dimitra Tziarli, Ashley Kozer and Adria Oliver
• The Bearcats' future looks bright with freshmen Kerstin Ficker, Sheilah Purcell, Maria Tobergte, Karoline Fauske and Madison Waters all vying for playing time
// BUILDING ON A SUCCESSFUL 2018
• The Bearcats advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season for just the fifth time in program history
• After beating Illinois State in straight-sets, UC's season ended against #15 Marquette
• The team finished 26-8 overall and 15-3 in conference play for a second-place finish
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
Follow the Bearcats on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. You can follow Head Coach Molly Alvey on Twitter.