With only one more weekend of non-conference tournament action, get ready for another exciting week of C-USA volleyball; Memphis' 12-match win streak is the sixth-longest in C-USA history. USF holds the longest in league history with 20 consecutive victories during the 2000 season; With a 13-2 record, C-USA Player of the Week Bridget Files has led Southern Miss to its best start in school history. Catch up on all the latest news in this week's notebook.

C-USA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
BRIDGET FILES
MB/MH, Sr., Ramona, Calif. (Ramona)

Southern Miss' BRIDGET FILES earned C-USA Player of the Week accolades for the period ending Sept. 21. Files helped the Golden Eagles to a 4-0 record, while also claiming the Forrest General Volleyball Classic crown last weekend. The 5-11 middle hitter/blocker registered 59 kills for a 4.54 average, while hitting .358. She also recorded 25 digs, 18 blocks and six aces. Files had an attack percentage above .400 in all three games last weekend, earning tournament MVP honors. She also became the 10th player in school history to record over 1,000 kills in a career following a 23-kill performance against UALR. Files has recorded double-digit kills in all but three matches this season.

CARDINALS MOVE UP
Louisville moved up to No. 17 in the Volleyball Magazine poll. Cincinnati, with a 12-2 record, also received votes.


AMONG THE RANKED
Here is a look at this week's polls

AVCA/USA Today poll. - (Sept. 15)
1. USC (65)
2. Hawai'I
3. Florida
4. Stanford
5. Georgia Tech
6. Northern Iowa
7. Pepperdine
8. Nebraska
9. UCLA
10. Kansas State
11. Penn State
12. California
13. UC Santa Barbara
14. Washington
15. Michigan State
16. Arizona
17. Santa Clara
18. Notre Dame
19. LOUISVILLE
20. Pacific
21. San Diego
22. Minnesota
23. Long Beach State
24. Wisconsin
25. Loyola Marymount

Others receiving points: Texas A&M (133); BYU (106); Missouri (50); North Carolina (49); San Francisco (47); South Carolina (39); Utah (36); Colorado State (31); Ohio State (21); CINCINNATI (17); Northwestern (9); Ohio (9); Western Michigan (6); Southwest Missouri State(2); St. Mary's, Calif. (2).

Volleyball Magazine poll - (Sept. 22).
1. USC
2. Hawaii
3. Florida
4. Stanford
5. Pepperdine
6. Georgia Tech
7. Nebraska
8. Northern Iowa
9. UCLA
10. Penn State
11. California
12. Washington
13. Kansas State
14. Michigan State
15. Santa Clara
16. UC Santa Barbara
17. LOUISVILLE
18. Wisconsin
19. Minnesota
20. Long Beach State

Others receiving votes: Arizona; Loyola Marymount; Pacific; Ohio State; Notre Dame; BYU; Missouri; North Carolina; Texas A&M; Colorado; San Francisco; Northwestern; CINCINNATI.

WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Here are some of the top individual performers in C-USA from Sept. 15-21.

JULIE DUPONT, CIN: Helped the Bearcats to a 3-1 record ... in four matches, she averaged 5.54 kills and 4.15 digs per game while hitting .291 ... tallied double-doubles in all four matches of the week ... was named to Penn State Classic All-Tournament Team.

LARA MARKS, DPU: Averaged 1.6 blocks per game over four matches ... against Miami (Ohio) she notched a season-high 18 kills and ten blocks (three solo) ... posted a hitting percentage of .625 against UIC ... named to Blue Demon Invitational All-Tournament Team.

LOURE DEWS, HOU: Led the Cougars to a four-game win over Ole Miss, hitting .304 and tallying five blocks ... averaged a .295 hitting percentage over three matches while tallying 40 kills and 17 blocks.

LENA USTYMENKO, LOU: Recorded a match high 15 kills while hitting .542 against Wake Forest ... also picked up eight digs and two solo blocks.

BRITTANY BARNETT, MEM: Joined the 1,000 kill club during a 3-0 win over Wofford ... led the Tigers with 16 kills against N.C. State and 13 against South Alabama ... hit .435 against South Alabama while picking up nine digs and four aces.

SHAMEKA MITCHELL, USF: Averaged 4.3 kills and .83 blocks per game for the week ... led both teams in kills against No. 24 Wisconsin ... led the Bulls in points (61.5) and digs (30) for the week ... named to all-tournament team at the Georgia Tech Invitational.

DOMINIKA SZABO, TCU: Tallied 20 kills against Northeastern while picking up 12 digs ... hit .323 against Toledo after notching 13 kills and just three errors on 31 attempts ... collected 45.5 points over the three-match week.

DEVA FOWLER, TUL: Averaged 4.67 kills, 1.44 digs, 1.22 blocks and 5.67 points per game as she led the Green Wave to win the Kathy Trosclair Memorial Tournament ... posted double-digit kill performances in all three matches ... hit .583 against UMKC and .400 against Louisiana Tech ... earned MVP of the tournament.

2003 C-USA TOURNAMENT
The 2003 C-USA Volleyball Tournament will be held on Friday-Monday, Nov. 21-24 at Tulane's Fogelman Arena in New Orleans, La. The C-USA Television Network will carry the tournament final on Nov. 24 at 8 p.m. EST. Please check your local listings for details.

COACHING MILESTONES
USF head coach NANCY MUELLER and Cincinnati's REED SUNAHARA each claimed their 100th career victory this past weekend. With a 3-0 victory over Western Carolina, Mueller now has a record of 100-46. Sunahara captured his 100th victory against Brown and has now. accumulated 82 of those wins as the Bearcats' mentor, ranking third on UC's all-time coaching win list.

TIGERS WIN STREAK
Memphis' 14-match win streak is the fifth longest in C-USA history. USF holds the longest in league history with 20 consecutive victories.

FIVE TIMES IN A ROW
For the fifth consecutive year, three Conference USA teams advanced to the NCAA Volleyball Tournament. USF and Louisville both advanced to the second round, while Cincinnati suffered a 3-2 loss to Arizona State in the first round.

LEADING THE CONFERENCE
Here is a look at several of the top single-match performances in Conference USA this season.

HITTING PERCENTAGE
.765 (13-0-17) by Leslie Newell (CIN) vs. Fairfield, 8/30

KILLS
28 by Theresa Coughlin (MAR) vs. Duke, 8/30 and Julie DuPont (CIN) vs. Wright State, 9/9

ASSISTS
70 by Heather Watts (MEM) vs. Tennessee-Martin, 8/30

ATTEMPTS
75 by Jamie Mueller (MAR) vs. Duke, 8/30

ACES
7 by Sonja Percan (LOU) vs. Minnesota, 8/30 and Pam Ferris (ECU) at Campbell, 9/15

BLOCKS
10 by Deva Fowler (TUL) at Denver, 9/13; Benny Flynn (LOU) vs. Georgia, 9/13; Lara Marks (DPU) vs. Miami (Ohio), 9/19 and Cinthia Piva (HOU) vs. Ole Miss, 9/19

DIGS
33 by Erin Freer (MAR) vs. Duke, 8/30

DID YOU KNOW?
For three consecutive years, C-USA has had five schools that compiled 20 or more win seasons. Last season, USF (30-7), Louisville (28-6), Tulane (21-14), Cincinnati (23-9) and Saint Louis (21-10) all reached the 20-plus win total. Five C-USA schools have won 20 or more games in five of the last seven seasons.

NEW POINT SYSTEM
In a new system adopted by Conference USA volleyball coaches, each player accumulates points for kills, block solos and assists and service aces. To calculate a players' total points, please use the following formula: Kills + Solo Blocks + Service Aces. (block assists equal a half-point).

AMONG THE NATION LEADERS
In the most recent NCAA statistical rankings, Conference USA has at least one school ranked in five of the team categories. Cincinnati ranked fourth in assists (15.88 pg), ninth in kills (17.15 pg) and 10th in hitting percentage (.302),

NCAA STATISTICS
Here is where C-USA ranked among the Sept. 15 national statistical leaders:

KILLS
15. Julie Dupont, CIN 5.50

ASSISTS
2. Laura Lauder, CIN 14.13
14. Heather Watts, MEM 13.33

BLOCKS
27. Deva Fowler, TUL 1.43

DIGS
14. Jaci Gonzalez, HOU 4.62

TEAM KILLS
9. Cincinnati 17.15

HITTING PERCENTAGE
10. Cincinnati 302

TEAM ASSISTS
4. Cincinnati 15.88
27. Memphis 14.90
29. Louisville 14.80

ACES
10. TCU 2.80

TEAM DIGS
18. Tulane 17.84
24. DePaul 17.50




C-USA NOTEBOOK

CHARLOTTE: After a recent slide, Charlotte looks to get back on track this week with three matches. The team faces cross-county rival Davidson on Tuesday night in Halton Arena, where the 49ers are 5-2 this season. Over the weekend the team travels to College of Charleston and Coastal Carolina as a final tune-up for conference play. The Niners will continue to rely on sophomores ABBEY SZLANFUCHT and LISA NEWELL. Despite missing the first match of the season, the pair has accounted for 38.3 percent of Charlotte's points this season.

CINCINNATI: The Bearcats went 2-1 last weekend, falling to No. 11 Penn State in four games. Junior JULIE DUPONT averaged 5.54 kills and 4.15 digs per game, while hitting .291. She also tallied double-doubles in all three matches, giving her 12 in 14 matches this season. Head coach REED SUNAHARA reached a career milestone in UC's Friday win over Brown, earning the 100th victory of his coaching career. Sunahara has accumulated 82 of those wins as the Bearcats' mentor, ranking third on UC's all-time coaching win list. LESLIE NEWELL joined DuPont on the all-tournament team at the Penn State Classic, marking the second time this season Newell has earned such an honor. Cincinnati will next face Dayton on Tuesday.

DE PAUL: The Blue Demons finished third at the Blue Demon Invitational, defeating IUPUI, but falling to Miami (Ohio) and Tennessee. LAURA MARKS earned all-tournament honors after posting a season-high 18 kills and 10 blocks against the RedHawks. Currently, she leads the Blue Demons with 1.37 blocks per game this season. DePaul hosts Valparaiso on Tuesday.

EAST CAROLINA: The Pirates defeated Bethune-Cookman, but lost to Coastal Carolina and Eastern Michigan at the Coastal Carolina Tournament last weekend. KATIE JANNUSCH leads the Pirates with 2.69 kills per game, while JAIME BEVAN has tallied a team-high .314 attack percentage. East Carolina will have the weekend off, before taking on North Carolina A&T on Sept. 30.

HOUSTON: Houston went 1-1, defeating Mississippi, but dropping a 3-1 match to Texas A&M last weekend. LOURE DEWS led the Cougars, tallying 40 kills, while hitting .295 for the week. She played a key role in the Cougars 3-1 win over Ole Miss, notching a .304 hitting percentage and 4 blocks assists. Houston faces Lamar on Tuesday.

LOUISVILLE: LENA USTYMENKO and SONJA PERCAN each had 15 kills to lead Louisville to a sweep over Wake Forest. U of L ended the match with .347 and out blocked Wake Forest six to three. Louisville will next travel to Cincinnati, Ohio, where they will take on Xavier on Saturday.

MARQUETTE: The Golden Eagles fell to Gonzaga and Wyoming, but defeated Montana State last weekend at the MSU Tournament. THERESA COUGHLIN currently leads Marquette with 4.14 kils per game and a .213 attack percentage. Marquette returns to action on Wednesday when it takes on cross-town rival UW-Milwaukee.

MEMPHIS: Memphis claimed the Birmingham-Southern Tourney, posting a 4-0 record this past weekend. BRITTANY BARNETT downed her 1,000th career kill in a 3-0 win over Wofford, becoming the 13th Tiger in school history to claim this feat. She led Memphis with 16 kills against N.C. State and 13 versus South Alabama. Memphis' 11-match win streak is the longest under head coach CARRIE YERTY and the third longest in school history. The 1994 team had a 20-match streak. Juniors TIARA GILKEY and HEATHER WATTS each earned their fourth all-tourney team honor of the season. NANCY NELLANS has hit over .400 in four of the last six matches. She also has 521 career kills as a sophomore. Memphis faces Middle Tennessee State, who was one of six teams to beat the Tigers last year, on Tuesday.

SAINT LOUIS: Saint Louis went 1-2 at the Indiana Credit Union Invitational last weekend. KAYLA KMITTA was selected to all-tournament team, after tallying a career-high 15 kills and hitting .393 against Austin Peay. She also posted 10 kills and a career-best five blocks against Western Kentucky. The Billikens have not played a five-set match yet this season. LAUREN BOISSEVAIN had a career-high 16 digs against Austin Peay. The Billikens had five players with at least 15 digs against Austin Peay. Saint Louis will next compete at Bradley on Tuesday.

USF: Head coach NANCY MUELLER picked up her 100th-career win in a 3-0 victory over Western Carolina on Friday. The Bulls finished 1-2, falling to No. 24 Wisconsin and No. 5 Georgia Tech at the GT Invitational. SHAMEKA MITCHELL was named to the all-tournament team, averaging 4.3 kills and 0.83 blocks per game. She led all players in kills with 16 against the 24th-ranked Badgers. The Bulls have played three ranked opponents, tying Louisville for the most this season. USF finishes up three-straight matches against ranked opponents when it hosts No. 3 Florida on Tuesday.

SOUTHERN MISS: The Golden Eagles ran their record to 13-2, following a 4-0 mark at the Forrest General Volleyball Classic. Southern Miss held its opponents to a .147 attack percentage and only lost one game. BRIDGET FILES registered 59 kills for a 4.54 attack percentage. She earned MVP honors after posting a .400 or above hitting percentage in all three games, while committing only 10 errors in 89 attempts. Setter AMY TRUONG was named to the all-tournament team for her performance. She tallied eight kills, 137 assists, eight aces and 26 digs. CASSIE CONLY turned in a perfect game, registering 10 kills with no errors in 17 attempts for a .588 attack percentage. Southern Miss will next take on Southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday.

TCU: TCU snapped its nine-match win streak with losses to Northeastern and Pittsburgh at the Pittsburgh Classic last weekend. With a 10-3 record, the Frogs are only two wins away from tying their 2002 win total of 12. Under second-year head coach PRENTICE LEWIS, TCU has also posted its best start in school history. The Frogs hosts the TCU Molten Invitational this weekend, opening against Grambling on Friday.

TULANE: The Green Wave continued to play at a high level in the fourth week of the 2003 season, sweeping a trio of 3-0 matches from Tulsa, Louisiana Tech and UMKC in the Kathy Trosclair Memorial Tournament over the weekend in Fogelman Arena. With the wins, Tulane improves to 11-2 on the year, marking its best start since 1987 when the Green Wave finished with a school-record 33 wins (33-7). One of the biggest reasons for Tulane's success this year has been its overall team concept as five players average at least 2.37 kills per game, five average at least 2.13 digs per game and five average at least 0.56 blocks per game. Running a 6-2 offense for the first time under head coach BETSY BECKER's direction, Tulane is averaging 15.15 assists per game and the Green Wave are hitting at a .232 clip with 755 kills and 295 errors in 1984 swings.

UAB: UAB defeated Georgia Southern, but fell to Jacksonville State and Alabama at the Crimson Tide Invitational last weekend. KAREN BOYD was named to the all-tournament team after recording double digits in points in all three matches over the weekend and posting eight total blocks. Boyd has been named to the all-tournament team at all four tournaments the Blazers have played in this season. Senior MARTINA SHIELDS recorded double digits in both kills and points in all three matches last weekend. She has now posted double digits in both points and kills in nine of the 12 matches she had competed in this season. UAB will compete in the fifth of six in-season tournaments this weekend as the Blazers host the UAB Invitational Friday-Saturday at Bartow Arena.on Friday against Georgia Southern.