THIS WEEKEND: UNO travels crosstown for the annual NOKIA Sugar Bowl Classic, hosted by Tulane at Fogelman Arena. The strong field features No. 5 Nebraska, UNO's first ranked opponent since Aug. 31 of last season, in addition to longtime rivals LSU and Tulane. The Privateers will open the tournament against Nebraska and then play Tulane and LSU on Saturday. This season marks the fourth consecutive year that UNO has competed in the NOKIA Sugar Bowl Classic.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION:
No. 5 Nebraska (Fri., 5 p.m.): The Privateers open the NOKIA Sugar Bowl Classic against one of the nation's top teams, No. 5 Nebraska. With a record of 3-0 on the young season, the Cornhuskers are UNO's first ranked opponent since the Privateers fell to then-No. 24 Santa Clara, 3-0, in the Marriott Sunset Showcase at UC Irvine on Aug. 31 of last season and the highest-ranked UNO opponent since the Privateers dropped a 3-0 match to then-No. 1 Penn State on Sept. 18, 1998. Nebraska is one of four first-time opponents for UNO in 2003. UNO lost to Butler, 3-1, last weekend and face first-timers Oakland and Western Michigan in the Western Michigan Invitational on Sept. 19-20.
Tulane (Sat., Noon): UNO has played Tulane (3-0) more times in its 29-year history than any other all-time opponent, and the Green Wave and Privateers meet for the 76th time in series history on Saturday, one of two matches between the schools this season. The Green Wave own a 52-23 advantage in the all-time series and have claimed the last three meetings in the series. Tulane head coach Betsy Becker posted a 78-58 (.574) record at the helm of the Privateers from 1995-98. UNO and Tulane will square off again this season on Oct. 14 at Lakefront Arena.
LSU (Sat., 5 p.m.): Entering their 53rd all-time match with the Tigers (2-1), the Privateers aim to improve the balance in one of UNO's most lop-sided rivalries. LSU brings a 50-2 edge in the series to this weekend's contest, and UNO last won a match in the series on Oct. 28, 1997, when the Privateers emerged victorious with a 3-1 win. UNO and LSU share a long history, as the two faced each other in UNO's first varsity match on Sept. 26, 1975. The Privateers have faced only Tulane (75 times), Louisiana-Lafayette (68 times) and Nicholls State (56 times) more times in history than the Tigers.
THE LSU CONNECTION: For two members of the UNO volleyball program, facing LSU has extra meaning beyond the in-state rivalry. Head coach Julie Stempel Ibieta and assistant Dana Castillo Launey were both four-year letterwinners for the Tigers from 1988-91, during which time LSU won three SEC titles (1989, 1990, 1991) and advanced to two NCAA Tournament semifinals (1990, 1991). Currently, Stempel Ibieta ranks eighth on the Tigers career list in kills (1,300), tied for third in hitting percentage (.319), second in total blocks (652) and first in matches played (151). Since joining UNO in 1999, Stempel Ibieta and Castillo Launey are 0-8 against their alma mater.
ON PAPER...: Although the Privateers have started the season with a 1-3 record, UNO holds the edge over its opponents in kills (15.23 to 14.77 per game), assists (13.85 to 12.85 per game), aces (1.62 to 1.38 per game) and digs (17.69 to 17.23 per game). UNO and its opponents both average 1.69 blocks per game. However, the Privateers are on the short end in hitting percentage, recording a .177 mark on the season while their opponents are hitting .217.
CRUZIN' ON UP: Although only halfway through her collegiate career, junior Jennifer Cruz has already made a significant impact on the Privateer record books. A 2002 All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team selection, she ranks third on UNO's career kills per game list with 3.40. She has tallied 839 career kills, just 141 shy of the top 10 list. However, kills are not Cruz's only forte: she also has registered 89 aces in her career and ranked 29th in the country in aces per game last season with 0.55. That mark also ranks fifth on UNO's all-time single-season list.
DOUBLE TROUBLE: Junior AnaÃs Urdaz has quickly made her mark in the Privateers' lineup just four matches into her UNO career. Urdaz has posted UNO's only double-doubles on the season, recording 14 kills and 15 digs against Butler last Saturday and 10 kills and 10 digs against Southern Miss on Wednesday.
LUCKY NUMBER SEVEN: This year's edition of the Privateers features seven newcomers, the most ever on one of head coach Julie Stempel Ibieta's UNO teams. Of the newcomers, five (Kylee Bauer, Emily Kelly, Lauren Loeffelholz, Nikki May and Amanda Meyers) are true freshmen while AnaÃs Urdaz is a junior transfer from Salt Lake City Community College, where she was a second team N.J.C.A.A. All-American, and Hillary Carr is a redshirt freshman after arriving at UNO last year.
HOME COOKIN': Friends and family of several UNO student-athletes do not have to travel far at all to see the Privateers play this season. Six members of the 2003 squad (Hillary Carr, Jayne Duncan, Jessica Helgeson, Lauren Loeffelholz, Amanda Meyers and Christine Zimmer) are from the state of Louisiana, and only Carr, from Port Allen, comes to UNO from outside the New Orleans metro area.
THE RETURN GAME: On paper, tbe a young team with seven newcomers. However, seven letterwinners also return in 2003, including 2002 starters Jennifer Cruz and Christine Zimmer. Here's a statistical breakdown of what the Privateers return in 2003:
? 43.4% (751 of 1731) of all kills
? 50.5% (107 of 212) of all service aces
? 38.7% (668 of 1728) of all digs
? 32.5% (75.5 of 232) of all blocks
A LOOK BACK: Entering the 2002 season, the University of New Orleans volleyball team hoped a strong returning core of veterans, coupled with a talented group of freshman, would help the program rebound from an 11-18 record in 2001. However, the Privateers' will was quickly tested early during the 2002 campaign, as the squad opened the season with seven consecutive losses. UNO managed to regroup down the stretch, rallying behind the play of 2002 All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team selection sophomore Jennifer Cruz to post a 13-13 record over the last 26 contests of the season and to qualify for the eight-team Sun Belt Conference Tournament, where the Privateers succumbed to New Mexico State in the quarterfinals. Along the journey, the team saw several milestones reached as senior Alison Howard broke the school record for assists (5,329) and seniors Mary Wanko and Melissa Caravella each surpassed the 1,000-career kill plateau.
