| Oct. 10, 2005
Contact: Kyle Stephens (210) 458-4907 UTSA, Texas State square off Tuesday night at the Convo Live Audio | Live Stats | Complete Release
SAN ANTONIO - Winners of four straight and five of their last six matches, the UTSA volleyball team hosts rival Texas State in a pivotal Southland Conference contest on Tuesday, Oct. 11. First serve is set for 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center. UTSA Roadrunners (8-6, 5-2 SLC)
vs.
Texas State Bobcats (8-7, 6-1 SLC)
Tuesday, Oct. 11 • 7 p.m.
Convocation Center • San Antonio, Texas Quick Hitters
• The UTSA volleyball program is aiming for its 400th victory, entering tonight’s match at 399-366 all time
• The Roadrunners are 5-0 at the Convocation Center this season
• Texas State has won six straight meetings with UTSA and leads the all-time series, 38-9
UTSA vs. Texas State Series History
Texas State leads, 38-9
Last Meeting: TXST 3, UTSA 1 (21-30, 31-29, 30-28, 31-29)
Sept. 13, 2005 • San Marcos, Texas
Last UTSA win: Nov. 5, 2002 • San Antonio (30-22, 30-23, 30-26)
Scouting Texas State
The Bobcats started the season 10-6 but have won seven of eight matches since a Sept. 13 victory over UTSA in San Marcos to run their record to 8-7 overall and 6-1 in the Southland Conference. Senior outside hitter Elizabeth Nwoke leads a potent offensive attack with 200 kills (3.85 kpg), while freshman outside hitter Lawrencia Brown is contributing 3.18 kills per game (156 kills). Sophomore Brandy St. Francis is one of the league’s top middle blockers with 63 total blocks (1.19 bpg), and senior libero Amy Ramirez is posting 3.76 digs per game (203 digs). Head coach Karen Chisum is 607-383-3 in 26 seasons at the helm of the Texas State program.
Week In Review
UTSA turned in a pair of SLC victories for the second straight weekend to extend its winning streak to four matches and improve to 8-6 overall and 5-2 in the league. The Roadrunners handled Northwestern State in three on Friday night, 30-22, 30-24, 30-18, getting 12 kills each from junior Meagan Daniel and senior Jennifer Emelogu and 11 from junior Connie Picard. UTSA out hit the Lady Demons, .292-.070, for the match. On Saturday, Daniel posted 19 kills and junior Brittany Hildebrand added 13 as UTSA overcame a tough loss in game one to defeat Louisiana-Monroe in four, 26-30, 30-24, 30-14, 30-18.
A Look Back
UTSA dropped a heartbreaking, four-game decision at Texas State on Sept. 13 in the first meeting between the two squads this season. The Roadrunners dominated game one, a 30-21 win, but fell by two points in the next three games, 31-29, 30-28 and 31-29. Senior Julia Hunter and Connie Picard registered 15 kills apiece, while Meagan Daniel and Jennifer Emelogu added 13 and 10 kills, respectively. Elizabeth Nwoke led the Bobcats with 15 kills, while Lawrencia Brown and Brandy St. Francis pitched in with 13 and 12, respectively.
Closing In On 400
The UTSA volleyball program has amassed 399 wins in its 23-year history, an average of more than 17 victories per season. The Roadrunners are just one win away from the 400th victory in school history.
No Place Like Home
The Roadrunners are 5-0 at the Convocation Center this season and have won six straight at the facility dating back to a 3-0 win against Texas-Arlington on Nov. 9, 2004. UTSA is 63-29 (.685) at the Convo since 1998 and 134-88 (.604) all-time.
Career Milestone
Fourth-year head coach Laura Neugebauer-Groff won her 300th career game with a 3-0 sweep of Delaware on Sept. 2. The former Texas All-American now owns a 307-122 overall record in 12 seasons. Groff posted a 256-62 (.805) record at St. Mary’s, a Division II school in San Antonio, before taking over as UTSA’s head coach in 2002.
Honor Roll
UTSA has garnered three Southland Conference/Aeropostale Player of the Week honors this season. Meagan Daniel was named Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 3 after posting 29 kills, a .367 hitting percentage, 32 points, eight digs and a pair of aces in 3-0 sweeps of Nicholls State and Southeastern Louisiana. Junior libero Erin McMillan has been named Defensive Player of the Week twice this season. She shared the honor with Stephanie Figgers of Stephen F. Austin on Sept. 6 after posting 21 digs in a 3-0 sweep of Delaware and 23 in a five-game loss to Middle Tennessee State. McMillan received her second weekly accolade on Sept. 26 after turning in a season-high 25 digs against SFA on Sept. 20.
Daily Double
The junior duo of DeeDee Strickland and Meagan Daniel have made habits of turning in double-doubles. Strickland, a setter, has posted double-digit assists in all 14 matches and has reached 10 or more digs eight times. Daniel has reached double figures in both kills and digs in seven contests and is nearly averaging a double-double with 13.6 kills and 9.2 digs per match.
Dig This
Erin McMillan has been one of the top back row players in the Southland Conference the past two seasons and 2005 is no different. With 225 digs in 46 games, the two-time SLC Defensive Player of the Week ranks fourth in the league with 4.89 digs per game. She has cruised up the school’s career digs chart to sixth place with 1,286 and is on track to move into third all-time with her third consecutive 500-dig season.
Daniel Delivers
A legitimate SLC Player of the Year candidate, Meagan Daniel has continued to impress as one of the league’s top all-around players. Whether it is on the attack (witness her team-high 191 kills and 221 points) on defense (129 digs and 22 blocks) or with serve (19 aces), the Hereford native has an impact from just about anywhere on the floor. The only returning SLC player with two first-team all-conference selections in her portfolio, Daniel ranks in the league’s top 20 in four different categories — hitting percentage, kills, aces and points.
Setting The Table
DeeDee Strickland continues to prove herself as one of the top setters in the Southland Conference and in UTSA history. The League City native finished her sophomore campaign with 1,403 assists, an average of 12.09 per game which ranked third in the league. With nearly two years of eligibility left, Strickland already ranks third on UTSA’s career chart with 3,468 and needs 348 helpers to catch Deanna Bower for second place. Strickland posted 73 assists in a 3-1 victory over UTA on Sept. 16, two shy of her career high set in 2003. She ranks second in the SLC with 11.65 assists per game, close behind SFA’s J.J. Jones (12.20).
High-Percentage Hitter
Connie Picard, a middle blocker from Spring, has emerged as one of UTSA’s most consistent attackers over the past two seasons. After hitting just .208 as a freshman in 2003, Picard turned in a .252 hitting percentage last season with 351 kills and 144 errors on 823 total attacks. This season, Picard is attacking at a team-best .323 clip, a mark that ranks second in the league, just behind Emily Nedderman of Texas-Arlington (.324). In her first seven conference matches, she is hitting .396, third in the league, with 80 kills and just 17 errors on 159 attacks. Also the team’s top net presence, Picard has registered 41 total blocks including a season-high seven block assists in a 3-1 loss to Rice on Sept. 10.
Rocket Launch
Brittany Hildebrand, a prep standout for the Converse Judson High School Rockets, has caught fire on the outside attack over the last month. With four double-digit kill outings in her last six matches, she has climbed to third on the team with 130 kills, just behind Connie Picard’s 132. Hildebrand had a season-high 16 kills in a five-game loss to Middle Tennessee State on Sept. 3, but did not reach double figures again until turning in 13 in a 3-1 victory over Texas-Arlington on Sept. 16. Since that match, Hildebrand has 60 kills, an average of 2.86 per game.
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