Dec. 22, 2011
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By John Denton
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO - As the final days of 2011 fade away and 2012 approaches, we here at UCFAthletics.com want to look back at the best moments of the past year and honor arguably the most significant 12 months in school history.
Starting on today, we'll be counting down the Top 10 moments of the 2011 involving UCF Athletics on a daily basis. We've taken fans' feedback and the input from staffers on hand at each event and compiled the list of grand achievements. Check back each day as we unveil the 10 best moments of 2011 starting with No. 10 today and counting down to No. 1 on New Year's Eve.
The honorable mention picks that didn't make the list were A.J. Rompza's game-winning shot in the last seconds to beat Southern Miss; Bruce Miller and Jah Reid getting selected in the NFL Draft; the grand opening of UCF's refurbished track/soccer stadium; Gevenia Carter's halfcourt heave at the buzzer to beat UTEP; and J.J. Worton's thrilling touchdown catch at the end of the Southern Miss game.
Here is a breakdown of the No. 10 moment of 2011 for UCF Athletics:
MOMENT: UCF volleyball defeats No. 3 USC in three sets
DATE: Sept. 2
SITE: Fort Myers, Homewood Suites FGCU Invitational at Alico Arena.
SIGNIFICANCE: The win was UCF's first defeat of a ranked team since joining Conference USA in 2005. The win also allowed UCF coach Todd Dagenais to defeat USC, his former employer.
WHAT HAPPENED: Not only did UCF capture the most significant victory in program history, but it did so in convincing fashion. The Knights won the three sets 25-16, 25-20 and 25-22. And they also dominated the stats in every way, holding advantages in kills (53-31), hitting percentage (.351 to .135) and digs (50-35). Both junior Evijia Vilde and sophomore Angelica Crump had 15 kills in the match. Freshman Kayla Keller also showed off her tremendous promise with 12 kills and 13 digs in her first collegiate start. And senior Rachel Vukson added 42 assists and 10 digs in the historic victory for the Knights.
THEY SAID IT: ``This win is a total program effort,'' Dagenais said. ``It's not just for the people that are here right now, but for those who were here prior to this year. There are three years of teams who paid the price for us to have an opportunity like this, and those are the people we want to include in this. ... We're trying to build something special so that one day we can put ourselves in the league such as a USC, who has done it year in and year out. We still strive to be a program like them. Obviously it was a nice milestone for us. They are who we would like to be someday, so it was an honor to play them and we are thankful for that opportunity.''