The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Defending Conference USA Volleyball Champs Set to Begin Spring Competition
3/23/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
March 23, 2007
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The reigning Conference USA champion UAB volleyball team begins its spring season this weekend at the Middle Tennessee Spring Fling in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The Blazers will begin the 13-team competition by taking on Mississippi State and Kennesaw State. Also on deck for the Blazers this spring is a home match against the Alabama Crimson Tide on Wednesday, March 28 at 6 p.m. in Bartow Arena. Admission will be free to see the Blazers take on the Crimson Tide.
UAB head coach Kerry Messersmith is please with how hard her team has worked since winning the Conference USA title and taking on No. 4 UCLA in the NCAA Tournament back in the fall.
"We are really proud of our girls' attitude and work ethic since the season ended," Messersmith said. "Looking back to where we were last year at this time, it really is night and day. They have dedicated themselves to this program and are working so hard every day to get better that we have just been really excited about the direction we are heading. We can't wait to go to Middle Tennessee this weekend and compete against some other teams."
This weekend's Middle Tennessee Spring Fling is loaded with talent as four teams that qualified for the 2006 NCAA Tournament will be on hand. The Blazers, who made the tournament for the first time in school history, will be joined by Alabama, Middle Tennessee and Tennessee as teams that were in the field of 64 this past fall.
Following UAB's matchup with Alabama on March 28, the Blazers will then take part in the Samford Tournament on March 31 where fellow NCAA Tournament participant Jacksonville State will be in attendance.
The team ends its spring season on April 14 when it hosts the UAB Spring Tournament. A strong field will be coming to Birmingham for the tournament as Samford, Kennesaw State, Jacksonville State, Belmont, Troy and Georgia are all slated to compete.
The Blazers return all 14 members from their conference championship team for 2007. Sophomore outside hitter and All-America honorable mention Ivana Bozic leads a talented group that will look to make a return trip to the NCAA Tournament in the fall.
