Upcoming Event: Volleyball versus Weber State (Exhibition) on August 15, 2026 at 3:00 P.M.
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Volleyball
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The University of Utah Athletics
2000 Utah Volleyball Notes And Prospectus
5/10/2000 12:00 AM | Volleyball
May 10, 2000
Noting the Utes
- Utah made its second-consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and its second-consecutive 2nd-round finish last season. The Utes, seeded No. 9 in the Mountain Region, defeated eighth-seeded Colorado in three games (15-10, 15-6, 17-15) in the first round and lost to top-seeded Hawaii in three games (15-11, 15-6, 15-4) in the second round at the sub regional in Honolulu, Hawaii.
- With a 22-10 overall record, Utah posted its fourth consecutive, and fifth overall, 20-win season. The Utes' .688 overall winning percentage equaled the third-best in school history. Utah also equaled the third-best conference winning percentage in school history last season (10-4, .714). Utah finished third in the MWC, marking its fifth consecutive upper-finish in conference play.
- Utah received 31 votes to rank 29th in the final USA Today/AVCA Top 25 Poll. Utah's final RPI ranking produced by the NCAA was 22nd and the Mountain West Conference was third.
- The winningest coach in school history, Beth Launiere has overseen a tremendous change since her arrival here in 1990. She has posted a 180-138 (.566) career record in ten seasons. In the last five years alone, Launiere has guided the Utes to four 20-win seasons, and three 3rd place and two fourth place finishes in conference play.
- Brooke Barton, Jennifer Snow-Richards, Lucie Turkov?, McKelle Stilson, Megan Anderson and Brenda Beal earned academic all-MWC honors last season. Utah and Colorado State garnered the most honorees with six out of a field of 37 student-athletes.
- Graciela Torres-Lopez ended her career as Utah's all-time leader in assists with 5,130. She broke the 5,000 mark on Wed., Nov. 24 in the opening match of the inaugural Mountain West Conference Tournament against San Diego State. She broke the record for the number of assists in a season with 1,424.
- Utah had four players selected as members of the inaugural All-Mountain West Conference Volleyball Teams. Sophomore McKelle Stilson was a first-team (MB) selection. Senior setter Graciela Torres-Lopez and sophomore outside hitter Alisa Geddes were second-team picks, while junior Brook Barton was named the second-team defensive specialist of the year.
- Middle blocker McKelle Stilson ranked in at number five on Utah's individual season record list with a .296 hitting efficiency. She currently ranks sixth with 130 block assists, seventh with 149 total blocks and ninth with 431 kills.
- Outside hitter Alisa Geddes ranked in at number five on Utah's individual season record for digs with 375.
- All but one loss last season was to top 25 teams beginning with No. 18 Northern Iowa, No. 9 Pepperdine, No. 2 Stanford, No. 10 BYU, No. 11 Colorado State and No. 3 Hawaii. Utah's only other loss last season came from Georgia, a non-ranked team, in five games.
- Utah ranked 29th in the nation in home match attendance. In 12 matches at home, the Utes brought in 9,234 fans, an average of 770 fans per match.
- Nine of Utah's wins came in three games. Ten of Utah's wins came in four games, while three wins came in five games. Five of Utah's losses came in three games, one loss came in four games, while the remaining four losses came in five games.
General Information
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Founded: 1850
Enrollment: 26,183
Nickname: Utes
Colors: Crimson and White
Mascot: Swoop (Red-Tailed Hawk)
National Affiliation: NCAA Division I
Conference: Mountain West
Home Court (Capacity): Crimson Court (1,500)
President: Dr. J. Bernard Machen
Athletics Director: Dr. Chris Hill
Office Phone: (801) 581-5605
Senior Woman Administrator: Amy Hackett
Office Phone: (801) 581-3507
Athletic Department Phone: (801) 581-8171
Ticket Office Phone: (801) 581-UTIX (8849)
Volleyball Facts
All-Time Overall Record/Years: 411-417 (.496) 25 Years
All-Time Conference Record: 146-163 (.473)
1999 Record: 22-10 (.688)
1999 Conference Record/Finish: 10-4 (.714)./3rd MWC
1999 Postseason Results: NCAA Tournament Second Round
Colorado State W, 3-0 (15-10, 15-6, 17-15)
Hawaii L, 3-0 (15-11, 15-6, 15-4)
Starters Returning/Lost: 5/1
Letterwinners Returning/Lost: 12/1
Newcomers 3
Volleyball Staff
Head Coach (Alma Mater): Beth Launiere (Aquinas '85)
Office Phone: (801) 581-6843
e-mail: blauniere@huntsman.utah.edu
Career Record/Year: 180-138 (.566) 10 Years
Record at Utah/Year: 180-138 (.566) 10 Years
Conference Record: 65-71 (.478)
Assistant Coaches (Alma Mater): Cory Solomon (Utah '88)
e-mail: csolomon@huntsman.utah.edu
Office Phone: (801) 585-3217
Volunteer Assistant (Alma Mater): Pat Sinclair (BYU)
Strength Coach: Jason Veltkamp
Trainers: A.J. Hansen and Jeanette Nelson
Manager: Andrew Anderson
Sports Information
Sports Information Director: Liz Abel
Office Phone: (801) 581-3511
Home Phone: (801) 596-1650
email: label@huntsman.utah.edu
Associate SID: Mike Lageschulte
Office Phone: (801) 581-3771/3510
Home Phone: (801) 582-7181
email: mlageschulte@huntsman.utah.edu
Assistant SID (VB Contact): Julie Lapomarda
Office Phone: (801) 581-3771
Home Phone: (801) 468-0571
email: jlapomarda@huntsman.utah.edu
SID Fax Number: (801) 581-4358
Crimson Court Press Row: (801) 585-9560
Fax-on-Demand:
Info Connection/Media: (800) 563-2050
Info Connection/Schools: (770) 563-1131
Conference Code: 692
Complete Utah Directory: 2200
Entire Volleyball Release/Stats: 2220
Statistics Only: 2223
Results of Last Match: 2221
Roster: 2222
Schedule: 2233
Mailing Address:
Sports Information Office
University of Utah
Jon M. Huntsman Center
1825 E. South Campus Dr. Front
Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0900
Utah Website
Official Site
http://www.utahutes.com
Volleyball Website
Unofficial Site (produced and maintained by head coach Beth Launiere)
http://www.utahvolleyball.com
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