Oct. 17, 2005
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ORLANDO - The UCF volleyball team concludes a three-match homestand on Tuesday evening, hosting Tulsa for a Conference USA match. First serve at UCF Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m.
The Golden Knights (4-11, 2-6 C-USA) will be looking to record a win against a Tulsa team that is 17-3 overall and 4-2 in league contests.
Fans attending the match should park on the third, fourth and fifth floors of the Convocation Center Housing garage next to the arena.
The contest will be aired live on www.UCFathletics.com as part of the "Golden Knights All-Access." UCF student broadcasters will call of the action. Pre-match coverage is slated for 6:30 p.m.
ABOUT UCF The Golden Knights have played two straight five-game matches, most recently a 30-27, 23-30, 30-27, 25-30, 15-13 loss to visiting Houston on Sunday. Four Golden Knights finished with double-doubles, led by sophomore outside hitter Schanell Neiderworder who recorded a career-high 21 kills and also added 16 digs. In her last two matches, Neiderworder has totaled 39 kills. Against the Cougars, sophomore outside hitter Lorin Lukas had 15 kills and a career-high 16 digs.
On the season, junior outside hitter Maina Heming leads the team, averaging 3.11 kills per game. Junior middle blocker Jana Mitchell is hitting .304, which ranks eighth in Conference USA.
Head coach Meg Colado is in her seventh season at UCF. She has a 130-93 (.583) overall coaching mark and is 115-77 (.599) with the Golden Knights.
ABOUT TULSA The Golden Hurricane enter the match tied for third in the conference with a 4-2 mark. The team swept visiting Tulane on Sunday (30-20, 30-24, 30-28). Kassiana Urnau posted her 10th double-double on the year with 19 kills and 12 digs against the Green Wave. On the year, she is averaging 3.48 kills per game and 3.12 digs per game. Renee Brooks leads the conference in hitting percentage with a .408 mark. Teammate Julia Silva (.368) is second in the same category and ranks fourth in C-USA, averaging 12.29 assists per game. Evyn Wills is Tulsa's top libero and is averaging 4.73 digs per game. As a team, the Golden Hurricane pace C-USA with 16.14 kills per game.
Head coach Matt Sonnichesen is in his eighth year at Tulsa. He has a 115-105 mark with the Golden Hurricane.
UCF AGAINST THE GOLDEN HURRICANE UCF and Tulsa will be meeting for the second time. The squads met in 1993 at the New Orleans Invitational with the Golden Knights easing to a 3-0 (15-6, 15-1, 15-11) victory. In 1993, the Golden Knights posted a 35-8 overall mark and claimed their second consecutive Atlantic Sun title.
SCHEDULE REMIX The match with Tulsa was originally scheduled for Sept. 25 at the Education Gym on the UCF campus, but was postponed due to Hurricane Rita. The Golden Knights home match with Florida Atlantic, that was also postponed due to the storm, will now be played on Nov. 13.
WHAT A WEEKEND Junior setter Leah Alexander posted her first double-doubles as a Golden Knight this past weekend. She recorded 48 assists and 10 digs against Rice. Alexander followed that performance with a career-high 59 assists and 10 digs versus Houston. The junior college transfer also totaled seven service aces in the two matches. On the year, she leads UCF, averaging 8.96 assists per game.
ROOKIE REPORT Freshman libero Lindsay Randazzo was solid against Rice and Houston this past weekend. She posted 33 digs against the Owls and had 25 versus Houston. She leads UCF with 165 total digs and a 3.51 digs per game average. The rookie has led the Golden Knights in digs on four occasions.
HEPP HEPP HOORAY Although just a freshman, Jenny Heppert is among the nation's leaders is service aces per game. Her 0.64 aces per game rank 10th nationally through matches of Oct. 11. That mark also leads the conference. Heppert is also currently sixth in the C-USA rankings, averaging 1.00 blocks per game.
HURRICANE KATRINA RELIEF EFFORT Prior to each UCF home match, school officials will collect donations to assist the victims of Hurricane Katrina. All donations will be given to the United Way and directed to those in need following the storm. Members of the volleyball team also collected donations prior to UCF's football game with Marshall on Sept. 24 at the Florida Citrus Bowl. UCF head coach Meg Colado is a New Orleans native and freshman libero Lindsay Randazzo hails from Metairie, La.
ON DECK After three straight matches at home, UCF returns to the road for a pair of conference road matches... The Golden Knights will visit UTEP on Friday for an 8 p.m. contest. The schools will be playing for the second time on the court. In 1990, the visiting Miners claimed a 3-1 (8-15, 15-10, 15-9, 15-10) match in Orlando... UCF will remain in Texas to face Tulane on Sunday at 2 p.m. The match will played at the Texas A&M campus in College Station. Due to Hurricane Katrina, the Green Wave have played their home matches at the G. Rollie White Coliseum... UCF leads the all-time series with Tulane, 6-2. The last series meeting was in 1999 when the teams met at the LSU Tournament in Baton Rouge, La. The Green Wave claimed the match, 3-0 (15-9, 15-7, 15-7).