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The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Volleyball Continues MWC Play
10/9/2001 12:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 9, 2001
Salt Lake City -
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COMING UP: The Utes are back in action at home on Fri., Oct. 12, facing the UNLV Rebels at 7:00 p.m. and the San Diego State Aztecs on Sat., Oct. 13, at 7:00 p.m.
A QUICK LOOK AT UTAH: The Utes went 1-1 last week, losing to No. 8th ranked Colorado State Rams on Fri., Oct. 5 in Fort Collins, Colo., and defeating the Wyoming Cowgirls on Sat., Oct. 6 in Laramie, Wyo. Utah lost in three games to the Rams, 30-22, 30-22, 30-22 and swept the Cowgirls, 30-28, 30-24, 30-19. The Utes are a perfect 6-0 at home. Utah is currently 9-4 overall, 3-2 in MWC play.
Possible starters for the Utes in the match-up against UNLV and San Diego State are: McKelle Stilson (Sr., MB), Kelsie Kartchner (Fr., S) or Jackie Morrill (So., S/DS), Lenka Urbanov? (Sr., OH), Sylva Strzinkov? (Jr., OH), Katrena Ellett (Jr., OH/MB), Alisa Geddes (Sr., OH), Kim Turner (So., MB) and Adrianne Bradley-Drake (Sr., MB/OH).
The Utes return four starters, 10 letterwinners and add three true freshmen, along with two transfers to this year's roster. Utah moved up one spot this week to No. 18 in the Oct. 8 USA Today/AVCA Top-25 poll. The Utes have been ranked for seven consecutive weeks.
SERIES SHORTS: Utah leads the all-time series with UNLV, 9-1. In their last meeting on Nov. 16, 2000, Utah defeated UNLV, 3-1, (15-9, 15-3, 5-15, 15-9) in Fort Collins, Colo. Utah is 3-0 at home, 5-1 away and 1-0 at a neutral site vs. the Rebels. San Diego State leads the all-time series with Utah, 14-8. In its last meeting on Oct. 21, 2000, Utah lost to SDSU, 3-2 (7-15, 18-16, 15-11, 14-16, 17-19) in San Diego, Calif. Utah is 6-6 at home, 1-8 away and 1-0 at a neutral site vs. the Aztecs.
QUOTING LAUNIERE: On the upcoming UNLV and San Diego State matches- "Every match is important at this point in conference play. We're excited that seven of our last 11 matches are at home and we need to take advantage of that. We've been pretty good at home this season and we're hoping to continue that trend."
SCOUTING UNLV: The UNLV Rebels are currently 5-7 overall, 2-3 in MWC play. UNLV has recorded wins over New Orleans, West Carolina, American University, New Mexico, and Air Force. The Rebels tallied losses to Baylor, Tulane, Gonzaga, Wyoming, Colorado State, San Diego and San Diego State. Currently, the Rebels are on a four-match losing streak. Leiana Oswald leads the team, averaging 3.16 kills per game and 1.64 digs per game. Patricia Assuncao totals 2.36 kills per game and adds 2.27 digs per game. Nicki King averages 10.48 assists per game and 2.29 digs per game. Head coach Deitre Collins is in her 6th year at UNLV. She posts a 55-83 career and overall record.
SCOUTING SAN DIEGO STATE: The San Diego State Aztecs are currently 10-4 overall, 4-1 in the MWC. The Aztecs recorded wins over Liberty, Loyola-Chicago, San Diego, Tulane, Louisiana-Monroe, Seton Hall, Air Force, New Mexico, Wyoming and UNLV. San Diego State has losses to Southern Methodist, Loyola Marymount, Colorado State and Pepperdine. Zlatina Anguelova leads the team, averaging 3.73 kills per game for a .297 hitting percentage and 1.98 digs per game. Katie Magnuson adds 3.13 kills per game and 2.82 digs per game. Melissa Wright averages 11.86 assists per game and 1.70 digs per game. Head coach Mark Warner is in his 7th year at San Diego State. He posts a 101-83 overall and career record.
NEXT WEEK: On Tues., Oct. 16, Utah will host the Weber State Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. The Utes will take on in-state rival BYU on Fri., Oct. 19 at Crimson Court at 7:00 p.m. On Tues., Oct. 23 Utah faces the Utah State Aggies at home at 7:00 p.m. The Utes are back on the road on Fri., Oct. 26 vs. New Mexico and on Sat., Oct. 27 vs. Air Force. Match times are set for a 7:00 p.m. start. On Fri., Nov. 2, Utah will host the Wyoming Cowgirls at 7:00 p.m. The Utes will match-up with the Colorado State Rams on Sat., Nov. 3, at 7:00 p.m. at Crimson Court.
UTAH RANKINGS IN THE MWC: Utah, as a team is third in the MWC in assists (13.91) and fourth with a .239 hitting percentage. The Utes are fourth in digs (13.43) and kills (15.27) and are fifth in blocks (2.90). Utah is sixth in service aces (1.43). Individually, Utah ranks among the top in the MWC statistical leaders. Junior Sylva Strzinkova leads the MWC in digs (3.10) and is seventh in service aces (0.40), ninth in points (4.25) and tenth in kills (3.55). Senior Alisa Geddes is sixth in digs (2.68), sophomore Kim Turner is seventh in blocks (1.36) and senior Adrianne Drake is ninth in hitting percentage (.309). Freshman Kelsie Kartchner is seventh in assists (8.32) and Tracy Neumeier is ninth in assists (5.03). Katrena Ellett is seventh with a .320 hitting percentage.
NEW ON THE STAT REPORT: The MWC is tracking individual points per game this season. Points are awarded based on the following formula: kills + aces + solo blocks + 1/2-assist blocks. Utah, as a team is seventh in the MWC in points (862.5). On the year, Sylva Strzinkova leads the Utes with 178.5 points (4.25 ppg), followed by Kim Turner with 151.0 (3.43 ppg), Alisa Geddes with 139.0 points (3.16 ppg), Adrianne Drake with 124.0 (2.95 ppg) and McKelle Stilson with 115.0 (2.81 ppg).
NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL ATTENDANCE: Utah ranks just outside the top 30 in the nation in home match attendance. In six matches at home, the Utes have brought in 3,564 fans, an average of 594 fans per match.
HEAD COACH BETH LAUNIERE: In her 12th season, Beth Launiere has not only resurrected the Ute volleyball program and turned it into a consistent winner, she has also guided Utah to unprecedented success on the national level.
Under Launiere's leadership, Utah made its third-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance in 2000, and for a third-straight year advanced to the second round. It is the crowning achievement of Launiere's eleven-year tenure at Utah, in which she has posted a 212-150 (.586) career record.
The winningest coach in school history, Launiere has overseen a significant transformation since her arrival in 1990. In the last seven years alone, Launiere has guided the Utes to six 20-win seasons and Utah's third-place finish in the MWC in 2000 marked its eighth-consecutive upper-division finish in conference play.
Launiere worked hard in 2000 to maintain the level of play and expectations of the previous season. The 2000 season was a definite breakthrough year for Utah volleyball. Starting off on a good note, the Utes checked in with 59 votes in the preseason poll. With a 23-8 overall record, Utah posted its fifth consecutive, and sixth overall, 20-win season. The Utes' .742 overall winning percentage proved the best in school history. Utah also equaled the third-best conference winning percentage in school history last season (10-4, .714). The 2000 squad was the only team in school history to beat a No. 1 ranked opponent (a come-from-behind five-game victory over Stanford). With the win over Stanford and two more wins that next weekend, Utah earned its first-ever national ranking, coming in 18th in the USA Today/AVCA Top 25 poll released Mon., Sept. 12, 2000. Launiere recorded her 200th career victory at the McLeodUSA MWC Tournament with a 3-1 (15-9, 15-3, 5-15, 15-9) win over UNLV on Thurs., Nov. 16, 2000.
PRACTICE SCHEDULE: The Utes practice from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri. in East 101 at the HPER building on the University of Utah campus. All practice times and dates are tentative and subject to change. For regular scheduled practice times, please contact Julie Lapomarda. Utah Women's Volleyball practices are closed to the media. To set up interviews before or after practice with Head Coach Beth Launiere or Ute players, please contact Julie Lapomarda women's volleyball SID at: (801) 581-3771 (office), or at (801) 468-0571 (home).
WEEKLY INTERVIEWS: Members of the media who wish to interview Head Coach Beth Launiere should contact her at her office (801-581-6843) between 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. weekdays. Interviews with the athletes should be arranged through Julie Lapomarda (801-581-3771).
POST-MATCH SERVICES/INTERVIEWS: Head Coach Beth Launiere and Utah players will be available for interviews outside the Utah lockerroom following a 10 minute cooling off period. A member of the Utah sports information staff will gather interview requests immediately following the match. Box scores will be provided and faxed upon request.
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