Entering the final weekend of regular season, 11 of the 12 teams competing in the Healthy Choice Conference USA Tournament have been determined. South Florida, Louisville, Cincinnati and Saint Louis have all earned first round byes. Tulane, Houston, Southern Miss, Charlotte, UAB, Memphis and TCU have also earned a berth in this year's tournament. The final berth into the tourney will be determined by the outcome of the DePaul at Marquette match on Friday. Get ready for another exciting weekend of C-USA Volleyball by reading this week's notebook.

C-USA CO-PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Cincinnati's BONITA WISE and ALESSANDRA DOMINGOS share C-USA Player of the Week honors for the period ending Nov. 10.

BONITA WISE, Cincinnati
Sr., MB, Riverside, Calif. (John W. North)

Cincinnati's BONITA WISE was instrumental in extending the Bearcats win streak to 12 matches with victories over TCU and Houston. For the week, she averaged 5.14 kills, 3.29 digs and 1.14 blocks per game. Against TCU, Wise scored her seventh double-double performance of the year with 19 kills and 14 digs. She also posted 17 kills and no errors for a .531 attack percentage in a 3-0 win over the Cougars. Wise finished the week with a total of 36 kills and only three errors for a .516 hitting percentage.

ALESSANDRA DOMINGOS, South Florida
Sr., S, Recife, Brazil (Utah Valley State JC)

ALESSANDRA DOMINGOS helped South Florida to back-to-back conference sweeps over DePaul and Marquette last week. She averaged 14.2 assists per game, while leading the Bulls in hitting percentage with a .538 for the week. She notched her sixth double-double performance of the season against DePaul with 10 digs and 47 assists. Domingos also committed no service errors in six games. For the week, she posted a total of 85 assists and 15 digs, while notching nine kills and only two errors for a .538 hitting percentage.

AMONG THE RANKED
Here is a look at the latest AVCA/USA Today poll for the week of Nov. 11

1. Stanford
2. USC
3. Hawaii
4. Florida
5. Nebraska
6. Minnesota
7. UC Santa Barbara
8. Northern Iowa
9. Pepperdine
10. Long Beach State
11. Santa Clara
12. North Carolina
13. Penn State
14. Wisconsin
15. Eastern Washington
16. Arizona
17. Washington State
18. South Carolina
19. UCLA
20. Kansas State
21. Utah
22. Washington
23. Georgia Tech
24. Missouri
25. San Diego

Others receiving points and listed on two or more ballots: Arizona State (62), Notre Dame (47), California (39), Indiana (32), South Florida (23), Ohio State (15), Arkansas (15), Texas A&M (13), Texas (11), Michigan (11), Fresno State (9), Michigan State (4).

MIDWEST REGIONAL RANKINGS
Here is a look at the Midwest Volleyball Regional Rankings for the week of Nov. 4. Conference USA had five schools ranked in the region, including three of the top five.

1. South Florida
2. Louisville
3. Cincinnati
4. UW-Milwaukee
5. Loyola
6. Saint Louis
7. Houston
8. UT-Martin
9. Cleveland State
10. Morehead State

TOURNAMENT BERTHS
Entering the final weekend of regular season, 11 of the 12 teams competing in the Healthy Choice Conference USA Tournament have been determined. South Florida, Louisville, Cincinnati and Saint Louis have all earned first round byes. Tulane, Houston, Southern Miss, Charlotte, UAB, Memphis and TCU have also earned a berth in this year's tournament. The final berth into the C-USA Tournament will be determined by the outcome of the DePaul at Marquette match on Friday.

WHOSE NO. 1?
The regular season champion and the No. 1 seed for the Healthy Choice C-USA Tournament have yet to be finalized. If South Florida remains undefeated, it wins the title outright. The Bulls take on Cincinnati on Friday and Louisville on Sunday. Both the Cardinals and the Bearcats will be looking for the upset as both stand in second place in the team rankings with a 10-1 conference record.

THE 30-KILL CLUB
During the 2001 season, Conference USA led the nation with six players who had posted 30-plus kills in a game. This season, the league has already surpassed that mark with nine C-USA players tallying a total of 14 30-plus kill performances. Here is a look at this year's 30-plus kill showings.

Brittany Barnett, MEM
31 vs. TCU Oct. 12

Andrea Bush, USM
30 vs. DePaul Oct. 20
30 vs. UT-Martin Sept. 6

Michelle Collier, USF
35 vs. Georgia Tech Sept. 13
31 at Central Florida Oct. 15
31 vs. No. 8 Pepperdine Aug. 31
30 at Miami (Fla.) Oct. 21

Katie Engel, DPU
34 vs. Southern Miss Oct. 20

Colleen Hunter, SLU
31 at Tulane Sept. 29
30 vs. Houston Oct. 12

Britney Hurst, TUL
37 at Bowling Green Sept. 21
30 vs. UL-Lafayette Oct. 1

Jane Anne Karasek, HOU
33 vs. Southern Miss Oct. 5

Jenny Tanneberger, HOU
41 at Saint Louis Oct. 12

COACHING MILESTONES
Saint Louis' MARILYN NOLEN is only two victories away from becoming the third Division 1 coach to tally 800 wins at four-year institutions. She has a career record of 798-335-12 in 31 years of coaching. Southern Miss head coach SANTIAGO RESTREPO is only two wins away from posting his 100th career victory. He currently holds a 98-64 career record.

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

HITTING PERCENTAGE
.750 (16-1-20) by Shannon Devine (MAR) vs. Western Illinois, 9/20

KILLS
41 by Jenny Tanneberger (HOU) vs. Saint Louis, 10/12

ASSISTS
81 by Alessandra Domingos (USF) vs. Central Florida, 10/15

ATTEMPTS
95 by Britney Hurst (TUL) vs. Bowling Green State, 9/21

ACES
9 by Nancy Nellans (MEM) vs. Arkansas State, 9/6

BLOCKS
14 by Colleen Hunter (SLU) vs. Bradley, 9/4

DIGS
39 by Sarah Drury (LOU) vs. Cincinnati, 9/27

WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Here are some of the top individual performers in C-USA from Nov. 4-10.

BRITTANY BARNETT, MEM: Averaged 4.0 kills per game last week and led the Tigers to back-to-back wins over Charlotte and East Carolina.

BROOKE MINNIEAR, SLU: Was a defensive force for the Billikens, leading SLU in digs against East Carolina and Charlotte. She registered 21 digs and added nine kills in the win over Charlotte.

BRIDGET FILES, USM: Tallied 16 digs and 23 digs against Tulane

STEPHANIE WATSON, TCU: Posted a total of 22 kills and 29 digs last week. Against Cincinnati, she tallied 14 kills and 16 digs.

BRITNEY HURST, TUL: Posted a pair of double-digit performances last week, including a 21 kill and 21 dig showing against Southern Miss.

MARTINA SHIELDS, UAB: Recorded three double-double performances last week to lead the Blazers to a 3-0 record. She notched her 13th overall double-double against DePaul with 23 kills and 12 digs.

HUNTER AMONG THE FIRST
Saint Louis' COLLEEN HUNTER became the first player in C-USA history to reach at least 1,500 kills, 1,000 digs and 500 blocks in a career. Last weekend, she tallied seven blocks against DePaul and five digs against Marquette to reach this milestone. She currently has 2,139 kills, 1,028 digs and 511 blocks in her career.

THE BEARCAT RUN
Cincinnati extended its win streak to 12 matches over the weekend, tying for the fourth-longest in school history. The Bearcats are only four victories away from tying their school record 16 consecutive wins set in 2001. South Florida holds the C-USA record with a 20-match win streak in 2000.

FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
On Oct. 12, Houston's JENNY TANNEBERGER tied a C-USA record for kills in a match, notching a career-high 41 against Saint Louis. South Florida's MICHELLE COLLIER was previously the lone record-holder, after nabbing 41 kills on Nov. 10, 2000.

DID YOU KNOW?
C-USA is on the brink of having five schools compile 20 or more win seasons for the third consecutive year. This season, South Florida (25-5) and Louisville (21-4) have already compiled 20 wins. Cincinnati (19-6), Saint Louis (19-9) and Tulane (19-13) are just one win away from hitting this milestone.


2002 C-USA TOURNAMENT
The 2002 Healthy Choice C-USA Volleyball Tournament will be held on Friday-Monday, Nov. 22-25 at the DePaul Athletic Center in Chicago, Ill. Friday and Saturday matches will be held at 1 p.m., 3 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. (CST), while Saturday's semifinal games will be begin at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The C-USA Television Network will carry the tournament final on Monday, Nov. 25 at 8 p.m. EST. Please check your local listings for details.

C-USA NOTEBOOK

CHARLOTTE: The 49ers dropped a pair of Conference USA matches last week, falling at Memphis 2-3 and Saint Louis 1-3. ABBEY SZLANFUCHT posted two more double-doubles last week to extend her streak to four in a row. Against Memphis she had a career-high 22 digs. COURTNEY BURG now has five straight double-doubles after posting two over the weekend. Charlotte plays its final non-conference match of the year Tuesday, when it hosts Furman. The 49ers close the regular-season against Houston and TCU this weekend.

CINCINNATI: The Bearcats extended their win streak to a conference season-high 12 matches last weekend, defeating TCU and Houston. Cincinnati is now only four matches away from tying the school record of 16 consecutive wins set last season. Last weekend, BONITA WISE was instrumental for UC, averaging 5.14 kills, 3.29 digs and 1.14 blocks per game. Against TCU, she scored her seventh double-double performance of the year, while recording her third match with at least 10 kills and no errors against Houston. With 34 digs over the weekend, TRISH LADUSAW now ranks ninth in NCAA history with 1,982 digs in her career. Cincinnati will look to improve its 12-match win streak when it takes on South Florida on Friday.

DE PAUL: DePaul suffered a pair of losses last weekend against UAB and South Florida. JANET GOREHAM collected a double-double with 14 kills, 11 digs while earning an attack percentage of .278. LARA MARKS continues to lead the Blue Demons and ranks seventh in the conference with a .322 hitting percentage. DePaul closes out the regular season at Marquette on Friday. The Blue Demons must win to earn a berth to the C-USA Tournament.

EAST CAROLINA: The Pirates fell to Saint Louis and Memphis last weekend. SARAH VICK compiled a team-high 17 kills against Memphis, while JESSICA VICK added 31 assists. East Carolina hosts TCU and Houston at home this weekend.

HOUSTON: Houston fell to Louisville and Cincinnati last weekend. LAURA KOSTER led all hitters with 18 kills and contributed six digs against the Bearcats. JENNY TANNEBERGER added 17 kills (.295) and six digs. Tanneberger ranks fifth in the conference with 5.25 kills per game. The Cougars will face Tulane at home on Tuesday, before taking on Charlotte and East Carolina this weekend.

LOUISVILLE: The Cardinals downed Houston and TCU last weekend. STACEY MERCER, who was moved from her starting middle blocker position to the right side after LENA USTYMENKO did not play, notched a career-high 20 digs against Houston. She also added 13 kills for a .407 hitting percentage against TCU. A preseason all-conference selection, SONJA PERCAN, who has been medically redshirted for the 2002 season. Percan suffered an ankle injury in the second game of the Georgia Tech Tournament on Sept. 7. Louisville will host UAB on Friday and South Florida on Saturday.

MARQUETTE: Marquette dropped a pair of conference matches against UAB and South Florida last weekend. JESSICA KLEIN posted 15 kills against UAB, marking her second highest of the season. Junior GEMMA GREER doled out 980 assists to rank eighth on the school's seasonal chart. THERESA COUGHLIN was the lone Marquette player to record double-figure attacks in both matches last week. She tallied 12 against the Blazers and 10 versus South Florida. The Golden Eagles' berth to the C-USA Tournament will come down to its match against DePaul on Friday. Marquette must defeat the Blue Demons to claim either the No. 11 or 12 seed.

MEMPHIS: Memphis captured wins over Charlotte and East Carolina last weekend to secure a bid to the C-USA Tournament. BRITTANY BARNETT led the Tigers against Charlotte with 19 kills, while adding five digs and two blocks. She is currently eighth in Memphis' single season record book with 474 kills and only needs one more to move into a tie with Holly Bufurd for seventh in all-time history. NANCY NELLANS downed 20 kills against East Carolina, marking her fifth out of 11 league matches that she has compiled 20-plus kill performances. Memphis will travel to New Orleans on Friday to face Tulane before taking on Southern Miss on Saturday.

SAINT LOUIS: The Billikens captured a first round bye to the C-USA Tournament with wins over East Carolina and Charlotte last weekend. BROOKE MINNIEAR notched nine kills and 16 digs against East Carolina. She also registered 21 digs against Charlotte, marking the fourth match that she has had at least 20 digs in a match. BETH MIDDENDORF has moved into sixth place on the all-time assists list with 1,914. The Billikens close out the regular season this weekend when they take on Southern Miss on Friday.


SOUTH FLORIDA: South Florida remains undefeated in conference play, after downing DePaul and Marquette. The Bulls ended the season 15-1 at home, with their only loss coming against No. 19 Michigan State. ALESSANDRA DOMINGOS posted a double-double against DePaul with 10 digs and 47 assists. For the weekend, she compiled 85 assists and 15 digs, while hitting a team-high .538 USF's 11-0 record in conference play marks the best start for the Bulls since 2000. That season, they went on to claim a 15-1 record and 28-6 overall mark. If they continue to win in conference play, USF could become only the second team in conference history to post an undefeated league mark. In the first year of C-USA play, the Cardinals notched a 12-0 conference record in 1995. On Friday, the Bulls will face Cincinnati, before finishing the regular season at Louisville on Saturday.

SOUTHERN MISS: The Golden Eagles lost their only match of the week, a 3-1 loss to Tulane. Five players recorded double-digits digs with BRIDGET FILES leading the way with 23. She currently leads the team in blocks with 108 and is second on the team in kills with 361. ANDREA BUSH and NICKI TRIBBLE added 18 and 17 digs, respectively. Southern Miss hosts Saint Louis on Friday and Memphis on Saturday.

TCU: The Horned Frogs dropped a pair of conference matches against Cincinnati and Louisville. Against the Cardinals, sophomore DOMINIKA SZABO tallied 56 attempts, tying her for the all-time record in a three-game match (also: Jill Pape, 56 vs. UTEP, 11/2/96). Szabo also led the team in kills with 18 and one ace. Even with the two losses, TCU has earned a bid to the C-USA Tournament. The Frogs will face East Carolina on Friday and Charlotte on Saturday.

TULANE: Tulane defeated Southern Miss, 3-1 on Saturday for its fifth-straight win. BRITNEY HURST set the school's single season record for kills against Southern Miss and now has 615 for the year. She eclipsed the old record held by Alicia Roberson, who compiled 613 in 1994. Hurst is also third on the single-season digs category with 398. Tulane returns to action on Tuesday when it faces Houston.

UAB: UAB recorded a perfect 3-0 record last week with wins over Georgia State, Marquette and DePaul. Junior MARTINA SHIELDS recorded three double-double performances, notching her sixth consecutive and 13th overall double-double showing against DePaul with 23 kills and 12 digs. UAB closes out the regular season with matches against two of the top teams in C-USA. The Blazers play at Louisville on Friday and at Cincinnati on Sunday.