Miami Volleyball Set to Host Hurricane Invitational
Sept. 8, 2005
CORAL GABLES, <?xml:namespace prefix=”st1″ ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags”?>Fla. – The University of Miami volleyball team will welcome JacksonvilleState and Xavier to the Knight Sports Complex this weekend for the Fifth Annual Hurricane Invitational.<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>
The three-team round robin tournament will open on Friday with the Hurricanes (3-0) facing Jacksonville State (2-2) at 7:00 p.m. Action will resume on Saturday with an 11:00 a.m. match-up against Xavier and Jacksonville State and will conclude at 7:30 p.m. with the Hurricanes taking on Xavier.
Tulane, who was originally slated to participate in the tournament, was forced to cancel as a result of Hurricane Katrina.
Miami opened the season last weekend by defeating ArkansasState, SamHoustonState and Houston to claim the Houston Invitational.
The Hurricanes are led by senior outside hitter Karla Johnson who averaged 6.17 kills per game in an impressive showing last weekend. Johnson’s average is tops in the Atlantic Coast Conference and ranks her eighth in the nation. The Houston, Tex. native set a career record against ArkansasState by posting 28 kills and then broke that record the following day with a 30 kill performance against Houston. The total matched the Miami kills in a game match record that was originally set by Marcella Gamarra in 2001.
In last weekend’s match against Houston, Miami also saw career performances by junior libero Ann Gallo, who tallied a personal best 19 digs and now leads the team with 3.50 digs per game, and junior outside hitter Sara Duncan, who registered a career-high 15 kills.
Junior setter Jill Robinson continues to anchor the offense averaging a team-leading 11.17 assists per game while redshirt-junior middle blocker Francheska Savage remains an asset to the Hurricanes both offensively and defensively, averaging 3.25 kills and 1.08 blocks per game.
Scouting the Opponents…
Jacksonville State:
The Gamecocks head into Coral Gables with a 2-2 overall record to complete their season-opening six-match road swing. JSU placed second at the Georgia State Invitational where they fell to LSU in four games before defeating WrightState and GeorgiaState by way of 3-0 sweeps. As a team, the Gamecocks are averaging 15.2 kills per game and are holding their opponents to a .169 attacking percentage.
The Gamecocks are led by outside hitter Suzi Terrell, who has posted 3.93 kills per game and Emily Withers, who is dishing out 11.07 assists per game. Defensively, the Gamecocks are led by Kisha West who has tallied 3.93 digs per game. Middle blockers Shari Weyer and Abbey Breit have posted 10 and 11 total blocks, respectively.
Xavier:
The Musketeers (5-1) opened the 2005 season claiming the Sleep Inn Battle at the Beach tournament where Carely Horvath was named tournament MVP and was joined by Kate Duchek and Jenn Welsh on the All-Tournament team. Xavier carried a five-match winning streak into the final of the Diet Coke Classic in Minneapolis before they fell to sixth ranked Minnesota to take runner-up honors. Welsh, the Musketeers’ assists per game leader (11.58) was once again named to the All-tournament team, this time joined by Astyn Bjorklund, who leads the team in kills per game (3.56), attacking percentage (.367) and blocks per game (1.33).
As a team, the Musketeer’s are averaging 15.1 kills per game while holding opponents to 12.2 kills per game and a .100 attacking percentage. Four out of their five wins have come via three-game sweeps.
Fans can follow both matches live on the web with live scoring and on the University’s student network WVUM 90.5 FM. Both features can be accessed through the Miami volleyball schedule on the Official Website of Hurricane Athletics, www.hurricanesports.com.
