C-USA Nov. 4 Volleyball Notebook

Sarah Vernon

C-USA TOURNEY IN LOUISVILLE
With two short weeks leading up to the 2004 ChevronTexaco C-USA Volleyball Tournament, six teams have already locked in their spot to compete in Louisville, Ky. Joining the defending tournament champion Louisville are league opponents Cincinnati, Houston, Memphis, Marquette, and TCU. Louisville, who is currently tied for No. 22 in the USA Today/CSTV national rankings, hopes to enter the tournament undefeated in conference action. The tournament will take place Nov. 19-22 as the University of Louisville hosts the four-day event. All matches will be held at Cardinal Arena on the U of L campus. The championship match on Monday, Nov. 22, will be televised by CSTV and affiliates of the Conference USA Television Network. The championship match is set for 8:00 p.m. EST. Don Russell and Audrey Flaugh will provide the play-by-play and color commentary.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (11/1)
In a tight competition for conference honors this week, Louisville's Lena Ustymenko and Myanna Hellsten of Cincinnati came out on top to share the award. Ustymenko continues to help Louisville dominate opponents as the Cardinals swept past Tulane and USM this weekend. Hellsten, the 2003 C-USA Freshman of the Year, had an outstanding week as she led the Bearcats to a 2-0 record over conference foes Southern Miss and Tulane. The weekly accolade is Ustymenko's and Hellsten's first for the season.

MYANNA HELLSTEN, Cincinnati
MB, So., Austin, Texas (St. Michael's Academy)

Hellsten finished the week with an outstanding .543 hitting percentage on 27 kills and only two hitting errors. Against Southern Miss, the middle blocker matched her career-best with 13 kills and hit .522 on the night. Hellsten tabbed a new career-record with 14 kills, four aces and three solo blocks in a 3-1 win over Tulane. Hellsten averaged 3.38 kills and 1.88 blocks per game during the week.

LENA USTYMENKO, Louisville
MB/OH, Jr., Kiev, Ukraine (Kiev Secondary School)

Ustymenko helped extend the Cards win streak to 11 as she posted her 18th straight-match in double-digit kills (17 kills) in a 3-0 sweep over Southern Miss on Saturday night. Against Tulane, Ustymenko tallied 11 kills and 10 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. The middle blocker did not post one single hitting error in Louisville's match against the Green Wave. With the help of Ustymenko, the U of L has swept all but one of its C-USA opponents.

SETTER OF THE WEEK (11/1)
The Tigers were led by senior Heather Watts in wins over Middle Tennessee State and C-USA opponents, Marquette and DePaul this week. With the two league wins, Memphis secured third place in the league standings. The weekly honor is Watts' fourth of the season and fifth of her career.

HEATHER WATTS, Memphis
S, Sr., Sandy, Utah. (Skyline)

Watts was solid for Memphis this week, leading the Tigers to a 3-0 record and boosting their C-USA record to 7-2. The senior posted 14.36 assists per game (158 total) and recorded 26 digs on the week. As the C-USA assists leader, Watts posted match-high totals in all three contests this week. With 66 assists and nine digs, Watts helped the Tigers in a pressure-packed 3-2 win over Marquette on Friday night. She finished the week with her 14th double-double of the year and tallied 51 assists and 11 digs in a sweep over DePaul the following night.

AMONG THE RANKED
Here is a look at the Oct. 25, AVCA poll:

USA Today/CSTV poll
1. Washington (63)
2. Hawai’i (2)
3. Nebraska
4. Southern California
5. Minnesota
6. Penn State
7. Ohio State
8. Florida
9. Colorado State
10. Texas
11. California
12. Stanford
13. Saint Mary’s (Calif)
14. Texas A&M
15. Tennessee
16. UCLA
17. Utah
18. Kansas State
19. UC Santa Barbara
20. Santa Clara
21. San Diego
22t. LOUISVILLE
22t. Arizona
24. Florida A&M
25. Illinois

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES
OVER THE HILL
Recently, two league coaches passed the 50-win mark for their careers. TCU’s Prentice Lewis tabbed her 50th win in Wednesday’s match against Oklahoma, while Colleen Munson of East Carolina hit her 51st as the Pirates defeated Charlotte on Oct. 30.

PLAYING THE NUMBERS GAME
Louisville and Marquette are the only C-USA schools to have posted the majority of their wins in three-straight matches. The Cards have won 63 percent of their matches in short three-sets, while the Golden Eagles have won 50 percent in the same manner.

VERSITILE VERNON
With Sarah Vernon as Marquette’s full-time setter, it is hard to picture her anywhere else on the court. The senior played a number of positions last season and posted her second career triple double in a 3-2 win over Saint Louis on Oct. 30. Vernon had 70 assists, 13 kills and 16 digs in the win. She had her first career triple-double last season in a 3-2 win over Wis.-Milwaukee, recording 11 kills, 59 assists and 12 digs. The 70 assists against Saint Louis was also Vernon’s career best.

I’VE GOT FIVE ON IT
Cincinnati’s head coach Reed Sunahara will hit the 20-win mark for his fifth consecutive time at UC, barring two more victories for the Bearcats. The Bearcats have had a total of 20 seasons with at least 20 wins, but Sunahara is the only coach in program annals with more than three 20-win campaigns. The feat will also extend the 20-win season streak to nine for UC.

JENNY CONTROLS HER BLOCK
Junior Jennifer Hoffman of Louisville continues to climb the charts as she leads the conference in block categories and currently ranks eighth on the national standings with 1.69 blocks per game.

C-USA NOTEBOOK
CHARLOTTE: Despite junior outside hitter Abbey Szlanfucht’s 26 kills and 25 digs, East Carolina blew past Charlotte at Halton Arena on Saturday night. Senior setter Molly McDonald’s total assist column this season (1,295) currently ranks as the seventh-best single-season performance in school’s history. Szlanfucht (988) and teammate Lisa Newell (958) are both primed to make a run at the 1,000-kill mark this season. Charlotte plays two C-USA matches on the road this weekend, traveling to Cincinnati and Louisville on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The 49ers need one more mark in the win column to secure a spot in the 2004 ChevronTexaco C-USA Tournament.

CINCINNATI: Cincinnati put all five of its primary hitters in double-figure kills in both matches last weekend for just the third time this season. The Bearcats’ Julie DuPont became the first player in school history to surpass the 2,000-kill and 5,000-attempt plateaus as UC defeated Southern Miss on Friday, Oct. 29. The Battle of the Newell Sisters Round 2 kicks off this weekend, as Leslie Newell and UC host Lisa Newell and her Charlotte teammates on Friday. Cincinnati will then face East Carolina on Saturday night in Fifth Third Arena. Both matches are slated to begin at 7:30 p.m. The Bearcats already reserved their spot at the conference tournament as UC stands 8-2 in C-USA play.

DE PAUL: DePaul dropped a pair of conference matches this weekend to Saint Louis and Memphis on Friday, Oct. 29 and Saturday, Oct. 30, respectively. The losses dropped the Blue Demons to 3-6 in C-USA play and 6-15 overall. Senior Janet Goreham and Mandy Moorberg each tallied 13 kills against the Billikens. DePaul outblocked Memphis, tallying 12 total blocks to the Tigers’ six and a half and held six ties before Memphis finally claimed the edge. Goreham finished the evening with a match-high 10 total blocks (1 solo, 9 assists). The Blue Demons return to the DePaul Athletic Center for their final homestand of the season, welcoming C-USA foes Southern Miss and Tulane this weekend. DePaul will face Southern Miss on Friday and Tulane on Saturday. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

EAST CAROLINA: East Carolina defeated Charlotte in five games, 3-2, at Halton Arena on Saturday, Oct. 30 in Conference USA action for the Pirates’ lone match last weekend. The team was led by sophomore middle blocker Jaime Bevan, who finished with 11 kills, a .385 hitting percentage and seven block assists. East Carolina returns to action this weekend when the team travels to Louisville on Friday and Cincinnati on Saturday for the final road trip of the regular season. Both matches are scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

HOUSTON: The Cougars swept past the Lamar Cardinals Tuesday night, 3-0. Houston’s key player as of late has been Loure Dews, who has led the team in kills in three of the four matches during the homestand, including her match-high 15 kill performance against Lamar that saw her hit .462 and pick up six blocks against the Cardinals. Her second block of the night moved her into the No. 7 spot on the Cougars' career total blocks list. Dews is already No. 4 on the all-time block assists list and No. 8 on the blocks solo list. Houston continues their homestand this weekend as league opponent TCU visits the Athletics/Alumni Center on Saturday at 7 p.m.

LOUISVILLE: Louisville continued to dominate its opponents last weekend cruising past league opponents Tulane and Southern Miss. The Cardinals' 20-2 start in 2004 is their best start since 2002, when the U of L ran off to a 20-3 record to begin the season. With the pair of wins, Louisville extended its win streak to 12 matches. The Cards hope to pass their 2003 streak of 15 straight matches that ran from Oct. 17 to Nov. 29. Junior Lena Ustymenko, who was named Co C-USA Player of the Week, had no hitting errors in the Cards’ three-game sweep of Tulane Friday. Teammate Ana Yartseva, who is currently ranked No. 3 in the nation in hitting, had 11 kills and four blocks while hitting .600 against Tulane. The Cards face league opponents East Carolina and Charlotte this weekend.

MARQUETTE: Without a single five-game match all season, Marquette saw two nail-bitters last weekend as the Golden Eagles split a pair of five-game conference matches. Marquette posted a 3-2 win over Saint Louis on Friday, Oct. 29 and then fell to Memphis the following evening, 3-2. The Golden Eagles are currently fifth in conference standings with a 6-3 C-USA record and 16-6 on the season. Marquette had one of its best offensive outings against Saint Louis, smashing 86 kills and hitting .296 percent for the night. Junior outside hitter Theresa Coughlin led Marquette with a season-best 25 kills. The Golden Eagles kick off their final homestand as the team faces Tulane at the Al McGuire Center on Friday and Southern Miss on Saturday.

MEMPHIS: The Tigers improved to 23-7 on the season following a 2-0 weekend, including a 3-2 win over Marquette and a 3-0 sweep of DePaul in C-USA action. Junior Nancy Nellans posted her third straight double-double (12 kills, 10 digs) against DePaul Saturday evening at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse. Nellans is now just 102 digs shy of reaching 1,000 digs for her career. The Tigers, led by C-USA’s Setter of the Week Heather Watts, will now prepare to hit the road for the last time in C-USA action when they go to battle against UAB on Friday and USF on Saturday. Both matches are set for 7 p.m.

SAINT LOUIS: The Billikens split a pair of C-USA home matches last weekend, including a 3-1 win over DePaul and a 3-2 loss to Marquette. Aida Antanaviciute has 643 kills this season and ranks second on the school’s single-season record list. She needs 12 kills to break the single-season record of 654 set by former Billiken Colleen Hunter in 2000. Saint Louis plays its final road contests this week as the team travels to Tampa, Fla., to take on USF and Birmingham, Ala., to face UAB.

SOUTHERN MISS: Amy Truong recorded her fourth triple-double of the season, posting 10 kills, 52 assists and 14 digs against Southeastern Louisiana on Oct. 26. Amanda Blunck moved from libero to outside hitter last week as she tallied 40 kills and 57 digs during the week. The Eagles will close the road portion of their schedule at DePaul and Marquette this weekend.

TCU: The Horned Frogs beat Oklahoma Wednesday night in the first face-off between the teams. TCU now owns a 18-8 overall record and still holds a 7-3 mark in Conference USA action. Offensively on the night, TCU was led by senior Dominika Szabo with 22 kills and a .370 hitting percentage followed by sophomore Anna Vaughn with 19 kills and .371 average. TCU, which has already claimed a berth in this year’s C-USA Tournament, heads south to take on in-state rival Houston on Saturday.

TULANE: Tulane dropped a pair of C-USA matches last weekend to No. 22 Louisville followed by Cincinnati. Junior libero Kelli Dickson led all players with 16 digs, and freshman setter Brittany Esser posted a team-best 44 assists in the Green Wave’s loss to Cincinnati on Saturday, Oct. 30. Tulane returns to action on Friday when they travel to Milwaukee, Wis., to battle league foe Marquette at 7 p.m. Tulane will then play at DePaul on Saturday.

UAB: The Blazers were defeated by league opponents, Houston and TCU, on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Brianna Galvin recorded 16 digs, which led all players for the match, and freshman Angie Ping contributed four kills on just nine attempts against the Frogs. The Blazers will close out its home schedule next weekend with matches against Memphis and Saint Louis in Bartow Arena. The Blazers will take on the Tigers Friday evening and host the Billikens on Saturday. Both matches get underway at 7 p.m.

USF: USF fell Tuesday night to Florida State, 3-0. Junior Flavia Silveira continues to lead the Bulls offensively this season with 4.36 kills per game, which ranks her third in the conference, and a total of 343 points for the season. Just on her heels is freshman Michelle Stalbaum, whose most recent performance against FSU was well above that expected of a freshman. Stalbaum led all players in both kills and digs with 13 and 10, respectively, while hitting a career-high .300 against the Seminoles. The double-double was her 11th of the year, which leads all USF players. The Bulls will play their final home conference matches this weekend with battles against Saint Louis on Friday night and Memphis on Saturday.

C-USA PRESEASON POLL
The Conference USA volleyball coaches have selected Louisville as the preseason favorite to win the 2004 C-USA Championship. Cincinnati’s Julie DuPont was named the C-USA Preseason Player of the Year after leading the league in kills with 5.43 per game last season.

2004 PRESEASON COACHES POLL
1. Louisville (25-6, 12-1 in 2003)
2. Cincinnati (27-6, 12-1)
3. Houston (12-20, 6-7)
4. Tulane (25-7, 9-4)
5. Marquette (14-16, 8-5)
6. Memphis (30-6, 9-4)
7. TCU (20-16, 5-8)
8. USF (12-30, 6-7)
9. DePaul (11-20, 3-10)
10. Southern Miss (27-6, 11-2)
11. Saint Louis (9-22, 2-11)
12. UAB (14-20, 6-7)
13. Charlotte (8-24, 1-12)
14. East Carolina (10-21, 1-12)

ALL-LEAGUE TEAM
Theresa Coughlin, Marquette
Julie DuPont, Cincinnati*
Deva Fowler, Tulane
Lena Ustymenko, Louisville
Bing Sun, Louisville
Heather Watts, Memphis
* Preseason Player of the Year

C-USA CELEBRATES 10TH ANNIVERSARY
Conference USA celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2004-05. A significant milestone for the league, the 10th year finds the conference preparing to embark on a new era in its already remarkable history.

C-USA will commemorate this milestone throughout the year with a multimedia campaign celebrating the past, present and future of the league. Several activities have been planned for the upcoming season that capture the history of C-USA and promote the student-athletes’ achievements in all 19 conference-sponsored sports.

One of the biggest aspects of this campaign is the naming of All-Decade teams, as well as a Player of the Decade and a Coach of the Decade for each of the league’s sports. In order to best determine the recipients of these honors, we will have a nomination process through the SIDs and then each current head coach in that sport will fill out a ballot with their selections after reviewing the list of nominees and supporting information. The winners will then be announced on November 17.

DID YOU KNOW?
Since 1996, no C-USA school has been able to repeat as tournament champions. USF is the only school to win consecutive C-USA Tournament titles. No C-USA Tournament champion has been able to repeat since the Bulls captured the 1995 and 1996 titles. Here is a look at the last eight champions.
1995 USF
1996 USF
1997 Houston
1998 Louisville
1999 Cincinnati
2000 Louisville
2001 DePaul
2002 USF
2003 Louisville

REGULAR SEASON HISTORY
In the last nine years, Louisville either claimed or shared a league-record – five C-USA regular season titles. USF follows with four titles, while Cincinnati has claimed three. Here is a look at each year’s winner:
1995 Louisville (12-0)
1996 USF (13-1)
1997 USF (15-1)
1998 Louisville (14-2)
1999 Cincinnati (13-3)
Louisville (13-3)
2000 USF (5-1)
2001 Cincinnati (14-2)
2002 USF (12-1)
Louisville (12-1)
2003 Cincinnati (12-1)
Louisville (12-1)

TOURNAMENT SUCCESS
With numerous tournaments dotting the schedules of most C-USA teams, a number of league squads and individuals have fared well claiming tournament titles and MVP honors. Below is a look at those accomplishments through the start of 2004 conference play:

SpringHill Suites Tournament (Charlotte)
Champion: Charlotte
MVP: Abbey Szlanfucht

Vernon Manor Bearcat Invitational (Cincinnati)
Champion: Cincinnati
MVP: Julie DuPont

Mizuno Wildcat Classic (Davidson, N.C.)
Champion: DePaul
MVP: Janet Goreham

Memphis Volleyball Invitational (Memphis)
Champion: Memphis
MVP: Heather Watts

IU Credit Union Invitational (Bloomington, Ind.)
Champion: Saint Louis
MVP: Aida Antanaviciute

Kathy Trosclair Tournament (New Orleans, La.)
Champion: Tulane
MVP: Katie Case

U of L Courtyard by Marriott Tournament (Louisville)
Champion: Louisville
MVP: Bing Sun

SpringHill Suites Classic (Charlotte)
Champion: Charlotte
MVP: Lisa Newell

New England Challenge (Boston, Mass.)
Champion: TCU
MVP: Ellen Rehme

Ashbury Suites Classic (Mobile, Ala.)
Champion: Southern Miss
MVP: Not awarded

MSU/Microtel Classic (Starkville, Miss.)
Champion: Memphis
MVP: Tiara Gilkey

Raider Challenge (Dayton, Ohio)
Champion: Louisville
MVP: Bing Sun

Fairfield Invitational (Fairfield, Conn.)
Champion: Saint Louis
MVP: Aida Antanaviciute

UNC-Greensboro Invitational (Greensboro, N.C.)
Champion: Memphis
MVP: Heather Watts

Toyota Husky Classic (Storrs, Conn.)
Champion: Marquette
MVP: Erica Heisser

C-USA VS. OTHER CONFERENCES
Here is a look at how C-USA schools have fared against other Division I Conferences.
America East 4-0
ACC 3-5
Atlantic 10 3-0
Atlantic Sun 6-7
Big EAST 6-3
Big South 5-2
Big 10 1-6
Big 12 1-3
Colonial 4-1
Gateway 1-0
Horizon 6-7
Independent 0-2
Ivy 1-0
MAC 3-5
Metro Atlantic 4-0
Mid Continent 3-5
Mid-Eastern 4-1
Missouri Valley 4-6
Mountain West 0-2
Non Division I 3-1
Northeast 1-0
OVC 9-3
Pac 10 2-5
Patriot 1-0
SEC 1-9
Southern 10-4
Southland 6-6
SWAC 7-2
Sun Belt 11-6
WAC 1-2
West Coast 1-4

2004 COACHES RECORDS
Coach School Career
Lisa Marston, CHA 72-83 157-162
Reed Sunahara, CIN 115-41 134-81
Dawn Dockstader, DPU 109-139 109-139
Colleen Munson, ECU 51-95 51-95
Bill Walton, HOU 376-234 586-289
Leonid Yelin, LOU 215-63 329-99
Pati Rolf, MAR 43-38 353-207
Carrie Yerty, MEM 163-135 163-135
Anne Kordes, SLU 12-14 12-14
Ricci Luyties, USM 5-18 5-18
Prentice Lewis, TCU 50-42 50-42
Betsy Becker, TUL 105-76 183-134
Melinda Claiborne, UAB 46-101 46-101
Claire Lessinger, USF 6-16 6-16

2004 GAME REC0RDS
School 3 4 5 Total
Charlotte 9-5 5-3 4-2 18-10
Cincinnati 10-3 7-3 1-2 18-8
DePaul 6-9 3-2 1-5 10-16
East Carolina 5-8 3-3 2-3 10-14
Houston 4-6 2-7 2-3 8-16
Louisville 14-0 5-2 1-0 20-2
Marquette 11-3 4-2 1-1 16-6
Memphis 13-3 7-2 3-2 23-7
Saint Louis 5-5 5-3 2-6 12-14
Southern Miss 1-10 1-6 3-2 5-18
TCU 7-4 9-2 2-2 18-8
Tulane 9-4 1-3 3-0 13-7
UAB 0-18 1-1 0-1 1-20
USF 5-9 1-6 0-1 6-16

YEAR TWO: NEW POINT SYSTEM
In a new system adopted by Conference USA volleyball coaches prior to the 2003 season, 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). In 2003, C-USA Player of the Year JULIE DUPONT led the league in this new category, tallying 6.26 ppg.

LEADING THE CONFERENCE
Here is a look at several of the top single-match performances in Conference USA during the 2004 season.

HITTING PERCENTAGE
.696 (17-1-23) by Deva Fowler (TUL) vs. Southern Miss, 10/16

KILLS
45 by Aida Antanaviciute (SLU) at Tulane, 10/8

ASSISTS
74 by Erin Ludeke (TCU) at East Carolina University, 10/9

ATTEMPTS
112 by Aida Antanaviciute (SLU) at Tulane, 10/8

ACES
12 by Kate Juedes (USM) vs. Alcorn, 10/5

BLOCKS
16 by Deva Fowler (TUL) vs. Saint Louis, 10/8

DIGS
35 by Jaci Gonzalez (HOU) at Ball State, 9/18

2004 PLAYER/SETTER OF THE WEEK
Here is a look at C-USA’s Players/Setters of the Week for the 2004 season:

S7 P- Julie DuPont (Cincinnati)
P- Aida Antanaviciute (Saint Louis)
S- Heather Watts (Memphis)
S13 P- Ellen Rehme (TCU)
S- Sarah Vernon (Marquette)
S20 P-Tiara Gilkey (Memphis)
S-Heather Watts (Memphis)
S27 P- Aida Antanaviciute (Saint Louis)
P-Tiara Gilkey (Memphis)
S-Heather Watts (Memphis)
O4 P-Dominika Szabo (TCU)
S-Erin Ludeke (TCU)
O11 P- Aida Antanaviciute (Saint Louis)
P- Anna Vaughn (TCU)
S- Sarah Vernon (Marquette)
O18 P-Kimberley Todd (Marquette)
S-Molly McDonald (Charlotte)
O25 P- Aida Antanaviciute (Saint Louis)
P- Janet Goreham (DePaul)
S- Molly McDonald (Charlotte)
N1 P- Myanna Hellsten (Cincinnati)
P- Lena Ustymenko (Louisville)
S- Heather Watts (Memphis)