Aug. 30, 2008
STATESBORO, Ga. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF volleyball team concluded the Georgia Southern Holiday Inn Invitational Saturday night with a 3-2 (22-25, 25-14, 25-27, 25-13, 17-15) win over Presbyterian at Hanner Fieldhouse on the campus of Georgia Southern University. With the victory, the Knights improved to 2-1 on the season, while finishing the tournament with the same record.
"I thought this weekend really gave us a good idea of what we need to work on for the rest of the season," head coach Todd Dagenais said. "I was happy that we were able to get most of the new players on the court and into the UCF jersey."
Despite falling in the first set, UCF posted a convincing 25-14 victory in the second set behind three service aces from senior Jenny Heppert (Lawrence, Kan.) and a .750 hitting percentage from freshman Renele Forde (Trincity, Trinidad and Tobago). The Black and Gold bounced back from a third set defeat to win the final two sets and clinch the victory. Heppert shined again in set four, hitting a perfect 1.000 with five kills, while Erin Campbell's (Kansas, City, Mo.) four kills in the fifth set paced the Knights' offense.
Campbell totaled 11 kills and 15 digs in the match, going a perfect 3-for-3 with double-doubles in the tournament. Sophomore Janine Williams (Gainesville, Fla.) led all hitters for the second-consecutive match, posting 19 kills and three service aces.
"I thought that Janine did a great job of carrying the offensive load this weekend," Dagenais said. "It will be important for her to continue to provide offensive production throughout the season."
Heppert and Lauren Williams (Lake Mary, Fla.) added 11 and 10 kills, respectively, with Williams also collecting five block assists and a block solo. Heppert's four service aces in the match brought her career total to 121 and gave her sole possession of the eighth position on the UCF individual career register.
"Heppert and (Lauren) Williams really did a great job today," Dagenais said. "It is really important that they continue to provide offense to take some of the load off of our outside hitters."
The Black and Gold also got solid production from Forde in the final match of the event, as the freshman posted a team-high .750 hitting percentage with six kills and six block assists.
The Knights host the six-time national champion Stanford on Tuesday, Sept. 2 at The Venue at UCF at 7 p.m. The first 1,000 students to arrive at the event will be guaranteed a ticket for the UCF vs. USF football game on Sept. 6.
Season tickets for UCF's 2008 volleyball campaign at The Venue are currently available by calling the UCF athletics ticket office at 407-UCF-1000. For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
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