Nov. 19, 2008
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ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF (14-16, 6-10 C-USA) volleyball team travels to Memphis, Tenn., Thursday for the Conference USA Volleyball Championship hosted by Memphis. The No. 9-seeded Knights open the 12-team, four-day tournament with a 1 p.m. ET contest against No. 8 SMU, with the winner of the match moving on to play top-seeded Tulane in the quarterfinal round Friday at 1 p.m. ET.
No. 8 SMU Mustangs (14-16, 6-10 C-USA)
The Mustangs enter the C-USA Championship Thursday with the exact same record as the Knights, sitting at 14-16 on the season and 6-10 in the league. SMU was seeded eighth in the event, holding the tiebreaker over the Black and Gold after defeating the visiting Knights in late September. The Mustangs are led by Katherine Wilkerson's 3.04 kills and 3.41 points per set. Kendra Kahanek paces the defense with a 1.34 blocks per set average.
Eight is Great
UCF's eighth-place tie in C-USA this season is its highest finish since joining the league in 2005 and its No. 9 ranking in the event is its best placing since its inaugural season, when the Knights entered the tournament with the same seeding and same 6-10 league mark.
Successful Push
On the year, the Knights have pushed their volleyball program into a new direction, securing their most wins since 2003 with a 14-16 overall record and beating four teams in conference play that they had never beaten previously. The Black and Gold also registered a five-match winning streak from Sept. 13-20, its longest streak since 2004, while matching the team win total from both the 2007 and 2006 seasons combined.
Last Time vs. SMU
When UCF and SMU last met in late September at Moody Coliseum, the Knights took an early 2-0 lead in the match, before the Mustangs rallied back to win the contest, 3-2. Stephanie Serna and Janine Williams paced the Knights offensively in the contest, tallying 15 kills apiece, while Erin Campbell added 13 kills. Defensively, Kathleen Curry posted 27 digs and Jenny Heppert totaled five blocks for the visiting Knights. UCF is 0-4 all-time vs. SMU.
Neutral Site Success
The Black and Gold is 1-3 all-time in the C-USA Championship, picking up its only win in 2005 against Memphis. Since then, UCF has dropped three-straight matches at the event. But heading into the match against SMU Thursday, the Knights are 7-1 on the season when facing an opponent at a neutral site.
32 and Counting
One of UCF's all-time leading blockers, senior Jenny Heppert has posted at least one block in 32-consecutive contests heading into the C-USA Championship, dating back to last season. Heppert started the streak on Sunday, Nov. 9, after totaling 4.0 total blocks against Southern Miss and extended the streak after posting seven total blocks on Senior Night against Southern Miss on Nov. 15.
Set Me Up
Junior Erin Campbell surpassed former teammate Schanell Neiderworder for the No. 7 spot on the UCF Individual Career register after posting 2,578 total attempts in her career. Campbell held the No. 8 spot on the chart with 2,538 career attempts heading into the match against Southern Miss, before registering 40 attempts in the match to take sole possession of the seventh position.
Putting It Down
Erin Campbell, Janine Williams and Stephanie Serna will all finish the 2008 season with more than 300 kills, as the trio carry 381, 361 and 346 kills, respectively, for the Knights' offense. UCF is the only team in the league to have three players with more than 300 kills, with Tulane and Tulsa each having two players surpass the plateau. The last time UCF had a threesome with 300+ kills in a season was in 2003. That year, the trio of Emily Watts, Tanya Jarvis and Amanda Stoutjesdyk totaled 417, 381 and 349 kills, respectively.
Lucky No. 20
Stephanie Serna has posted a match-best 20 kills in two of her last three C-USA matches, which included contests against both Marshall and Southern Miss. The senior has totaled 10 or more kills on 20 different occasions this season and in three of her last four matches.
Tournament Record
Since 1992, the Knights are 28-7 in conference tournaments. UCF claimed eight Atlantic Sun Conference titles during that time and participated in seven NCAA Tournaments, including four-straight from 1994-97 and three-straight from 2001-03.
Big Blocks
With two solo blocks against Southern Miss last Saturday, Jenny Heppert took sole possession of the No. 5 spot on the Knights' all-time record chart with 56 in her career. The senior also holds down the third position on the career register with 313 block assists and 369 total blocks, making her one of UCF's most dominated blockers.
Senior Attack
Seniors Jenny Heppert and Stephanie Serna rank No. 5 and No. 6, respectively, in hitting percentage against C-USA opponents this season. Heppert is hitting .335 against league-foes, while Serna is hitting .314 in conference play.
Next Up
The UCF-SMU winner will face top-seeded Tulane at 1 p.m. ET on Friday in quarterfinal action... UCF is 7-5 all-time vs. the Green Wave... The winner of Friday's quarterfinal match will move on to the semifinal round on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET, with the Championship contest slated for Sunday at 3 p.m. ET. The match will be televised live on CBS College Sports Network.
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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