Cincinnati's Julie DuPont and Southern Miss' Amy Truong share C-USA Player of the Week honors after both led their respective squads to a 2-0 record last week; For the first time since the 1996 season, two Conference USA schools are ranked in the latest USA Today/AVCA Coaches poll. Louisville is ranked No. 21, while Cincinnati has broken into the Top 25 for the first time in program history. Catch up on all the latest news in this week's C-USA volleyball notebook.

C-USA CO-PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Cincinnati's JULIE DUPONT and Southern Miss' AMY TRUONG share C-USA Player of the Week honors for the week of Oct. 6-12.

JULIE DUPONT, Cincinnati
OH, Jr., Muskego, Wis. (Muskego)

DuPont led the Bearcats to a pair of victories last week, including an upset over No. 17 Louisville. For the week, she averaged 6.83 kills, 3.67 digs and 1.00 blocks per game, while hitting .341 and totaling 45.5 points in two matches. Against U of L, DuPont led all players with 23 kills, while adding 10 digs and hitting .327. The victory over the Cardinals marked the third season in a row that UC had topped a ranked team with Louisville being the highest-ranked squad the Bearcats had ever beaten.

AMY TRUONG, Southern Miss
S, Jr., Palmdale, Calif. (Highland)

Truong led Southern Miss to wins over USF and UAB last weekend, giving the Golden Eagles their first-ever 4-0 start in C-USA play. USM's 3-0 sweep versus USF also snapped a 23-match losing streak to the Bulls. Against UAB, Truong posted her 100th career ace, while also tallying 16 digs, five total blocks and two service aces. For the weekend, she averaged 13.12 assists per game, while adding six service aces and 21 digs.

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

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

Others receiving points and listed on two or more ballots: Minnesota, Michigan, Missouri, San Francisco, Florida A&M, Ohio, Illinois, Arkansas, Arizona, Fresno State, UC Irvine, Southwest Missouri, Long Beach State , Utah , Maryland

Volleyball Magazine poll - (Oct. 13).
1. USC
2. Hawaii
3. Florida
4. Pepperdine
5. Georgia Tech
6. Stanford
7. Northern Iowa
8. California
9. Kansas State
10. Nebraska
11. UCLA
12. Penn State
13. Washington
14. UC Santa Barbara
15. Santa Clara
16. Notre Dame
17. LOUISVILLE
18. Wisconsin
19. Loyola Marymount
20. San Diego

Others receiving votes: Michigan State; Minnesota; Texas A&M; Pacific; CINCINNATI; BYU; Long Beach State; Michigan; Missouri; San Francisco; UC Irvine; Southwest Missouri State.

AMONG THE RANKED
For the first time since the 1996 season, two Conference USA schools are ranked in the latest USA Today/AVCA Coaches poll. Louisville is ranked No. 21, while Cincinnati has broken into the Top 25 for the first time in program history. The last time C-USA had two schools ranked in the top 25 was on Dec. 24, 1996, when Louisville finished the season 16th in the nation, and USF garnered a No. 22 ranking.

UNDEFEATED IN C-USA ACTION
For the first time in C-USA history, Tulane and Southern Miss are 4-0 in league play this season. Cincinnati (3-0) has also posted its first unblemished start since 2000, when the Bearcats opened C-USA play with a 10-0 start.

AMONG THE NATION LEADERS
Cincinnati's LAURA LAUDER leads the nation in assists with 15.08 per game. She also has moved into the top two of the C-USA all-time assists list with 5,296 in her four-year career. DePaul's Kara Jakusz (1998-01) holds the record with 6,445 assists.

HOME SWEET HOME
This season, Cincinnati leads the league with a 9-0 record at home. Louisville (4-0) and Memphis (4-0) are also undefeated at home, while Tulane has notched the most wins on its home court with an 11-1 mark.

WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Here are some of the top individual performers in C-USA from Oct. 6 - Oct. 12.

LARA MARKS, DPU: Against East Carolina, registered 12 kills and a .421 hitting percentage while notching five blocks ... versus Charlotte, the senior put up 10 blocks, recorded four service aces, and added nine kills.

CINTHIA PIVA, HOU: Led the Cougars to their first conference win ... recorded a double-double against Saint Louis with 16 kills and 20 digs ... posted 20 kills and a hitting percentage of .500 against Memphis.

ANN LOPATA, MAR: Helped Marquette to two conference wins ... against Charlotte, hit 12 kills with no errors on 17 attempts for an average of .706 ... over two matches, contributed 10 blocks and five digs.

NANCY NELLANS, MEM: Posted two double-doubles ... against TCU, she notched 12 kills and 10 digs while collecting 16 kills and 14 digs against Houston ... contributed four service aces during the Tigers match against Houston.

ANNA VAUGHN, TCU: Led the Horned Frogs to wins over Memphis and Saint Louis ... boasted a hitting percentage of .455 against Saint Louis ... recorded four aces, nine blocks, and nine digs over the two conference matches.

DEVA FOWLER, TUL: Against USF, Fowler collected 21 kills, eight blocks, and two service aces ... also against the Bulls, posted a hitting percentage of .366.

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 99-114 all-time record, Dockstader is only two wins away from accumulating her 100th victory.

SEASON IMPROVEMENT
Four league schools have already surpassed or tied their 2002 win totals. Southern Miss, who went 16-15 in 2002, is now second in the league standings with a 19-3 overall record. TCU has posted the most wins in school history with a 16-7 mark after notching a 14-6 record in 2002. DePaul is 10-11 in 2003, following a 5-25 mark in 2002 and East Carolina, who finished last year with an 8-11 mark, is 9-13 in 2003.

C-USA NOTEBOOK

CHARLOTTE: Charlotte had another rough weekend, dropping a pair of Conference USA matches on the road to DePaul and Marquette. LISA NEWELL led the 49ers with 18 kills in the two matches, averaging 3.0 per game. DANIELLE MILLER came up with 24 digs for a 4.0 per game average. This weekend, the Niners host Cincinnati and Louisville. Friday's match against the Bearcats will be a reunion of sorts for Newell. Her sister, Leslie, is a junior right side hitters for Cincinnati.

CINCINNATI: The Bearcats stunned then-No. 17 Louisville, defeating the Cardinals, 3-0, on Friday. JULIE DUPONT posted a team-high 23 kills for a .327 attack percentage. For the week, she averaged 6.83 kills and 3.67 digs per game. The victory over the Cardinals marked the third season in a row that UC had topped a ranked team, with Louisville being the highest-ranked squad the Bearcats had ever beaten. Senior LAURA LAUDER continued to pad her nation's leading assists per game average. With 48 assists vs. Eastern Kentucky (Oct. 7) and 51 more against Louisville, Lauder is now averaging a career-best 15.08 per game. The Bearcats hit the road where they will take on Charlotte on Friday and East Carolina on Saturday.

DE PAUL: DePaul defeated Loyola-Chicago, 3-2, on Tuesday. For the sixth time this season the Blue Demons were pushed to five games. DePaul is now 2-3 when forced to a five game match. MANDY MOREBERG posted 21 kills, while JANET COTTER followed with 17. Defensively the Blue Demons saw four players in double-digit digs. Junior JANET GOREHAM nailed down four solo blocks and two assisted blocks. DePaul is back in action on Friday against Southern Miss.

EAST CAROLINA: The Pirates snapped a seven-match losing streak with a 3-0 win over N.C. State on Tuesday. Junior SARAH VICK recorded a double-double with 15 kills and 11 digs for ECU. She also added five service aces to give her 20 points in the match. Freshman middle blocker JAIME BEVAN chipped in 12 kills for the Pirates. ECU returns to action this weekend when it hosts No. 21 Louisville on Friday and No. 25 Cincinnati on Saturday.

HOUSTON: Houston defeated TCU, 3-1, on Wednesday. KELLY MCANELLY led the Cougars offensively with 24 kills and a .389 hitting percentage while also picking up 16 digs. Junior LOURE DEWS also had a solid performance finishing with 15 kills and a .433 hitting percentage. The Cougars will now have over a week off before hitting the road to take on UAB on Friday, October 24.


LOUISVILLE: The 21st-ranked Cardinals suffered their first loss in league play against Cincinnati on Friday. U of L was led by LENA USTYMENKO's 15 kills. SONJA PERCAN ended the match with 12 kills and 12 digs and four blocks. The matchup between the two schools was the 40th all-time, with Louisville holding a 25-15 advantage. U of L faces East Carolina on Friday and Charlotte on Saturday.

MARQUETTE: The Golden Eagles evened their conference record at 2-2 with victories over Charlotte and East Carolina last weekend. Senior ANN LOPATA tallied 28 kills and only three errors for a .510 hitting percentage last weekend. Against Charlotte, she hit a career-high .706, marking the highest by a MU player this season. She also contributed a career-high eight blocks against the Pirates. GEMMA GREER doled out a season-high 61 assists verses the Pirates, while THERESA COUGHLIN's match-high 23 attacks represented her sixth effort of 20 or more kills in a match this season. The Golden Eagles faces Tulane on Friday and Southern Miss on Saturday.

MEMPHIS: The Tigers defeated Christian Brothers, 3-0, on Tuesday. SHELLA NEBA finished with nine kills for a .467 attack percentage, while adding two digs and seven block assists. Memphis remains at home and returns to C-USA play on Friday against UAB.

SAINT LOUIS: Saint Louis suffered losses to Houston and TCU last weekend. For the first time since the formation of Conference USA, the Billikens have started league play 0-3. ALEXIS COOLEY finished with 18 kills against TCU, the most by a Billiken this season. The previous high was 17 done twice. ERIN MCCLANAHAN had a season-high 49 assists with 15 digs at TCU. JESSICA POORBAUGH set a season high with 17 digs in the Houston match. For the first time in 24 matches, the Billikens recorded a higher hitting percentage than their opponents but still lost. SLU hit .210 to .171 for TCU. Saint Louis will look to end its three match losing streak when it hosts USF on Friday.

USF: USF dropped a 3-0 match to Miami (Fla.) in non-conference action on Tuesday. Junior SHAMEKA MITCHELL led all players with 17 kills on the night, while adding seven digs and four blocks. Senior FRAN POZZI, USF's other player in double-digits, had a match-high-tying 10 digs to go with her 12 kills for the only double-double of the match. USF will face Saint Louis on Friday and Memphis on Saturday.

SOUTHERN MISS: The Golden Eagles improved to 19-3 overall and 4-0 in league play after defeating USF and UAB last weekend. AMY TRUONG led USM, averaging 13.12 assists and 2.62 digs per game. She also recorded her 100th career ace against UAB. Southern Miss finished the weekend with an attack percentage of .305 and currently ranks fifth in the conference with a season-total of .253. The team also tallied 13.0 total blocks and 12 service aces. The three seniors (ANDREA BUSH, BRIDGET FILES and NICKI TRIBBLE) continue to lead the Golden Eagles offensively. The trio accounted for 92 of the 125 kills and 67 of the 125 digs this past weekend. USM leads the league, holding its opponents to a .163 attack percentage. The Golden Eagles snapped a 23-match losing streak against USF following a 3-0 victory. USM hosts DePaul on Friday and Marquette on Saturday.

TCU: The Horned Frogs fell to Houston, 3-1, on Wednesday. DOMINIKA SZABO collected 27 kills on the night with freshman EMILY ALLEN dishing out 14 of her own in 25 attempts for a .520 average, her best offensive outing yet. Junior ELLEN REHME added another double-double to her list with 11 kills and 18 digs. The Horned Frogs will welcome back their graduates this weekend in a Purple and White Alumni match on Saturday.

TULANE: The Green Wave defeated New Orleans, 3-0, on Tuesday. Tulane runs its current winning streak to 11 and improves to 18-2 on the year. The victory also keeps the Green Wave undefeated against teams from the state (6-0) with victories over Nicholls State (3-2, Aug. 29), LSU (3-1, Sept. 5), UNO (3-0, Sept. 6), Louisiana-Lafayette (3-0, Sept. 9) and Louisiana Tech (3-0, Sept. 20). Tulane's 11-match win streak is the longest since 1987 when the Wave won 13 straight en route to a school-record 33 victories. The longest win streak in Tulane history is 15, set in 1977. The Wave returns to the friendly confines of Fogelman Arena this weekend for C-USA matchups with Marquette and DePaul on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

UAB: The Blazers suffered a 3-0 loss to Mississippi on Tuesday. MARTINA SHIELDS led UAB with 12 kills, while KAREN BOYD added eight. This season, Shields continues to lead the Blazers with 3.57 kills and 2.79 digs per game. She has already surpassed the 1,000 career kills mark and is currently seventh in school history with 1,228 kills. UAB hits the road, taking on Memphis on Friday and Saint Louis on Saturday.