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Oregon State Volleyball Player Jill Sawatzky Named Pac-10 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year Corvallis, Ore. – Senior Jill Sawatzky (St. Andrews, Manitoba) is the 2010 Pac-10 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, presented by Toyo Tires, announced Wednesday by Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott. Sawatzky is a three-time Pac-10 All-Academic First Team selection and 2010 CoSIDA/ESPN Academic All-District 8 First Team honoree. The 6-2 outside hitter is a business major, earning an Everyday Champion nod in the fall. She has been named to the Dean’s List every term at Oregon State, while tallying perfect 4.0 GPAs in eight of her 11 terms attended. On the court, Sawatzky finished as the fourth best attacker in school history, amassing 1,481 kills (3.28 kps) and 1692.0 points (3.75 pps). In her final season, she recorded the ninth best single season for kills with 462, second-best for a senior. And her 538.5 points is also good for ninth all-time. She earned her first All-Pac-10 honor, tabbed honorable mention, this season after earning Pac-10 All-Freshman Honorable Mention accolades in 2007. Pac-10 corporate partner Toyo Tires is the sponsor of this award, and it will donate $1,000 to the Oregon State Athletics scholarship fund. Sawatzky becomes the fourth Oregon State athlete to be named a Pac-10 Scholar-Athlete since the inception of the program in 2007-08. In order to be eligible for the Pac-10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, student-athletes must be a senior (in athletics eligibility) on track to receive a degree, have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, participate in at least 50% of the scheduled contests in the sport and have a minimum of one year in residence at the institution. Each Pac-10 institution may nominate one individual per sport, and the winners are selected by a committee of Pac-10 staff members at the conclusion of each sport’s regular season. The athletic accomplishments of the nominees are a consideration in the voting for the award.
Pac-10 Announces 2010 Fall Scholar-Athletes of the Year, Presented by Toyo Tires
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - The Pac-10 Conference has named the fall Scholar-Athletes of the Year, presented by Toyo Tires®. These awards have been established to honor collegiate student-athletes that are standouts both academically and in their sports discipline.
The Pac-10 Scholar-Athletes for fall include:
Elliott Heath, Stanford - Men’s cross country, 3.57 - engineering Alexandra Kosinski, Oregon - Women’s cross country, 3.83 - sociology Mike Mohamed, California - Football, 3.43 - business administration Christen Press, Stanford - Women's soccer, 3.61 - communications Jill Sawatzky, Oregon State - Volleyball, 3.96 - business administration Bobby Warshaw, Stanford - Men’s soccer, 3.57 - political science
"It is always a challenge selecting the Pac-10 Scholar-Athletes of the Year because there are so many remarkable student-athletes in our Conference,” Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott said. “The Pac-10 is extremely proud of it’s heritage of academic and athletic excellence and this group of student-athletes is an example of achieving balance and success at the highest levels."
In order to be eligible for the Pac-10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, student-athletes must be a senior (in athletics eligibility) on track to receive a degree, have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, participate in at least 50% of the scheduled contests in the sport and have a minimum of one year in residence at the institution. Each Pac-10 institution may nominate one individual per sport, and the winners are selected by a committee of Pac-10 staff members at the conclusion of each sport’s regular season. The athletic accomplishments of the nominees are a consideration in the voting for the award.
A Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be named in each of the Pac-10’s 22 sponsored sports: baseball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s cross country, women’s cross country, football, men’s golf, women’s golf, women’s gymnastics, men’s rowing, women’s rowing, men’s soccer, women’s soccer, softball, men’s swimming & diving, women’s swimming & diving, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, men’s track & field, women’s track & field, women’s volleyball, and wrestling.
Scholar-Athletes of the Year in each sport will receive a commemorative award. Toyo® will donate $1,000 to the scholarship funds of the institution's athletic department of each winner in recognition of their accomplishments.
"Toyo is proud to support the Pac-10 and to acknowledge outstanding student-athletes for their efforts," said Stan Chen, manager of events and motorsports, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. "By supporting today's achievers, we feel we are helping to grow tomorrow's leaders."
The Pac-10 Conference, in cooperation with Pac-10 corporate partner Toyo Tires, established the “Pac-10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year Awards, presented by Toyo Tires” during the 2007-08 academic year.
[continued]
Other nominees included:
Men’s cross country: Ben Engelhardt, ASU; A.J. Costa, ORE; Jordan Swarthout, WASH. Women’s cross country: Hannah Soza-Hodgkinson, OSU; Alex Gits; Zara Lukens, USC; Kailey Campbell, WASH. Football: Thomas Weber, ASU; Jordan Holmes, ORE; Justin Kahut, OSU; Owen Marecic, STAN; Victor Aiyewa, WASH; Chima Nwachukwu, WSU. Men’s soccer: Davis Paul, CAL; Matt Van Houten, WASH. Women’s soccer: Alexandra Elston, ASU; Alex Morgan, CAL; Jen Stoltenberg, ORE; Karter Haug, USC; Kendyl Pele, WASH. Volleyball: Paige Weber, ARIZ; Sarah Reaves, ASU; Carli Lloyd, CAL; Cassidy Lichtman, STAN; Dicey McGraw, UCLA; Jenna Hagglund WASH.
To learn more about Toyo and its broad line of tires, log on to www.toyotires.com.
University of Central Arkansas Volleyball Team Signs Four Volleyball Recruits
CONWAY, Ark.- The University of Central Arkansas has added four student-athletes to the volleyball program for the 2011 season. Head coach Steven McRoberts has signed Scout Brooks of Brenham, Texas, Shelbee Berringer of Dickinson, Texas, Alicia Dittrich of Houston, Texas and Nicole Okeke of DeSoto, Texas to NCAA National Letters of Intent.
Brooks, a 5-10 outside hitter, helped Brenham High School to back-to-back state tournament finals appearances. She was named to the Top 30 Greater Houston Area High School Volleyball Athletes list and featured in VYPE Magazine. Brooks was named all-district four times and named to the all-state tournament team as a senior. As a junior, she was on the Texas Sports Writers Association All-State Third Team. Brooks was also a three-time Houston Chronicle All-Greater Houston Area selection. She was a member of the National Honor Society. Brooks played club for the Texas Tornados.
Berringer, a 5-5 libero/defensive specialist, was a four-time first team all-district selection for Dickinson High School. During her senior season, Berringer was named first team all-county and the Galveston County Defensive Player of the Year. She was also named to the Top 30 Greater Houston Area list. Berringer broke her school record with 852 digs as a senior. She played club for Absolute Volleyball Academy and was recognized as one of the top 150 Defensive Players in the nation by Prep Volleyball. Berringer was also a two-time all-district selection in softball.
Dittrich, a 6-0 middle blocker/outsdie hitter, was a four-year letterwinner and two-year captain for Clear Brook High School. She was named to the Top 30 Greater Houston Area team and the top 25 by the Greater Houston Volleyball Coaches Association as a senior. Dittrich was on the AVCA Under Armour Girls High School All-America watch list in 2010. She was a three-time first team All-District selection and academic all-state and all-district honoree. Dittrich was a member of the National Honor Society. She played club for Absolute Volleyball Academy and received recognition from Lonestarvolleyball.com. Dittirch lettered in track for three seasons.
Okeke, a 5-9 middle blocker, was a two-time all-state honorable mention for DeSoto High School. She was a member of the National Honor Society. Okeke was a three-year letterwinner in volleyball and also lettered in track and basketball. She made the track regionals in the 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles, long jump and triple jump. Okeke played club for Texas Image Volleyball.
Fourth-Seeded Penn State Ends Duke Volleyball Team's NCAA Volleyball Tournament Run
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Deja McClendon posted 20 kills, and Arielle Wilson put back eight of Penn State's 17 blocks to lead the fourth-seeded Nittany Lions to a 3-1 (25-19, 25-18, 23-25, 25-17) win over 12th-seeded Duke in the NCAA Regional Final on Saturday evening in Rec Hall.
McClendon and Wilson combined for 32 kills and only five attack errors as the three-time defending NCAA Champion Nittany Lions (30-5) beat Duke to advance to the NCAA Final Four in Kansas City, Mo. The Penn State victory ends the 2010 season for the Blue Devils (27-7), who advanced to the NCAA Regional Final for the first time in school history.
Penn State, which has not lost an NCAA Tournament match since 2006, will now face the winner of Texas and Purdue in the NCAA Semifinal on Dec. 16.
Duke juniors Sophia Dunworth <http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=1574225&DB_OEM_ID=4200> and Kellie Catanach <http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=1574221&DB_OEM_ID=4200> were both named to the University Park, Pa., Regional All-Tournament Team. Dunworth led Duke with 12 kills against Penn State and had double-digit kills in all four of Duke's NCAA Tournament matches. Catanach, the ACC Player of the Year, averaged 10.31 assists per set for the tournament and posted 55 of those assists in a 3-1 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Missouri.
"I can say for our entire coaching staff how proud we are of our team, how hard they've worked all year and what they've accomplished," said Duke head coach Jolene Nagel <http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=152871&DB_OEM_ID=4200> , who had led Duke to six consecutive NCAA Tournament berths. "We had no intention to end tonight, and I think they've been a really tremendous, hard-working group. They've built a strong foundation for Duke volleyball for years to come."
Penn State won the first two sets before ACC Champion Duke rebounded for a 25-23 third-set victory. Duke became the first team to win a set against Penn State in the 2010 NCAA Tournament and the first since 2006 to win a game against the Nittany Lions in the NCAA Regional Round.
"It was just us playing for each other," said senior middle blocker Becci Burling <http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=1136459&DB_OEM_ID=4200> on winning game three. "We forgot about who we were playing and where we were playing and just looked each other in the eye and said 'let's go for it.'"
For the match, Penn State totaled 60 kills and only 17 attack errors against the Blue Devils thanks to the play of setter Kristin Carpenter. Carpenter dished out 45 assists as Penn State hit .272 against a Duke defense that held its previous 33 opponents to a combined .169 hitting percentage. Penn State middle blocker Blair Brown, who was named the Most Outstanding Player of the University Park, Pa., Regional, was only three blocks shy of reaching a triple-double. The 6-5 senior knocked down 16 kills with 11 digs and seven blocks.
Duke senior Claire Smalzer <http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=1136465&DB_OEM_ID=4200> led Duke with 21 digs and posted a double-double with 10 kills in her final match. Smalzer, who switched to outside hitter for her senior season, ended her career ranked third all-time at Duke with 1,637 digs. Fellow senior Burling knocked down eight kills and finished her career ranked 14th all-time at Duke with 1,157 kills.
No. 6 Seed USC Volleyball Team Upsets No. 3 seed Stanford women's volleyball To Advance To The NCAA Final Four
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DAYTON, Ohio – Freshman outside hitter Falyn Fonoimoana (Hermosa Beach/Mira Costa HS) had a season-high 25 kills as the No. 6-seeded USC Women of Troy defeated the No. 3-seeded Stanford Cardinal in five sets Saturday (20-25, 25-17, 22-25, 26-24, 16-14) to win the NCAA Dayton Regional final. USC advances to the 2010 NCAA Final Four to be held next weekend at the Sprint Center in Kansas City to face the winner of tonight’s California/Washington match.
USC will be seeking its seventh national championship for women’s volleyball as the Trojans are making their sixth Final Four appearance in the last 11 seasons. The Women of Troy will travel to Kansas City having won 15 of their last 16 matches. USC snapped a seven-match losing streak to Stanford, dating back to the 2007 season. Stanford entered the match with a 10-2 all-time postseason record against USC.
“It’s one of the all time special wins in my career,” said USC head coach Mick Haley. “It was more about our special effort tonight. I have always put a premium on effort and I thought the effort was exceptional. It was the effort that did it tonight, not the execution. Anyone who missed this match missed one of the all-time great matches.”
USC out-hit Stanford by a .303 to .268 margin and held slight leads for assists, digs and blocks. The match featured 47 tie scores and 17 lead changes, including three lead changes in the deciding set.
Fonoimoana, the reigning 2010 Pac-10 Conference Freshman of the Year, was named most valuable player for the Dayton Regional after adding a season-high 14 digs while hitting .271 with four blocks. She finished with 33 kills and 20 digs in two matches during the regional.
Junior All-American Alex Jupiter was a bookend with Fonoimoana, recording 23 kills and 15 digs with two blocks while hitting .290. Junior setter Kendall Bateman posted 64 assists with 15 digs while freshman Sara Shaw posted a season-high 12 digs. Freshman libero Natalie Hagglund added 16 digs. The middle blocker tandem of junior Lauren Williams combined for 21 kills with Williams earning 13 kills and five blocks for a .393 clip while Olgard had eight kills and three blocks for a .636 clip (8-1-11).
The 2010 Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year Alix Klineman finished her Stanford career with a match-high 28 kills with 10 digs while hitting .266 for the Cardinal (27-4). Jessica Walker hit .750 for the Cardinal with 12 kills and no errors (12-0-16) and four blocks. Cassidy Lichtman had nine kills, 30 assists and 13 digs with four blocks for Stanford. Carly Wopat hit .471 on nine kills with an ace while Gabi Ailes led both teams with 25 digs.
Walker made it a 6-2 lead for Stanford in the first set, but Fonoimoana countered with three straight kills to tie it at 6-6. Fonoimoana started four straight as USC took the lead, 11-9. Klineman put the Cardinal back on top at 14-13 as Hayley Spelman started another four straight in a key sequence for Stanford to lead, 18-14. It was still a four-point deficit when another service error by the Trojans kept Stanford ahead at 22-17 for the eventual set win. Stanford had three service aces in the first set while USC recorded four serving errors.
The second set followed in similar fashion as the first with a sideout battle. Klineman hit deep middle to tie it at 8-8, but a Cardinal ball-handling error started three straight for the Trojans and the 11-8 USC lead after Klineman missed down the line. Fonoimoana started another four straight as USC took a commanding 17-11 lead. USC hit a service error to maintain a 19-14 lead, but responded with four straight as a Stanford service error gave the second set to the Trojans. USC hit .464 in the second set with 14 kills against one lone error.
Jupiter gave USC the 15-14 lead in the third set before the media timeout. Klineman pushed Stanford into a 4-1 run and the 18-16 advantage. Fonoimoana came back to tie it at 18-18, but Ailes knocked down back-to-back aces for a 21-18 score. Fonoimoana earned a solo block to get within one, but two key ball-handling calls against USC gave Stanford the 2-1 lead in the match.
USC took charge in the fourth set, racing out to the 9-4 lead. Stanford took the wind out of USC’s sails, however, with a 9-2 run of their own as Spelman put the Cardinal up by three, 14-11. USC then held a block party with three straight blocks, all involving Williams to tie it at 14-14. Rachel Williams gave Stanford a 19-18 lead before Olgard and Jupiter put the Trojans back in front, 20-19. Both teams traded points to a 23-23 score. Lauren Williams gave set point with a kill, but Lichtman tied it for the Cardinal. Fonoimoana did it again for USC and Stanford’s next attempt sailed long as the match went to a fifth and deciding set.
Lichtman got a solo block as Stanford took the 3-1 lead in the fifth set. A Stanford serving error and back row blocker call tied it at 3-3. Klineman and Walker blocked, followed by a USC hitting error to put the Cardinal back on top by two at 5-3. Stanford served an error and another hitting error tied it at 5-5. Klineman delivered from the back row as Stanford again led by two, 7-5, and both teams sided out as Stanford maintained the 8-6 score on the court switch. Rachel Williams got a stuff block on Fonoimoana for the 9-7 Stanford lead. Klineman made it a three-point lead with a kill, but Jupiter stopped the momentum as Fonoimoana and Lauren Williams followed with kills as USC took the 12-11 lead. Fonoimoana hit long and Klineman took advantage of the overpass as Stanford retook the 13-12 lead. Williams and Fuller then used a stuff block to tie it, but Walker gave match point to the Cardinal. Fonoimoana gave the key tying point for the Women of Troy and the Cardi nal then hit long on its next attempt as USC held match point. Stanford set to the right side as Lichtman hit into the block of Fonoimoana and Olgard to give USC its ticket to the Final Four.
Notes: Tonight’s match mirrored the 2007 national semifinal match in Sacramento between USC and Stanford except it was the Women of Troy who held a 14-13 score in the fifth set before the Cardinal stormed back with three straight points to advance to the national title match…USC last defeated Stanford during the postseason in the 2002 national championship match…USC is 8-1 this season in five-set matches with the only loss on Oct. 1 at Washington…USC is now 63-23 in NCAA postseason play…the Women of Troy are hitting .313 in the 2010 postseason with a 2.70 blocks-per-set average…Alex Jupiter has hit .330 in four postseason matches this season with a 5.00 kills-per-set average…Jupiter now has 524 kills on the season, which places her fourth on USC’s single-season list (passing her mark of 522 kills, set last season)…Jupiter’s 617.0 points are No. 3 on USC’s single-season list…Kendall Bateman has 1,539 assists on the season, good for second on USC’s single-season list…Natalie H agglund has 487 digs on the season, putting her eighth on USC’s single-season list.
USC Women's Volleyball Team After Win Over Stanford Press Conference
USC women's volleyball head coach Mick Haley, along with players Kendall Bateman, Alex Jupiter and Falyn Fonoimoana, talk about Saturday's five-set win over the No. 3 Stanford Cardinal to advance to the 2010 NCAA Final Four in Kansas City.
Penn State Womens Volleyball Team Advances to NCAA National Semifinals!
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., Dec. 11, 2010 – The No. 4 seed Penn State women’s volleyball team earned a spot in the 2010 NCAA Women’s Volleyball National Semifinals with a 3-1 (25-19, 25-18, 23-25, 25-17) victory against 12th-seeded Duke (27-7). The Nittany Lions will face with winner of the Texas/Purdue matchup on Thursday, Dec. 16 in Kansas City, Mo. Penn State has now won 94 consecutive matches at home in Rec Hall and 22 straight postseason matches. The Nittany Lions own a 47-3 record in NCAA Tournament matches held in Rec Hall and a 70-25 overall record in NCAA Tournament action. The Nittany Lions are making their ninth trip to the National Semifinals. Penn State also advanced in 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 199, 2007, 2008 and 2009. The Lions have earned four NCAA titles, including the last three straight. Senior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) was named the University Park Regional Most Outstanding Player, while senior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) and sophomore Kristin Carpenter (Mechanicsville, Va.) were named to the all-tournament team. Joining the three Nittany Lions on the all-tournament team are Oklahoma’s Brianne Barker, Missouri’s Paola Ampudia and Duke’s Sophia Dunworth and Kellie Catanach. Freshman Deja McClendon (Louisville, Ky.) led the Nittany Lions and tied her career-high with 20 kills. She was also one of five players with double-digit digs with 10. Brown finished second on the team with 16 kills and Wilson posted 12. Carpenter dished out 45 assists and contributed 13 digs, while senior libero Alyssa D’Errico (Byron, N.Y.) had a team-best 18 digs. Wilson was a wall at the net with eight total blocks and Brown was second on the squad with seven, including two solo. Both McClendon and senior Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) put up five blocks. Penn State hit .272 against the Blue Devils and totaled 60 kills, five aces, 75 digs and 17.0 total team blocks. Duke hit .135 and finished the match with 45 kills, five aces, 75 digs and 7.0 team blocks. The Nittany Lions opened the match taking a 10-6 lead after a 5-0 run that forced a Duke timeout. McClendon had two kills and a block in the run. The Blue Devils fought back to within two, 11-9, but 5-1 Penn State run had the Nittany Lions leading by six and Duke calling a second timeout. After a kill by Duke’s Becci Burling, kills by Brown and Balza moved the Lions in front by seven, 18-11. Two points by the Blue Devils cut the gap to five, 18-13, but an error and a Wilson kill had the Lions back ahead by seven, 20-13. The two teams went back and forth with two kills from McClendon and one from Brown pushing the Nittany Lions to a 25-19 set one win. Duke tallied the first two points in set two, but Penn State used a 7-2 run for a 7-4 lead. The Blue Devils kept it close until a 3-0 run put PSU up by four, 15-11. Duke fought back to knot the score at 15-15 before a 5-0 run by the Nittany Lions had Penn State leading by five, 20-15. Kills by Brown and Wilson kept the Blue Devils at bay and forced Duke to call a timeout with PSU leading, 22-16. Despite a Penn State attack error, a Duke error and two McClendon kills secured set two for PSU, 25-18. The third stanza started out close with the score tying nine times before Penn State grabbed a two-point lead, 11-9, on a block and kill from McClendon. The Blue Devils fought back to tie the score at 12-12 and the score tied twice more before a kill by Duke’s Amanda Robertson put Duke in front by one, 15-14. A Duke ace and PSU error increased their lead to three, 17-14. A triple block by Balza, Brown and junior Katie Kabbes (Raleigh, N.C.) slowed the Blue Devils momentarily before three straight Duke points had the Blue Devils leading by five, 20-15. Penn State used a 4-1 run to cut the gap to two, 21-19, and force a Duke timeout. A Brown putdown had the Lions within one, but two Duke kills would keep the Blue Devils up by two, 23-21. A Duke service error and a McClendon kill allowed the Lions to tie it up one final time at 23-23, but back-to-back kills by Burling gave Duke a 25-23 third set victory. Penn State dominated the fourth and final set from the start. The Nittany Lions leapt out to a 5-1 lead and used two kills and an ace by Brown to help increase the lead to six, 9-3. Following a Duke timeout, Penn State’s lead grew to double-digit with kills from McClendon, Carpenter and Wilson. Penn State’s lead hovered around 10 points until two straight Duke errors had the Nittany Lions lead at 12, 21-9. Despite a PSU error and a Duke ace, two Penn State blocks and a Wilson kill put the Lions in match-point position. The Blue Devils held the Lions at match-point for three straight points before McClendon closed out the match with a monster kill for a 25-17 fourth set win. Notes: • The third set, 25-23, loss was the first set the Nittany Lions have lost in a Regional Finals match since Dec. 9, 2006 when Penn State lost 3-1 (27-30, 24-30, 30-28, 26-30) to Washington. • Penn State has increased its home winning streak to 94 consecutive matches. The total tops NCAA Division I women’s volleyball records. • The Nittany Lions are making their ninth trip to the NCAA National Semifinals. Penn State also advanced in 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2007, 2008 and 2009. For more information on the Penn State women’s volleyball team, please visit GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women’s volleyball 2010 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets at Hershey.
Northwestern Head Volleyball Coach Keylor Chan Reflects on Northwestern's 2010 Volleyball Season
Northwestern head volleyball coach Keylor Chan reflects on Northwestern's 2010 volleyball season and looks ahead to the off season as the Wildcats prepare for 2011.
USC upsets Stanford in five sets after losing to them in the regular season twice...behind 25 kills from Falyn Fonoimoana and 23 kills from Alex Jupiter qualifies for the Final Four!
University of Houston Head Volleyball Coach Molly Alvey Adds Two During Early Signing Period Caitlin Ogletree, Katie Norris To Join Team In 2011 HOUSTON – University of Houston head volleyball coach Molly Alvey announced the signing of Caitlin Ogletree and Katie Norris on Friday. The pair will join the squad for the start of the 2011-12 academic year. “We are very excited about bringing Caitlin and Katie into our team,” Alvey said. “I am confident their transition into the program will be smooth and easy as theyboth are a great fit to our family. The team is ready to embrace them and show them the incredible winning culture we have begun to establish.” Ogletree comes to UH from Montgomery HighSchool in Montgomery, Texas. She is a three-time participant in the Junior Olympics and was named the District Newcomer of the Year as a freshman. Ogletree was also named the Setter of the Year and the Montgomery High School Player of the Year. As a sophomore, Ogletree was named to the All-County First Team and the Academic All-District Team. In 2009, she was the Most Valuable Player in the County and this past season Ogletree was a Houston VYPE Five Star Athlete. Ogletree is the daughter of Suzanna Wassermann. Norris is transferring to Houston from the University of Mississippi, where she was a two-year member of the volleyball team. At Ole Miss, Norris earned two All-Tournament team honors in 2009. Prior to her time at Mississippi, she attended Atascocita High School where she earned Honorable Mention All-District honors as a sophomore and went on to be named to the Second Team as a junior. She was a team co-captain as a junior and senior and was named to the All-District First Team as a senior. Norris is the daughter of Kimberly and Tony Norris.
USC Volleyball Player Natalie Hagglund - The Ninja Libero
Freshman libero Natalie Hagglund shows off a unique warmup routine during the USC women's volleyball practice for the 2010 NCAA Regional in Dayton, Ohio
Penn State Womens Volleyball Team Advances to Regional Final with 3-0 Sweep of Oklahoma
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., Dec. 10, 2010 – The No. 4 seed Penn State women’s volleyball team (29-5) topped Oklahoma (23-11), 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-15) on Friday evening in the NCAA Regional Semifinal at Rec Hall. Almost 3,400 fans were on hand for the victory. The Nittany Lions take on Duke in the NCAA Regional Championship on Saturday, Dec. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at Rec Hall. Tickets will be available at the door for $10 for adults, $7 for youth and $5 for groups of 20 or more. The first 300 students with a valid Penn State ID will be admitted free. The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU. Gametracker will be available via a link at GoPSUsports.com. Penn State improved to 45-3 in NCAA Tournament matches in Rec Hall with the win against Oklahoma. The Nittany Lions are now 69-25 in NCAA matches overall and have won 21 consecutive postseason matches dating back to the 2007 season. PSU also own 8-5 in NCAA Regional Championship matches. Senior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) led the Nittany Lions with 24 kills to tie her career high on .583 hitting. She also contributed three blocks and six digs. Senior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) was second on the team with nine kills and had a team-high four blocks. Sophomore setter Kristin Carpenter (Mechanicsville, Va.) dished out 45 assists and was second on the team with eight digs. She also had three kills on four errorless attacks. Senior libero Alyssa D’Errico (Byron, N.Y.) had a match-high 15 digs. Penn State registered a .429 attack percentage and held the Sooners to .217 hitting. The Nittany Lions totaled 52 kills, three aces 50 digs and 8.5 total team blocks. Oklahoma finished the night with 41 kills, three aces, 35 digs and 5.0 team blocks. The first two sets started out with neither team able to develop any momentum and take a convincing lead. In the first set, the score tied three times before a kill by freshman Deja McClendon (Louisville, Ky.) and an OU error moved the Lions in front by two, 6-4. However, a 3-0 Sooner run put Oklahoma in the lead by one, 7-6. Penn State tied it up at 7-7 with a kill from freshman Ariel Scott (Ridgewood, N.J.), but OU capitalized on two PSU errors for a two-point edge, 9-7. The score tied six more times before two OU attack errors put the Nittany Lions in the lead, 16-14. Penn State’s advantage grew to three, 19-16, forcing an Oklahoma timeout. A kill by OU’s Morgan Reynolds and three straight PSU errors had the Sooners back in the lead, 20-19. After a Penn State timeout, a 3-0 PSU run put the Lions back in the lead, 22-21. Oklahoma took a second time out, but two Brown putdowns and one from junior Katie Kabbes (Raleigh, N.C.) secured set one for PSU, 25-23. Set two was much like the first with neither team taking control early. With the score knotted at 13-13, kills by freshman Katie Slay (Raleigh, N.C.) and Carpenter put PSU up by two, 15-13. Two kills by Brown and a joint block by Brown and Wilson increased the gap to five, 18-13. The Nittany Lions maintained at least a four-point lead until a McClendon kill, which put the Lions up by five at 22-17, forced an OU timeout. Oklahoma embarked on a 4-1 run to cut Penn State’s lead to two, 23-21, and send the Nittany Lions to the bench. After another kill by Brown, a kill and block by OU had the Sooners within one, 24-23. A triple-block by Wilson, Scott and Brown closed out set two for PSU, 25-23, and gave the Nittany Lions a 2-0 lead in the match. The third set started out close until Penn State took off on a 5-0 tear for a 15-9 advantage. OU’s Suzy Boulavsky attempted to cut off the Penn State run with a kill, but the Nittany Lions momentum only continued to grow. McClendon sparked an 8-2 run by PSU for a 10-point lead, 22-12. Brown had two kills and an ace during the run. Sooner Morgan Reynolds cut off the run with a kill, but it wouldn’t be enough to help the Sooners. Two Wilson kills and one by Brown gave Penn State a convincing 25-15 third set win.
For more information on the Penn State women’s volleyball team, please visit GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women’s volleyball 2010 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets at Hershey.
12th-seeded Duke Volleyball Team Faces Penn State Tonight on ESPNU
December 11, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 12th-seeded Duke volleyball team will take on fourth-seeded Penn State in the NCAA Regional Final this evening in front of a nationally-televised audience in Rec Hall on the campus of Penn State University.
The Blue Devils (27-6) and Nittany Lions (29-5) will square off at 6:30 p.m. in the Elite Eight matchup featured on ESPNU. Beth Mowins will carry the play-by-play, and Karch Kiraly will provide the color commentary.
Duke defeated Missouri 3-1 on Friday, December 10, to advance to the Elite Eight for the second time in program history. Penn State, meanwhile, swept Oklahoma 3-0 on Friday in defense of the program's three consecutive NCAA Volleyball Championships.
Duke is the third ACC team in conference history to advance to the NCAA Elite Eight. The Blue Devil defense has been key in the team's run so far, holding the three NCAA opponents to a combined .160 hitting percentage. All three of Duke's opponents - High Point, Ohio and Missouri - have hit under .200.
The winner of the Duke-Penn State matchup will travel to Kansas City, Missouri, for the NCAA Volleyball Final Four on December 16-18. Tonight's winner will face the winner of 16th-seeded Purdue and ninth-seeded Texas.
