SFA Looks To Continue Hot Streak At Houston Tournament
9/11/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 11, 2007
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - With the season three weeks old, the Ladyjacks volleyball team has just a few more tune-ups remaining before opening Southland Conference play; those tune-ups continue this weekend when they travel south for the Houston Tournament, hosted by the University of Houston, on Friday and Saturday.
Rice and Wake Forest will join SFA and Houston in the four-team, round-robin style tournament. All matches will be able to be followed via Gametracker at www.uhcougars.com.
SFA (6-4, 0-0) struggled against tough competition in the first two weeks of the season, dropping four of its first five matches; however, Debbie Humphreys and her squad returned home last week and posted four consecutive wins at William R. Johnson Coliseum, including the title at the Ladyjack Invitational.
The Ladyjacks seem to be finding an identity through 10 matches, and it looks to be behind the camouflaged webbing of the net. During their current five-match win streak the Ladyjacks have out blocked their opponents by a staggering 63-26 margin.
The defensive spark has come from Briana Taylor, who has been a part of 38 blocks during the stretch. Her defensive prowess earned her SLC Defensive Player of the Week honors on Monday, the first time the sophomore has ever received the honor. She now stands atop the conference with 1.62 blocks per game.
Defensive contributions have come from a variety of sources that include senior Traci Rohde, junior Lauren Railey and freshman libero Laurel Kuepker. Rohde has put up 20 blocks in her last four matches, with no less than four in any of those instances. Railey picked up a career high with 29 digs in the win over Tulsa, and Kuepker has moved into the top 10 in the SLC in digs after making the all-tournament team at the Ladyjack Invitational.
Defense is not the only area where the Ladyjacks have excelled lately, as the offense has picked up as well. SFA is hitting at a .207 clip over its last five matches, opposed to a .136 mark during its 1-4 start.
Senior JJ Jones has embraced her new role of a hybrid setter/hitter and earned her first career SLC Player of the Week honors on Monday as well, after her week's performance. The two-time SLC Setter of the Year has posted two triple-doubles in her last five matches after only having one in her previous three years on the job.
Humphreys has discovered the luxury of depth in this stretch, utilizing freshmen Whitney Schott and Kelsey Owens on a number of occasions. Schott has dished out 101 assists on the year and is quickly being depended on for her consistent serve. Owens, in addition to Jones, has helped provide fresh options on the wing to compliment already dangerous hitters such as Railey and Shelly Swendig.
This week the Ladyjacks will hit Houston with the only record above .500 of the teams entered. SFA will open up with the Cougars (3-6, 0-0), a team that will actually be looking to end its three-match losing streak on Thursday when they meet cross-town rival Rice.
Junior Justine Farmer is the current Conference USA Player of the Week after putting up five straight double-doubles in only four days. She will undoubtedly be the main weapon for Houston after setting the school record for attacks with 99 in a win over UT-San Antonio on Sept. 7. She currently leads CUSA with 5.06 kills per game.
It was the Cougars that unknowingly served as a sparkplug a year ago for SFA. The Ladyjacks knocked off Houston 3-2 at the '06 Ladyjack Invitational, the first of 26 consecutive wins for the Ladyjacks.
Wake Forest (2-4, 0-0) is a team that has much higher expectations in '07 than '06. This season head coach Heather Kahl Holmes returns 10 starters from a team that finished 14-17 overall, and 10-12 in the ACC a year ago.
The most notable of those returning is junior hitter Jessica Furlong. She entered her junior season already tied for fifth on the Wake Forest all-time kills list and has not disappointed as of yet. She currently is averaging 4.78 kills per game, and even posted an 18-kill, 14-dig match against No. 21 Dayton.
As a team the Demon Deacons are ranked third in the ACC in team hitting percentage with a .240 mark, despite stumbling out of the gate. Wake Forest lost its first four matches, but has rebounded to take its last two against Jacksonville and Radford.
Rice (5-5, 0-0) will be the final opponent for the Ladyjacks, having not faced the Owls since 2003. The Owls are coming off a 12-19 season in 2006, and have won their last two matches over Appalachian State and Troy.
Head coach Genny Volpe watched on as sophomores Jennifer McClean and Jessie Boulavsky were named to the all-tournament team at the Nike Gamecock Invitational after posting 17 and 11 kills, respectively, in the final win over Troy.
Boulavsky currently ranks sixth in CUSA with a .364 hitting percentage, while freshman Carolina Gill ranks fourth in the conference with 1.21 blocks per game.
After finishing up on Saturday, the Ladyjacks will travel to North Texas on Tuesday to take on the Mean Green before opening conference play at home versus Northwestern State on Sept. 22.
SFA's schedule for the Houston Tournament is as follows:
Fri., Sept. 14, 7:00 p.m. - SFA vs Houston
Sat., Sept. 15, 12:30 p.m. - SFA vs Wake Forest
Sat., Sept. 15, 5:00 p.m. - SFA vs Rice
-SFA-
