Emory Volleyball Turns Focus To UAA Round Robin II

ROUND ROBIN II FACTS  - The Emory volleyball team returns to league play this Saturday and Sunday (Oct. 17-18) when it takes part in the University Athletic Association Round Robin II.   Serving as host for this weekend's action with be New York University. 

The Eagles open play with a stern challenge when it takes on defending UAA champ Washington University on Saturday in a 10:00 a.m. start.  Emory then finishes off the first day with a 3:00 p.m. contest against the University of Rochester.  On Sunday, Emory will tangle with Brandeis (9:00 a.m.) and Case Western (11:30 a.m.)

THE COACHES - Emory Head Coach Jenny McDowell (Georgia, '89) is in her 14th year at the helm of the Eagles' program.  During her stint at Emory, McDowell has posted a school and career won-lost ledger of 427-116.  She has 11 campaigns of 30 or more wins and has directed the program to 14 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament.  She guided Emory to its first-ever national title in 2008 and was named as the AVCA National Coach of the Year.

Washington University is led by Rich Luenemann (Eastern Illinois, ‘72) who is in his 11th year at the helm of the Bears' program.  Luenemann, who has guided the program to national championships in 2003 and 2007, enters the weekend with a school record of 364-51.  In 29 years of head coaching, which includes an 18-year stint at St. Francis (1981-1998), Luenemann has a career ledger of 954-313.

Ladi Iya (Evansville, ‘01) is in her second year as the head coach at the University of Rochester.  Prior to her current post, Iya served as an assistant at the University of Buffalo for three seasons (2005-2007).

Now in her sixth season as the head coach at Brandeis is Michelle Kim (SUNY-Binghamton, '06).  Kim, who was an assistant at Brandeis for five seasons before being named head coach prior to the 2004 campaign, has guided the Judges to three ECAC Tournament appearances.

Karen Farrell (Brandeis, '93) is in her second stint as the head coach of the Case Western program.  Farrell guided the team from 1995 through 1998 and then returned to the Spartans in 2006 following a stint at Clark University.

RECORDS - Emory, ranked No. 3 nationally among Division III  teams,  enters this weekend with an overall record of 21-4 (3-0 UAA).  The Eagles faced a busy docket of games last weekend and finished with a 3-2 record against a combination of NAIA and NCAA Division II opponents.  In its most recent action, Emory ventured to Florence, Ala., on Monday where it split a pair of contests, losing to the University of Puerto Rico Rio Piedras, 3-0, before claiming a 3-1 victory over host North Alabama.

Washington University, ranked 4^th in the nation, sports an overall ledger of 18-3 (3-0 UAA).  The Bears went 3-0 last weekend at the Wash U. Invitational, defeating Elmhurst College (3-1), Central College (3-0) and the University of Wisconsin-Lacrosse.

Rochester heads into the weekend with an overall record of 14-10 (0-3 UAA).

Brandeis stands 13-7 in overall play (1-2 UAA) and will take a three-match win streak into the Round Robin II.  The Yellowjackets recorded 3-0 wins over the Coast Guard and Keene State last weekend.

The Spartans of Case Western have compiled an overall mark of 17-3 (2-1 UAA).  Case has wins in 12 of its last 13 matches and is coming off 3-0 and 3-1 victories over Ohio Wesleyan and Wooster, respectively, last weekend.

EMORY TOUGH AT THE WOODPEC - Emory has proved to be a tough opponent on its home court at the Woodruff PE Center.  Since 1992, the Eagles have compiled an overall record of 247-45, good for an 84.5 winning percentage.  Since the 2004 campaign, Coach McDowell has seen her club fashion a classy 87-13 slate (.870).  Last season, Emory finished with a mark of 11-1 in home matches.

NUMBERS TO WATCH - Senior Alysse Meyer has posted double figures in kills in her last five matches ... Meyer's 15 terminations in the Lee match on Saturday was her second-highest total of the season ... Meyer, who has recorded nine contests of double-digits in that category this season, stands 11^th among league performers in kills (2.71 kps) and attack percentage (28.3%) ...  Meyer will enter the weekend just eight kills shy of reaching 1,500 in her career ... In UAA statistics released on Oct. 12, Emory was No. 1 on the UAA chart in hitting percentage (28.1%)  and third in kills (12.95 kps) ... Sophomore Jessica McAlvany's 24 kills in the Armstrong Atlantic match represented the high-water mark by an Emory player this season ... Heading into the Round Robin II, McAlvany, who has 13 performances of 10 or more kills to her credit this season, is seventh on the UAA ladder in hitting percentage (30.2%) and 11^th in kills (3.20 kps) ... Freshman Breanah Bourque holds down the No. 1 spot among UAA spikers with a 42.7 hitting percentage ... Bourque totaled a season-high 15 kills in the Covenant College match ... Sophomore Brannan O'Neill is tied for the No. 8 position on the UAA ladder with a 3.62 digs per set average ... Career-wise, O'Neill holds down 11^th place on Emory's all-time list with 836 digs ... Freshman Alex Duhl leads the team and the UAA with a 1.02 blocks per set average while sophomore Alexandra Wright is No. 2 on the squad (0.82 bps) in that category.

ON THE HORIZON - Following the UAA Round Robin II, Emory returns home for matches against Lee University (4:00 p.m.) and South Carolina-Aiken (6:00 p.m.) on Thursday, Oct. 22.

EAGLES TRIO TO SERVE AS CAPTAINS - Serving as captains for the 2009 Eagles are senior Vista Murphy (Laguna Beach, CA), Natalie Schonefeld (Riveria, TX) and junior Amelia McCall (Montgomery, AL).