Oct. 30, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF volleyball team returns to The Venue at UCF this weekend to host a slew of Halloween weekend activities as it faces Tulane Friday for "Voll-O-Ween" night, before hosting UTEP Saturday in its third annual "Dig for the Cure" match. Both matches this weekend are scheduled for 7 p.m.
Tulane Green Wave (18-5, 9-1 C-USA)
The Green Wave enter Friday's contest with an 18-5 overall record and a 9-1 Conference USA mark. Tulane sits in second place in league standings behind UAB, suffering its only loss to the Blazers, while also receiving 23 votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll this week. C-USA's second-leading hitter, Sara Radosevic, has paced the Green Wave this season with a 3.62 kills per set average, while Bridget Wells is close behind, averaging 3.20 kills per set, good for 10th in the league.
UTEP Miners (6-19, 2-9 C-USA)
The Miners travel to Orlando as the conference's 11th ranked squad, holding a 2-9 league mark and a 6-19 record on the season. Last weekend, UTEP faced a pair of tough opponents in Houston and Rice, falling to the Houston, Texas, two-some, 3-2 and 3-1, respectively. The Miners rank 38th among NCAA Division I programs in service aces per set (1.60), with Amy Sanders leading the team with 34 aces on the season.
Against Tulane...
The Knights hold a 7-4 record all-time against the Green Wave, with their last win coming in a five-match battle in 2005. Heppert, the only current Knights to play in the match, hit .500 with 11 kills and six block assists in the match. Since then, Tulane has won two-straight over UCF.
Against UTEP...
UCF has yet to take a win from the Miners since the teams' rivalry began in 1990, holding a 0-4 mark. In three of the squads' four meetings UTEP has defeated the Black and Gold in four sets, with the only three-set victory coming in 2005. Last season, Campbell led the Knights with 14 kills, while Serna added 13.
Voll-O-Ween
In honor of its Halloween match Friday night against Tulane, the volleyball team will be hosting Voll-O-Ween night for fans of all ages. Young fans who attend the match in their costumes will be able to enjoy the match free of charge and will also be able to trick-or-treat with members of the UCFAA staff prior to match-time.
Dig for the Cure
The Knights will hold their third-annual "Dig for the Cure" match Saturday night when they welcome UTEP to The Venue at UCF. Fans may pledge money per dig earned by the Black and Gold in the match or make a flat donation to support the Susan G. Komen Foundation and its crusade in the battle against breast cancer. Last season, UCF tallied 69 digs against Memphis to help the cause.
Hot Steak
Prior to Sunday's match at UAB, senior Stephanie Serna had posted 10 or more kills in 15-straight matches for the Knights, which included a 20-kill performance against East Carolina on Oct. 5. In those 15 matches, Serna averaged 3.54 kills per set (209 K, 59 sets) and hit .379.
Big Blocks
Heading into Sunday's match at UAB, senior Jenny Heppert needed one block assist to tie, and two to surpass, Amanda Stoutjesdyk for the No. 3 spot on the UCF individual career register, and she did just that. The middle blocker posted two critical block assists in the match, taking sole possession of the third position on the record chart with 298 block assists in her career.
Climbing the Charts
Erin Campbell is starting to break into numerous career-record numbers as the 2008 season is winding down, recently placing herself in UCF volleyball's all-time top-10 with 768 digs. The former placeholder in the No. 10 slot was Lisa Liljenquist Rieman who totaled 750 career digs from 1996-99. The outside hitter also holds down the No. 8 spot for all-time attempts with 2,377 on her resume.
Leaps and Bounds
On Oct. 13, the UCF volleyball team ranked No. 76 on the NCAA RPI Rankings. The team concluded the 2007 season with a No. 244 ranking, a jump of 168 places, the largest for any Division I team this season.
Two More to Pass
The Knights need only two more wins this season to surpass its win total from the last two seasons combined. The Black and Gold posted five wins in 2006 and nine victories in 2007, and with 13 already in 2008, UCF could reach that mark this weekend.
1,000 Points
Heppert tallied four points for the Knights last weekend against C-USA's top-ranked UAB, helping her reach the 1,000-point milestone for her career. The senior totaled 189 points as a freshman, 227 as a sophomore, 356 last season as a junior and has accumulated 228 points this season.
Standing on the Plateau
Janine Williams surpassed the 300-kill plateau last weekend in matches against Memphis and UAB on the road, holding 301 on the season after posting 16 kills in the pair of contests. Williams is only the second player from UCF this season to surpass 300 kills and only the third since 2003 to hit the mark after both Campbell and Serna eclipsed the mark last season.
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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