HOUSTON, TEXAS (September 26, 2008) The Rice Owls volleyball team (8-2, 0-0) begins Conference USA league action this weekend on the road. The Owls are at UTEP (4-9, 0-0) on Friday at 8 p.m. (Central) in El Paso, Texas, and at Tulane (8-4, 0-0) on Sunday at 1 p.m. in New Orleans, La.Last Weekend
Rice swept the competition in winning the BGSU Best Western Invitational in Bowling Green, Ohio. The Owls defeated Hofstra 3-1, host Bowling Green 3-1, and Binghamton 3-0. Karyn Morgan was named MVP, while Jessica Holderness, and Tracey Lam were all-tournament selections. This was the Owls' first competition since the Baylor Classic (Sept. 5-6) as the SFA Ladyjack Invitational was canceled due to Hurricane Ike.
Head Coach
Rice head coach Genny Volpe sports a school and overall coaching mark of 72-55 (5 years; .567). She led the Owls to their first-ever NCAA appearance in 2004. Rice is 2-2 in opening conference matches under Volpe.
Top 10 National Ranks
Several Owls are among the NCAA's statistical leaders through matches played Sunday, Sept. 21.
Sophomore setter Meredith Schamun leads C-USA and is ranked fifth in the nation in assists per set at 11.63.
Rice, as a team, is ranked ninth in the NCAA with 14.34 kills per set.
Also Ranked
Sophomore libéro Tracey Lam ranks first in C-USA and 18th in the country with 5.00 digs per set. She has 175 digs in 35 sets.
Junior Natalie Bogan is 20th in the nation and second in C-USA with a .398 attack percentage (100-18-196).
100 Owls
Three Rice Owls have accumulated 100 or more kills through 10 matches. Senior Karyn Morgan leads at 118, while Jessica Holderness as 101 kills, and Natalie Bogan has 100.
Opponents
Rice is 19-8 all-time vs. UTEP after sweeping the Miners three times last season by 3-0 counts. Tulane holds a slight 9-8 edge over the Owls in the all-time series. The Green Wave captured all three meetings a year ago vs. Rice.
Looking Forward
The Owls host C-USA rival SMU on Friday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. and Tulsa on Sunday, Oct. 5 at 1 p.m.
No comments:
Post a Comment