Volleyball Ends Regular Season at Florida State

Nov. 25, 2010

Complete Match Notes in PDF Format

Coral Gables, Fla. – The University of Miami (22-8, 12-7 Atlantic Coast Conference) wraps up the regular season on Fri., Nov. 26, facing in-state opponent and ACC foe Florida State (20-9, 12-7 ACC) in the Sunshine State capital of Tallahassee at 1 p.m. Live stats will be available through Game Tracker at HurricaneSports.com.

Both teams enter the match sporting top 25 RPI rankings, with UM at No. 24 and the `Noles at No. 25. The winner of Friday’s much-anticipated rematch between the `Canes and `Noles assures itself sole possession of third place in the final league standings.

For the third time since the revival of the program in 2001 under current head coach Nicole Lantagne Welch–and the second time in the last three years, the Hurricanes have achieved a 20-win season. Miami also enters looking for its chance to finish third in the league for the second time since 2008.

The `Canes are riding a four-match win streak, and are a winner of six of their last seven matches overall. UM ended the home season sporting a 12-3 record at the James L. Knight Sports Complex, with one of those losses coming to then No. 15 FSU on Sept. 18 in the ACC-opener for both teams.

Junior outside hitter and three-time All-ACC performer Lane Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) is a player to watch in the match for UM, ranking third in the league in kills per set (3.84) and points per set (4.36), while tying for second with 0.32 service aces per set. She is the only ACC player this season with 400-plus kill and 400-plus digs, with this being the second straight season she’s accomplished that task, finishing the 2009 campaign with a team-best 506 kills and 402 digs.

As a team, Miami leads the league in kills with 1,623 (14.36 per set). Miami also leads the conference in hitting percentage (.256). Helping out in those departments is junior outside hitter Christine Williamson (Tampa, Fla.)–jumping into the top 10 all-time kills record list at UM with 567 in her career, coming in second on the squad with 317 kills (2.83 per set) and hitting at a .273 clip.

Leading the defensive front for the `Canes is freshman libero Ryan Shaffer (San Jose, Calif.) with 490 digs (4.50 per set), while junior middle blocker Ali Becker (Katy, Texas) leads the blocking with 90 blocks (8 solo / 82 assisted).

For more information on the University of Miami volleyball team, please log on to www.hurricanesports.com. Once there, you will find up-to-date news, stats and information regarding the Hurricanes volleyball program.

You can also keep up-to-date with all UM Athletics via twitter at Twitter.com/HurricaneSports.

Quick Hits on Florida State
Florida State enters the match holding a similar record to Miami in the ACC (12-7), and sports a 20-9 record overall on the campaign. FSU is riding a four-match winning streak, and for the first time in school history have amassed 20 wins in three consecutive seasons as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, which began in 1991.

FSU is paced by All-ACC performer Stephanie Neville. Over the last 10 matches for the Seminoles, Neville dons a .322 hitting percentage with 109 kills and 2.87 kills per set. In six of those 10 matches, she hit above .300, topping out with a .440 clip against Boston College in FSU’s last match. She is just 11 kills shy of setting her new single-season high, which is currently 286 from last season.

The `Noles use a two-setter system, led in assists by Duygu Duzceler with 666 assists (5.89 per set), and followed by Patricia Figueiredo with 535 assists (4.73 per set). The libero is Jenna Romanelli, leading the defensive front with 432 digs (3.86 per set).

Series against the Seminoles
FSU has claimed the last three wins in the series against the Hurricanes – collecting both wins in 2009, while winning this season’s earlier meeting in Coral Gables by a 3-1 count. The Seminoles hold a 19-16-1 advantage in the series overall.

Carico Tabbed All-ACC
Outside hitter Lane Carico was named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Team on Wed., Nov. 24, announced by ACC Commissioner John Swofford. For Carico, this year’s award is the third consecutive time she’s been selected to the All-conference team, also picking up ACC Freshman of the Year in 2008, as well as being named to the All-ACC Second Team and All-ACC Rookie Team. Carico charges Miami offensively with 434 kills (3.84 per set) – ranking her third overall in the ACC in that department. Carico is also third in the conference in points (492.5 / 4.36 per set), adding a team-best 36 service aces (0.32 per set) and 37 blocks (8 solo / 29 assisted).

On the year, Carico totes a .235 clip (434k-132e-1,283ta) while ranking second on the team in digs with 426 (3.77 per set). She is the only ACC player this season with 400-plus kill and 400-plus digs, with this being the second straight season she’s accomplished that task, finishing the 2009 campaign with a team-best 506 kills and 402 digs. Carico leads the league in double-doubles (24).

Miami Sweeps ACC Weekly Awards
Junior outside hitter Lane Carico was named Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week, while libero Ryan Shaffer was selected as the conference Freshman of the Week, announced by the ACC Office on Mon., Nov. 22.

Carico collects her first ACC weekly award this season. Over the weekend, she hit at a .333 clip with 36 kills and 21 digs. She laid claim to her league-best 24th double-double of the year against the Eagles with an 18-kill, 13-dig performance, striking at a .405 hitting percentage on 37 swings. Carico followed that performance with another match-high 18 kills against the Terps along with eight digs and a block assist. She did not allow a single receive error off-service in 14 total attempts.

For Ryan Shaffer, a 5-7 libero from San Jose, Calif., this is her first-ever conference weekly award. She finished the weekend with a team-leading 44 digs, staking back-to-back matches of 22 digs. She averaged 7.33 digs and 0.67 service aces per set in the Hurricanes’ two victories.

Miami in the RPI Rankings
With wins against North Carolina, Maryland and Clemson over the course of the last three weeks, the Hurricanes’ RPI rating jumped to No. 24 this week–one spot ahead of this weekend’s opponent, Florida State. Miami is 4-3 on the year against the RPI Top 50, and holds a 15-4 mark against the RPI Top 100

In-Match Chat
HurricaneSports.com will feature a live gameday chat for fans to follow at home or in the office. To participate in the in-match chat below, return to this page 10-minutes prior to the start of the match. Live stats will also be available through Game Tracker at HurricaneSports.com.