After leading their respective teams to a 2-0 record in conference play this past weekend, USF's Shameka Mitchell and Southern Miss' Andrea Bush shared C-USA Player of the Week honors; Cincinnati, who leads the league with a 16-2 overall record, will look to end Louisville's eight match win streak when the Bearcats hosts the Cardinals on Friday. Catch up on all the lastest C-USA Volleyball news in this week's notebook.

C-USA CO-PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

USF's SHAMEKA MITCHELL and Southern Miss' ANDREA BUSH share C-USA Player of the Week honors after both led their squads to a 2-0 mark last weekend.

SHAMEKA MITCHELL, USF
MB, Jr., Lakeland, Fla. (George Jenkins)

Mitchell led the team in kills (50), while averaging 2.56 digs and 6.22 points per game. In a victory over Charlotte, she tallied a career-high 28 kills, while posting a team-high 30.5 points. For the weekend, Mitchell recorded 50 kills and only 11 errors for a .424 attack percentage, while adding six total blocks and 23 digs. USF broke a four-match losing streak and has now started league play with a 2-0 start for the third consecutive season.

ANDREA BUSH, Southern Miss
OH, Sr., San Antonio, Texas (John Marshall)

Bush tallied a league-high and career-tying 30 kills while hitting .397 in USM's first-ever win over Houston. It also marked her third 30-kill match of her career. Against TCU, Bush added 17 kills and 11 digs. She finished the weekend with 47 kills, while posting only nine errors for a .404 hitting percentage. Bush also recorded 18 digs, three total blocks and one ace. Southern Miss' 17 wins on the season are the most since 1998, when the Golden Eagle went 21-10.

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

AVCA/USA Today poll. - (Sept. 29)
1. USC (65)
2. Hawai'i
3. Florida
4. Stanford
5. Georgia Tech
6. Pepperdine
7. Nebraska
8. UCLA
9. California
10. Northern Iowa
11. Penn State
12. Kansas State
13. Washington
14. Michigan State
15. UC Santa Barbara
16. Santa Clara
17. Notre Dame
18. LOUISVILLE
19. San Diego
20. Wisconsin
21. Loyola Marymount
22. Texas A&M
23. Pacific
24. San Francisco
25. Colorado State

Others receiving points: Long Beach State; Minnesota; Arizona; BYU; Missouri; Southwest Missouri State; Florida A&M; Michigan; Ohio; CINCINNATI; North Carolina; UC Irvine; Fresno State.

Volleyball Magazine poll - (Oct. 6).
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. Kansas State
13. Santa Clara
14. LOUISVILLE
15. Washington
16. UC Santa Barbara
17. Wisconsin
18. Michigan State
19. Long Beach State
20. Loyola Marymount

Others receiving votes: Notre Dame; Colorado State; BYU; Missouri; Pacific; San Francisco; North Carolina; CINCINNATI; Southwest Missouri State; Cal Irvine.


CARDINALS MOVE UP
Louisville remains No. 14 in the most recent Volleyball Magazine poll, while ranking No. 18 in the AVCA/USA Today Coaches poll. Cincinnati, with a 15-2 record, also received votes in both polls.

AMONG THE NATION LEADERS
Cincinnati's LAURA LAUDER leads the nation in assists with 14.85 per game. She also has moved into the top two of the C-USA all-time assists list with 5,197 in her four-year career. DePaul's Kara Jakusz (1998-01) holds the record with 6,445 assists.

TIGERS WIN STREAK
Memphis' 14-match win streak is tied for the fifth longest in C-USA history. USF posted the league- record 20 consecutive victories in 2000.

WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Here are some of the top individual performers in C-USA from Sept. 30 - Oct. 5.

JULIE DUPONT, CIN: Led the Bearcats to a 2-0 conference start ... averaged 7.57 kills, 3.57 digs, and 1.29 blocks for the week while posting a hitting percentage of .330 ... notched 28 kills against Marquette and 25 kills against DePaul.

AMY HOLMES, DPU: Recorded a double-double against UW-Green Bay after tallying 19 kills and 15 digs ... registered double-digit digs in every match last week ... collected 37 points over three matches.

SONYA PERCAN, LOU: Averaged a hitting percentage of .347 against DePaul and Marquette ... boasted two double-doubles with 16 kills, 12 digs against the Blue Demons and 19 kills, 21 digs against the Golden Eagles.

THERESA COUGHLIN, MAR: Notched 22 kills while posting a hitting percentage of .370 against Cincinnati ... recorded 23 kills against No. 18 Louisville to mark her third consecutive match of 20 or more kills.

BRITTANY BARNETT, MEM: Led Memphis with 34.5 points over the weekend ... against SE Missouri State, she recorded 19 kills and a .300 hitting percentage.

ANGELA POWERS, SLU: Set a career high hitting percentage after averaging .500 against Memphis... recorded 11 kills against UT-Martin.

TORI BARLOW, TCU: Dished out 51 assists against Tulane while collecting 12 digs ... in TCU's match against Centenary, she handed out 37 assists while picking up four kills.

DEVA FOWLER, TUL: Led her team to a 2-0 conference start ... averaged .400 over two matches, tallying 28 kills on 55 attempts with just six errors ... posted five blocks in each match against TCU and Houston.

MARTINA SHIELDS, UAB: Recorded back-to-back double-double performances against East Carolina and Charlotte ... picked up 17 kills in each match while posting 13 digs against the Pirates and 18 digs versus the 49ers ... boasts a combined hitting percentage of .356 on the weekend.

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
DePaul head coach DAWN DOCKSTADER will be looking to join the ranks of USF's NANCY MUELLER and Cincinnati's REED SUNAHARA, who each claimed their 100th career victory this season. With a 96-113 all-time record, Dockstader is only four wins away from accumulating her 100th victory.

BY THE NUMBERS
3 - Three league schools have already surpassed or tied their 2002 win totals. Southern Miss, who went 16-15 in 2002, is now tied for second in the league standings with a 17-3 overall record. TCU (14-6), who went 14-6 in 2002, and East Carolina (8-11), who finished last year with an 8-11 mark, have tied their win totals in 2003.

5 - Memphis has gone five straight weeks since recording their last loss (Aug. 30 against Arkansas State).

7 - This season, Cincinnati leads the league with a 7-0 record at home.

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

HITTING PERCENTAGE
.842 (17-1-19) by Dominika Szabo (TCU) vs. Grambling State, 9/26

KILLS
30 by Andrea Bush (USM) vs. Houston, 10/3

ASSISTS
72 by Jessica Vick (ECU) vs. USF, 10/4

ATTEMPTS
81 by Nicki Tribble (USM) vs. Southeastern Louisiana, 9/23

ACES
8 by Hristina Slancheva (MEM) vs. Saint Louis, 10/3

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

NCAA STATISTICS
Here is where C-USA ranked among the Sept. 29 national statistical leaders:

KILLS
12. Julie Dupont, CIN 5.56

ASSISTS
1. Laura Lauder, CIN 14.85
10. Heather Watts, MEM 13.38

DIGS
25. Karlyn Daly, TUL 4.42
29. Jaci Gonzalez, HOU 4.27

TEAM KILLS
3. Cincinnati 17.74
27. Memphis 16.37
29. Tulane 16.36

HITTING PERCENTAGE
9. Cincinnati 298
23. TCU .274

TEAM ASSISTS
3. Cincinnati 16.44
18. Memphis 15.18
20. Louisville 15.08
22. Louisville 15.04

ACES
3. TCU 2.74

TEAM DIGS
16. Tulane 17.98
26. Marquette 17.36


SEPTEMBER'S TRIPLE-DOUBLE CLUB
On Sept. 30, Saint Louis' ERIN MCCLANAHAN notched the league's second triple-double performance of the season. She tallied 12 kills, 13 digs and 40 assists in a 3-0 win over UT-Martin. Marquette's SARAH VERNON recorded the first triple-double with 11 kills, 12 digs and 59 assists against UW-Milwaukee on Sept. 24.

C-USA NOTEBOOK

CHARLOTTE: Charlotte came up short in each of its first two Conference USA matches, falling to USF and UAB, 3-1. LISA NEWELL led the 49ers last weekend, knocking down 33 kills in three matches. JESSICA KELLY also enjoyed three solid outings, scoring an average of 12 points in each match. JESSICA OLDENBURG saw her first substantial action as the team's setter, logging 46 assists. ABBEY SZLANFUCHT and KATIE HALL each missed all three matches with injuries. This weekend, the team visits DePaul and Marquette.

CINCINNATI: The Bearcats posted their first 2-0 conference start since 2000 with wins over Marquette and DePaul. JULIE DUPONT averaged 7.57 kills, 3.57 digs and 1.29 blocks per game, while hitting .330. In UC's win over DePaul on Sunday, DuPont matched the school record for kills in a three-game match with 25. She also notched a pair of doubles-doubles to give her 15 for the season. MYANNA HELLSTEN and NOEL OLSON turned in career-best performances in Sunday's win over DePaul. Hellsten's seven block assists tied her personal best against Marquette. Olson registered a career-high 12 digs against DePaul. LAURA LAUDER moved into second place on the C-USA career assists chart with 5,197 in her career.

DE PAUL: The Blue Demons fell to Louisville and Cincinnati last weekend. AMY HOLMES led DePaul with 37 points and 36 digs for the week. She also added four service aces and three total blocks. Holmes currently ranks second on the team in digs, averaging 3.19 per game. On Tuesday, the Blue Demons will take on Illinois State.

EAST CAROLINA: The Pirates lost to USF and UAB last weekend, suffering back-to-back 3-2 losses in conference play. Sophomore ERICA WILSON scored a career-high 27 points on 24 kills, while adding two solo blocks and two block assists against USF. ALEXIS JONES currently leads East Carolina with a .317 hitting percentage, while KATIE JANNUSCH is averaging 2.79 kills per game. The Pirates will face DePaul on Friday and Marquette on Saturday.

HOUSTON: Houston fell to Southern Miss and Tulane last weekend. KELLY MCANELLY posted 18 kills against Southern Miss, while CINTHIA PIVA led the Cougars against Tulane with 11 kills. After four consecutive matches on the road, Houston will now host a conference series at home this weekend. The Cougars face Saint Louis on Friday and Memphis on Saturday.


LOUISVILLE: The 18th-ranked Cardinals improved their win streak to eight matches with victories over DePaul and Marquette last weekend. Senior SONJA PERCAN became the school's all-time leader in kills after posting 35 kills for the weekend. She currently has 1,572 in her four-year career. She also moves up to third in all-time attacks with 3,608. For the weekend, she averaged 5.00 kills per game, while adding 33 digs and three service aces. On Friday, Louisville will look to improve its eight match winning streak when it faces the Bearcats in Cincinnati, Ohio.

MARQUETTE: The Golden Eagles opened the conference schedule with losses to Cincinnati and No. 18 Louisville last weekend. THERESA COUGHLIN was the team's top hitting threat, knocking down 22 kills against the Bearcats and 23 kills verses the Cardinals. Senior GEMMA GREER moved into second place on the school's all-time assists ladder this weekend. Greer has 3,700 assists as a Golden Eagle and passed Jennifer Martin's (1988-91) total of 3,651. With double-double performances against Cincinnati and Louisville, ERIN FREER has now posted six consecutive outings of double digits in kills and assists. ANN LOPATA is only 21 kills away from reaching her 600th of her career. The Golden Eagles host Charlotte and East Carolina this weekend.

MEMPHIS: Memphis defeated Saint Louis and Southeast Missouri State last weekend to improve its win streak to 14. The Tigers' 3-0 sweep at SLU was Memphis' first-ever under head coach CARRIE YERTY. BRITTANY BARNETT continued her solid senior campaign, posting 34.5 points and 31 kills. Freshman KRISTINA SLANCHEVA tied a C-USA single match record with eight service aces against Saint Louis. NANCY NELLANS posted her fifth and sixth double-double performance of the year. She led the defense with 12 digs at Saint Louis and 16 against SEMO. The Tigers travel to the state of Texas, facing TCU on Friday and Houston on Sunday.

SAINT LOUIS: The Billikens fell to Memphis, 3-0, on Friday. Saint Louis had won six straight home conference matches until the Tigers ended the streak. Against Memphis, ALEXIS COOLEY set a career-high with seven blocks, while ANGELA POWERS posted a career-high .500 attack percentage with 14 kills and only three errors. SLU has had eight different players lead the team in kills this season. Saint Louis returns to action on Friday when it takes on Houston.

USF: For the third consecutive year, USF started the conference schedule with a 2-0 record with wins over Charlotte and East Carolina. SHAMEKA MITCHELL averaged 5.6 kills and 2.56 digs per game to lead the Bulls. For the weekend, she finished with a .424 hitting percentage, notching 50 kills out of 92 attacks. USF hosts Southern Miss on Friday and Tulane on Saturday.

SOUTHERN MISS: The Golden Eagles defeated Houston and TCU to improve to 17-3 overall and 2-0 in league play. The 17 victories already surpass last season's total of 16 and marks the best start in school history. NICKI TRIBBLE recorded her ninth double-double of the season with 16 kills and 10 digs against TCU. ANDREA BUSH led the Golden Eagles, tallying 47 kills and 18 digs, while hitting .404 for the weekend. Southern Miss recorded 121 kills in the two matches, while hitting .313. The Golden Eagles also served up 16 aces and registered 13.0 total blocks. Southern Miss heads to Tampa, Fla., on Friday to face USF.

TCU: The Horned Frogs suffered losses to Tulane and Southern Miss last weekend. TORI BARLOW led the team with 126 assists and 26 digs. She currently leads the team in service aces with 333, while helping TCU rank first in the conference team stats with a total of 891. She also has moved into second place on TCU's career list for assists with 2,609. TCU hosts Memphis on Friday and Saint Louis on Sunday.

TULANE: Tulane's hot start to the 2003 season continued this weekend as the Green Wave opened league play with wins over TCU and Houston. Tulane is now 15-2 on the year, matching the best start in school history through 17 matches. The last time the Green Wave began the year 15-2, the squad went on to set a school record in wins with 33. Tulane is also on an eight-match winning streak, marking the longest since the 1994 season. DEVA FOWLER posted an outstanding weekend for the Green Wave, averaging 4.00 kills, 1.43 blocks and 4.79 points per game. Fowler hit .400 for the weekend with 28 kills and just six errors on 55 swings. Tulane faces UAB on Friday and USF on Saturday.

UAB: The Blazers opened C-USA play with wins over East Carolina and Charlotte last weekend. MARTINA SHIELDS recorded back-to-back double-double performances. She registered 17 kills and 13 digs, while hitting .351 in a 3-2 win over East Carolina. She followed with another solid showing, recording a team-high 17 kills and 18 digs against Charlotte. Shields has posted double-digit kills in 12 of the 17 matches, while registering six double-doubles for the year. Sophomore BREANNE SWENSON also recorded consecutive doubles, totaling her season total to eight. The Blazers return home to Bartow Arena to host league rivals Tulane on Friday and Southern Miss on Saturday.