Volleyball to Host Season Opener
August 22, 2012 04:10 PM | General
The West Virginia University volleyball team opens its 2012 season with the Mountaineer Invitational on Aug. 24-25 at the WVU Coliseum.
The Mountaineers begin competition on Friday with matches against St. Francis at 2 p.m., and Central Connecticut at 7 p.m. Competition continues Saturday with a match against Loyola-Maryland at 5 p.m.
Friday’s games against St. Francis and Central Connecticut are also designated as “Poster Day.” Fans can pick up a free 2012 volleyball schedule poster that features Kramer and the entire 2012 squad.
“We are looking forward to opening our season here in the Coliseum and bringing in three solid opponents to challenge our team early,” coach Jill Kramer says. “The Mountaineer Invitational is always an important one for us because the winner gets our Mountaineer trophy and we want to keep that in our locker room.”
Kramer’s roster features three returnees and nine newcomers, including senior Karly Rasmussen and junior Liz Gulick- captains for the 2012 squad.
St. Francis returns all six starters from a 2011 squad that finished 10-21 overall and 5-11 in Northeast Conference play. The Red Flash are led by senior Elizabeth Williams who finished first on the team in kills (282) and second in service aces (28).
Central Connecticut comes off a strong 2011 campaign where the Blue Devils recorded an overall record of 20-11, finished third in the Northeast Conference and reached the conference tournament semifinals. Senior Emily Cochran paces the offense after leading the team in kills (446) and kills per set (3.81) and was named to the All-NEC second team and NEC all-tournament team.
The Greyhounds return 13 letterwinners under the direction of second-year coach Jake Lawrence. Loyola-Maryland was picked to finish eighth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference preseason poll and are led by captains Jac Bullock, Lauren Andersen and Tina Catanach.
The Mountaineers hold a series record of 8-1 over St. Francis and are 0-1 against Loyola-Maryland, while it will be the first meeting between WVU and Central Connecticut.
Admission to all matches will be $5 for adults and $3 for youth 18 and younger and senior citizens. Groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $2 a person. The Varsity Sports Flex Plan is also available for $20 which includes 10 vouchers that are redeemable for single game tickets at any of these WVU sporting events: baseball, gymnastics, men's soccer, women's soccer, volleyball and wrestling.
Flex plan packages can be purchased online at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME or by stopping by the Mountaineer Ticket Office in the WVU Coliseum.
For live stats and video streaming of this weekend’s matches, visit www.WVUsports.com.
Mountaineer Invitational Schedule
August 24
WVU vs. St. Francis, 2 p.m.
Central Connecticut vs. Loyola-Maryland, 4:30 p.m.
WVU vs. Central Connecticut, 7 p.m.
August 25
Loyola-Maryland vs. St. Francis. 11 a.m.
St. Francis vs. Central Connecticut, 2 p.m.
WVU vs. Loyola-Maryland, 5 p.m.
The Mountaineers begin competition on Friday with matches against St. Francis at 2 p.m., and Central Connecticut at 7 p.m. Competition continues Saturday with a match against Loyola-Maryland at 5 p.m.
Friday’s games against St. Francis and Central Connecticut are also designated as “Poster Day.” Fans can pick up a free 2012 volleyball schedule poster that features Kramer and the entire 2012 squad.
“We are looking forward to opening our season here in the Coliseum and bringing in three solid opponents to challenge our team early,” coach Jill Kramer says. “The Mountaineer Invitational is always an important one for us because the winner gets our Mountaineer trophy and we want to keep that in our locker room.”
Kramer’s roster features three returnees and nine newcomers, including senior Karly Rasmussen and junior Liz Gulick- captains for the 2012 squad.
St. Francis returns all six starters from a 2011 squad that finished 10-21 overall and 5-11 in Northeast Conference play. The Red Flash are led by senior Elizabeth Williams who finished first on the team in kills (282) and second in service aces (28).
Central Connecticut comes off a strong 2011 campaign where the Blue Devils recorded an overall record of 20-11, finished third in the Northeast Conference and reached the conference tournament semifinals. Senior Emily Cochran paces the offense after leading the team in kills (446) and kills per set (3.81) and was named to the All-NEC second team and NEC all-tournament team.
The Greyhounds return 13 letterwinners under the direction of second-year coach Jake Lawrence. Loyola-Maryland was picked to finish eighth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference preseason poll and are led by captains Jac Bullock, Lauren Andersen and Tina Catanach.
The Mountaineers hold a series record of 8-1 over St. Francis and are 0-1 against Loyola-Maryland, while it will be the first meeting between WVU and Central Connecticut.
Admission to all matches will be $5 for adults and $3 for youth 18 and younger and senior citizens. Groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $2 a person. The Varsity Sports Flex Plan is also available for $20 which includes 10 vouchers that are redeemable for single game tickets at any of these WVU sporting events: baseball, gymnastics, men's soccer, women's soccer, volleyball and wrestling.
Flex plan packages can be purchased online at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME or by stopping by the Mountaineer Ticket Office in the WVU Coliseum.
For live stats and video streaming of this weekend’s matches, visit www.WVUsports.com.
Mountaineer Invitational Schedule
August 24
WVU vs. St. Francis, 2 p.m.
Central Connecticut vs. Loyola-Maryland, 4:30 p.m.
WVU vs. Central Connecticut, 7 p.m.
August 25
Loyola-Maryland vs. St. Francis. 11 a.m.
St. Francis vs. Central Connecticut, 2 p.m.
WVU vs. Loyola-Maryland, 5 p.m.
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