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The University of Utah Athletics
Utah Volleyball Travels To Arizona Tourney This Week
9/4/2001 12:00 AM | Volleyball
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Sept. 4, 2001
Salt Lake City - COMING UP: The Utes travel to Tucson, Ariz., competing in the Arizona tournament on Sept. 6-7 at the McKale Center. No. 19 ranked Utah will face the No. 5 ranked Arizona Wildcats on Sept. 6 at 7:00 p.m. Utah's match with Louisville is TBA. On Sept. 8, the Utes will host No. 23 ranked Colorado at 7:00 p.m. at Crimson Court.
A QUICK LOOK AT UTAH: The No. 19 ranked University of Utah women's volleyball team won the Utah Classic last weekend. The Utes went undefeated in the tournament defeating Rhode Island, 3-0 (30-13, 30-16, 30-14), No. 25 ranked Georgia Tech, 3-0 (30-27, 30-27, 30-23) and Texas Tech, 3-1 (30-15, 23-30, 30-28, 30-24). Three Utah players were selected to the Utah Classic all-tournament team: They were: Alisa Geddes, Sylva Strzinkova and tournament MVP Kim Turner. The Utes are currently 3-0 overall, 0-0 in MWC play.
Possible starters for the Utes in the match-up against Arizona, Louisville and Colorado are: McKelle Stilson (Sr., MB), Kelsie Kartchner (Fr., S), 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 to No. 19 in the Sept. 3 USA Today/AVCA Top-25 poll. They received 399 points to move up from 21st to 19th. Utah received 254 points to rank 21st in the 2001 USA Today/AVCA Top 25 Preseason Poll released on Aug. 13th.
SERIES SHORTS: Arizona leads the all-time series with Utah, 14-3. In their last meeting on Sept. 16, 2000, Utah lost to the Wildcats, 3-0 (15-3, 15-8, 15-10) in Salt Lake City. The Utes are 1-6 at home, 0-3 away and 2-5 at a neutral site vs. Arizona. Utah leads the all-time series with Louisville, 1-0. In the last match-up the Utes defeated Cardinals, 3-1 (15-13, 4-15, 15-7, 15-13) in Pullman, Wash. on Sept. 5, 1998. Utah is 0-0 at home, 0-0 away and 1-0 at a neutral site vs. Louisville. Colorado leads the series with the Utes, 3-2. In their last meeting on Aug. 30, 1997, the Utes lost 3-0 in Salt Lake City. Utah is 1-2 at home, 1-2 away and 0-0 at a neutral site vs. Colorado. Please note, Utah's win over Colorado on Oct. 18, 1975, at Boulder, Colo. was a default win.
QUOTING LAUNIERE: On the upcoming Arizona Tournament-"This weekend's tournament should be another good test for us. It doesn't get any easier and we are looking forward to the challenge. It will be great to play Arizona becuase they are a very high-caliber team. We will learn a lot about our team from that match-up. Louisville has traditionally had a very solid volleyball program and I will expect a physical match from them. Colorado is picked to finish third in the Big 12 Conference and are very well respected within their conference. I expect some good matches from all three teams this week."
SCOUTING NO. 5 RANKED ARIZONA: The No. 5 ranked Arizona Wildcats are currently 3-0 overall and went undefeated in the University of Florida Tournament last weekend. The Wildcats defeated South Florida, 3-0 (30-26, 30-19, 30-23) and Marshall, 3-0 (30-19, 30-22, 30-19) on Aug. 31. On Sept. 1, Arizona shut-down the Florida Gators in three games, 30-27, 30-28, 30-21 in Gainsville, Fla. Junior Lisa Rutledge lead the team, averaging 5.0 kills per game for a .411 hitting percentage. Stefani Saragosa adds 3.75 kills per game and 1.50 blocks per game, while Shannon Torregrosa totals 11.33 assists per game. Head coach David Rubio is in his 10th year at Arizona. He posts a 175-92 record at Arizona and a 295-157 career record.
SCOUTING LOUISVILLE: The Louisville Cardinals are currently 3-0 overall and went undefeated in the Illinois State Tournament last weekend. The Cardinals defeated Illinois State, 3-1 (30-25, 30-28, 23-30, 30-28) on Aug. 31 in Normal, Ill. On Sept. 1, Louisville shut-down Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 3-0 (30-115, 30-24, 30-27) and Missouri-Kansas City, 3-0 (30-23, 30-12, 30-21). Head coach Leonid Yelin is in his 6th year at Louisville. He has a 119-42 record with the Cardinals and a 233-78 career record.
SCOUTING NO. 23 RANKED COLORADO: The No. 23 ranked University of Colorado volleyball team is currently 3-0 overall and went undefeated in the Powerbar/Colorado Tournament last weekend. The Buffaloes defeated Clemson, 3-1 (29-31, 30-15, 30-17, 30-26) on Aug. 31 in Boulder, Colo. Colorado topped No. 24 ranked Loyola Marymount, 3-0 (30-20, 30-22, 30-28) and Oral Roberts, 3-1 (30-20, 30-25, 26-30, 30-27) on Sept. 1. Head coach Pi'i Aiu is in his 5th year at Colorado and he has an 82-40 career record.
NEXT WEEK: Utah will host the Utah/Illinois Challenge on Fri.-Sat., Sept. 14-15 at Crimson Court. The Utes will face Illinois State on Sept. 14 at 7:00 p.m.. On Sept. 15, Utah will match-up with Illinois at 7:00 p.m. On Thurs., Sept. 20, the Utes open Mountain West Conference action on the road in Provo, Utah, facing Brigham Young at 7:00 p.m. On Sat., Sept. 22, Utah meets No. 24 ranked Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, Calif. at 7:00 p.m. (PDT).
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE STATISTICAL LEADERS: Utah, as a team is first in the MWC in assists (14.80), third with a .307 hitting percentage and third in blocks (3.70) and kills (16.00). The Utes are fourth in digs (14.36) and eighth in service aces (1.50). Individually, Utah ranks among the top in the MWC statistical leaders. Senior Alisa Geddes, is second in kills (3.80), third in service aces (0.70), fifth in points (4.70) and 10th with a .312 hitting percentage. Junior Sylva Strzinkova is eighth in digs (2.89), ninth in kills (3.56) and 10th in points (4.00). Kim Turner is fifth in blocks (1.80) and teammates Kelsie Kartchner and Tracy Neumeier are eighth in assists (6.40). Katrena Ellett is third with a .406 hitting percentage, McKelle Stilson is fourth with a .400 hitting percentage and Adrianne Bradley-Drake is seventh with a .366 hitting percentage.
2001 UTAH CLASSIC WRAP-UP: Utah won its own 2001 Utah Classic Tournament last weekend. The Utes went 3-0 with wins over Rhode Island, then No. 25 ranked Georgia Tech and Texas Tech. Three Utah players were selected to the Utah Classic all-tournament team: They were: Alisa Geddes, Sylva Strzinkova and tournament MVP Kim Turner. Kyleen Bell (Georgia Tech), Maja Pachale (Georgia Tech), Yolanda Cumbess (Texas Tech) and Yolanda Bogacz (Rhode Island) were also selected to the all-tourney team. Georgia Tech's Keight Vincent was named the 2001 Utah Classic Defensive Specialist. Final Standing of the tournament are: Utah (first-place), Georgia Tech (second-place), Texas Tech (third-place) and Rhode Island (fourth-place).
UTES ON THE RADIO: Utah's match with Colorado on Sat., Sept. 8, at 7:00 p.m. (MDT) can be heard live via the internet at www.utahutes.com and KALL910.com.
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 206-146 (.585) 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).
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.
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).
MWC PRE-SEASON POLL: In a survey of the Mountain West Conference coaches before the season, Utah, which ranked in at No. 21 in the preseason national poll, was picked to finish third. BYU is the favorite to win the 2001 Mountain West Conference title after earning five first-place votes and 46 points. Colorado State, which finished with three first-place votes and 45 points in the poll, is second.
AVCA PRE-SEASON POLL: Utah was one of three Mountain West Conference schools that appeared in the USA Today/AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches' Association) Preseason Poll, announced on Mon., Aug. 13, 2001. Brigham Young and Colorado State ranked 11th and 14th, while Utah, with 254 points, checked in at No. 21.
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