The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Volleyball Heads Into Bama Bash As Lone Undefeated Team
8/30/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 30, 2007
Match Notes
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB volleyball team heads to Tuscaloosa, Ala. this weekend to take part in the Bama Bash where it will play Alabama, Illinois State and Sacramento State. The Blazers' first match at the tournament will be against the Crimson Tide of Alabama at 12:30 p.m. on Friday.
The Blazers will play a second match on Friday against Illinois State at 4:30 p.m., before closing out the weekend against Sacramento State at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
UAB enters the Bama Bash as the only undefeated team in the field. The Blazers are 3-0 after winning the Magic City/Music City Invitational and beating Troy, 3-0, on Tuesday.
"We are going to have to play very well to be successful this weekend," said UAB head coach Kerry Messersmith. "All three teams are very talented so we'll have to be playing at a very high level, but we're excited for the opportunity to have a shot to beat some outstanding programs."
Junior Ivana Bozic leads the Blazers with a 4.89 kills per game average to go with her 3.56 digs per game clip. Senior Fernanda Domingos has also been strong offensively, hitting .397 with a 4.11 kills per game average.
Junior Nevena Stefanov runs the UAB offense and is averaging 13.78 assists per game to lead Conference USA.
Defensively, junior Aleksandra Vujovic leads the team in digs per game with a pace of 4.22, while senior libero Brianna Galvin is second at 4.11 digs per game. Junior Lilly Domingos is the team's leading blocker with seven, despite only playing in five of the team's nine games.
UAB will take on Alabama in the first match of the tournament. The Crimson Tide enters the weekend with a record of 2-1 after losing at No. 22 Oklahoma last Saturday. Prior to losing to the Sooners, the Crimson Tide defeated Seton Hall and Denver by counts of 3-1.
Crystal Hudson leads the team offensively with a 4.09 kills per game average, while Brooks Webster is second with a 3.73 clip. Bridgitte Slack runs the Tide offense and is averaging 12.00 assists per game through the team's first three matches.
Amy Pauly and Bridget Fuentez are the focal points of the Alabama defense. Pauly has a squad-best 4.91 digs per game average, while Fuentez is second at 4.45 to go along with her 3.45 kills per game.
Alabama leads the all-time series with UAB, 15-10.
Illinois State comes in with a record of 3-1 having won three straight after losing its season-opener to Florida. On Tuesday, the Redbird's beat Northern Illinois, 3-1.
M.C. Richmond holds a team-best 4.14 kills per game average to go with a 3.14 digs per game mark. Peggy Riessen has also been a key contributor to the Redbird offensive output as she is averaging 3.93 kills per game. Reissen has also been impressive defensively, averaging 4.00 digs per game.
Erin Lindsey runs the Illinois State offense and is averaging 12.36 assists per game.
UAB and Illinois State will be meeting for the first time on Friday.
Sacramento State enters the weekend with a record of 3-2 after losing back-to-back five-game matches to Missouri State and Ole Miss. UAB will be the Hornets' second C-USA opponent, having already beat Tulsa, 3-2.
Jennifer Ferguson paces the Hornets with a 3.67 kills per game average, while Missie Stidham is second at 3.60.
Five Sacramento State players are averaging two digs per game or better with Chelsea Goodsell leading the way at 4.65 per game.
Sacramento State has won 10 straight Big Sky Conference titles under head coach Debby Colberg who is coaching in her final season with the Hornets. Colberg has won more than 800 career matches.
Saturday will be the first-ever meeting between UAB and Sacramento State.
Fans can follow all three UAB matches on live stats at www.RollTide.com.
