UM Volleyball Schedules 11 Tournament Teams
March 13, 2003
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (www.hurricanesports.com) – – The University of Miami volleyball team established itself as a quality program last season when it went 27-5 and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Along the way, the Hurricanes defeated five of the six tournament qualifying teams they faced including Florida State, South Florida, Wisconsin, Duke, and Notre Dame (UM split with the Irish, defeating them in the regular season and falling to them in the BIG EAST Championship final).
This season, the Hurricanes brace for an even more competitive schedule that includes 11 teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament team last season.
Among the rugged non-conference clashes the Hurricanes have scheduled are matches against Santa Clara, which finished the 2002 season ranked No. 19 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association polls, and Arizona, which finished ranked No. 10. South Florida, which the Hurricanes scheduled for a 2003 rematch, finished 2002 having received votes for a ranking and won the Conference-USA Championship. Santa Clara finished second in the West Coast Conference.
UM finished the season ranked No. 23 in the nation and returns all but one player to the court in 2003. Although the Hurricanes lose First Team All-BIG EAST and First-Team All-Northeast Region selection, Marcela Gamarra, they return 2002 BIG EAST Player of the Year Valeria Tipiana as well as the BIG EAST Setter of the Year Mallorey James.
Other tournament teams that the Hurricanes will face are Northwestern and Indiana of the Big 10; Manhattan (Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference Champions); George Mason (Colonial Athletic Conference Champions); Central Florida (Atlantic Sun Conference Champions); and Florida A&M (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Champions).
The non-conference slate of former tournament teams also includes regional rivals Florida State and Florida International.
Also on the list is another tough conference schedule that includes a home match against Virginia Tech Saturday, Nov. 15. Last season, the Hokies dealt the Hurricanes their only three-game loss. UM avenged the loss in the BIG EAST Championship when they dispatched the Hokies in five games.
The Hurricanes will face Notre Dame Nov. 10 at South Bend.
