Penguins Set for Horizon League Opener on New Rosselli Court
9/17/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Youngstown -- The Youngstown State
volleyball team will play its Horizon League and home opener on
Friday at 7 p.m. against UIC. The Penguins will also play host to
league-foe Loyola on Saturday at 2 p.m.
The contests will be the first athletic
competition on the new Dom Rosselli Court in Beeghly Center. YSU
will honor the United States military during Saturday's match
in conjunction with the patriotic-themed "Senior Poster" promotion
at the Penguins football game that evening.
The Penguins enter the weekend after spending
three weeks on the road, having played in tournaments at Ohio
State, Charlotte and Robert Morris. YSU is 7-3 and has won six of
its seven matches this month. The hot streak was punctuated on
Sunday with a four-set win over Big East member West Virginia, whom
the Penguins defeated for the third straight season.
YSU has had a student-athlete honored by the
Horizon League in each of the past two weeks. Senior setter Karla
Everhart is the reigning offensive player of the week while junior
Ruth Boscaljon earned top defensive honors last week. Boscaljon and
Everhart are two of the more experienced players on the roster, but
five players have made their collegiate debut for YSU this season.
The back row is especially young with two freshmen and a sophomore
getting plenty of playing time.
The Penguins will go back on the road after
this weekend for four league matches. Their next home contest will
be Oct. 11 against Milwaukee.
Scouting UIC
The Flames enter Friday's
contest with a 3-6 ledger after dropping all three matches last
weekend at the Chicago Classic at Mother McAuley. Those three
losses came against No. 1 Penn State, Louisville and Illinois
State.
UIC was picked to finish fourth in the league
standings after placing sixth in 2007. The Flames are ranked eighth
in the Horizon League in hitting percentage (.165), average blocks
(1.28) and kills per set (10.72).
YSU and UIC split the season series in 2007
with each winning at home.
Scouting Loyola
Loyola has been the surprise of the
Horizon League in the early part of the season having already
matched their win total from a year ago. The Ramblers have the
second-best record at 9-2 despite being picked to finish eighth in
the preseason poll. They won their first eight matches before
cooling off to drop two of their last three.
Loyola ranks third in the league in kills per
set (12.80), hitting percentage (.237) and opponent hitting
percentage (.147). Three players average more than 2.5 kills per
set.
YSU and Loyola split the 2007
series.
Everhart Earns Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week
Accolades
Youngstown State senior setter Karla
Everhart is the reigning Horizon League Offensive Player of the
Week, earning the award for her helping YSU to a 3-1 record in four
matches from Sept. 12-14.
She averaged 10 assists per set over the four
matches, had 15 kills on a .342 hitting percentage, posted five
aces, and recorded 36 digs. She registered a season-high 12 digs
against Elon to start the week, and she had a solid all-around
match against Saint Peter's with four kills, 35 assists,
three aces and eight digs. She then had a season-high seven kills,
a solo block and an ace on match point at West Virginia.
Boscaljon Named League Defensive Player of the Week
Youngstown State junior middle hitter
Ruth Boscaljon was the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week
for Sept. 1-7. She recorded 17 blocks in 10 sets during the week
for a Horizon League-best average of 1.70. Boscaljon also helped
the Penguins post a league-best 3.0 blocks per set. She was one
block shy of a career high against Norfolk State, posting two solo
blocks and six block assists in just three sets. She then had four
blocks and nine kills in a 3-0 win over Howard, and she just missed
her first career double-double against Charlotte with 10 kills,
nine digs and five blocks.
Everhart, Boscaljon Stand Among League Leaders
Karla Everhart and Ruth Boscaljon each
lead the Horizon League in at least one category through the first
three weeks of the season. Everhart currently leads the Horizon
League with 9.63 assists per set, and she is just 11 assists shy of
the top spot despite playing five fewer sets.
Boscaljon holds a firm lead in hitting
percentage as her .384 is .063 points higher than the No. 2 hitter.
She also leads the league with 1.17 blocks per set, and her 3.54
points per set rank seventh.
Opening Up About Home and Horizon League Openers
Friday's match against UIC will
be the first time ever that YSU opens Horizon League play at home
since joining the conference in 2001. The Penguins have never won
their Horizon League opener - or their second league match - but
have started 1-2 twice. YSU has twice won its first home league
match since joining the league, defeating Cleveland State in four
sets in 2001 and UIC in five sets in 2003. The win over UIC in 2003
was YSU's last win in a home opener. The Penguins' last
victory in a conference opener came back in 1999 when it won at
UMKC while in the Mid-Continent Conference.
Last Season vs. UIC
The Penguins and Flames each defended
their home court last season to split the series. YSU won on Oct. 6
in Youngstown in four sets, but the final three were each decided
by two points. Ebony Barbosa (16K, 17D) and Jessica Fraley (15K,
18D) both had double-doubles for the Penguins.
UIC battled back from a 2-1 deficit to win a five-set affair in
Chicago on Oct. 26. YSU was held to a .165 attack percentage to
offset double-doubles from Fraley (20K, 11D) and Abigail Drost
(12K, 16D).
Last Season vs. Loyola
The Penguins also split the season
series with Loyola with each team winning at home. YSU came back
from trailing 2-1 to win 30-12 in the fourth set and 17-15 in the
final set in Youngstown on Oct. 5. YSU held Loyola to a .123
percentage but hit just .100 itself. Jessica Fraley had 21 kills
and 10 digs, and Ruth Boscaljon had 16 kills to lead YSU.
Loyola won in Chicago in four sets on Oct. 27.
Boscaljon had 16 kills and Ebony Barbosa had a double-double with
12 kills and 12 digs. YSU had nine receiving errors and nine
service errors in the match.
Boscaljon's Numbers Help Penguins Rank Nationally
Junior middle hitter Ruth Boscaljon is
also ranking among the national leaders. Her .384 hitting
percentage ranks 42nd nationally, and her 1.17 blocks per set is
the 65th-best mark in the country. Karla Everhart's 9.63
assists per set also ranks 100th nationally.
Behind Boscaljon, the Penguins currently rank
44th nationally with 2.46 blocks per set and 76th in hitting
percentage with a .240.
Boscaljon, Barbosa Eclipse 800 Career Kills
Junior Ruth Boscaljon and senior Ebony
Barbosa both reached the 800-kill plateau over the weekend.
Boscaljon's 38 kills over YSU's four matches gave her
818 for her career, which makes her the active leader. Barbosa had
23 kills last week to up her career total to 814. The two players
have several more milestones in reach this season. Boscaljon can
become the first player to reach 1,000 kills as a junior, and
Barbosa, who also has 847 digs, is attempting to become the fifth
player to finish with 1,000 digs and 1,000 kills.
Gray Has Solid Debut as Starting Libero
Freshman Amanda Gray made an immediate
impact in her first weekend as YSU's starting libero. She
posted a team-high 45 digs and had just three receiving errors in
12 sets as the primary receiver. She posted double-digit totals in
digs against West Virginia (17), Robert Morris (13) and Elon (10).
Her 17 against West Virginia is the most in a four-set match by a
Penguin this season, and the 13 against Robert Morris is the most
in a three-set contest.
Kapferer, Reid Strong Early Up Front
Sophomore Haley Kapferer and redshirt
freshmen Tasha Reid have performed admirably in their first year as
starters. Kapferer has led the team in blocks in five matches and
ranks fifth in the Horizon League in attack percentage (.299). Reid
has accumulated 62 kills and 23 blocks as one of five players to
play in every set so far this season.
Penguins Tie Best Start Since 1995
For the third time since 1999, the
Penguins have started the season by winning seven of their first 10
matches. The most recent year was 2005 – the first under head
coach Joe Bonner. The Penguins hit a wall that year and went on to
lose their final 19 matches and finished 7-22. YSU was also 7-3 in
2001 and ended the year 10-18, and it started 7-3 in its 27-win
season in 1999. The Penguins have had a better record through 10
matches only three times in school history – 8-2 in 1994 and
1995 and 8-1-1 in 1981.
Attack Efficiency Key for Penguins' Solid Start
Although YSU has eight fewer kills
(423-431) than its opponents through the first three weeks of the
season, its attack percentage is 54 points higher (.240-.186). YSU
has had 51 fewer miscues (161-212) than its opponents, and the kill
difference is only eight despite YSU having 90 fewer attempts. The
Penguins have collected 86 blocks, 38.5 more than their opponents,
in helping the efficiency difference.
Penguins Top Mountaineers For Third Straight Season
Sunday's four-set victory
against West Virginia was the third straight victory for the
Penguins over the Mountaineers. The two teams have played every
year since 2001, and each team has won four of the eight meetings.
YSU was victorious in 2001, WVU won from 2002-05, and the Penguins
have won from 2006-08. WVU still holds a 10-5 advantage in the
all-time series.
Five New Players Make Debut
More than one-third of YSU's
players have made their collegiate debut this year. Redshirt
freshman Tasha Reid has started every match at opposite side
hitter, and she's totaled a solid 62 kills and 23 blocks.
True freshmen Amanda Gray and Brittany McNeal have each played in
more than 25 sets in the back row. Gray has started six matches -
the last four at libero - and has accumulated 68 digs. McNeal has
picked up 48 digs in 27 sets. Redshirt freshman Kelsi Bitter has
appeared in seven sets as an outside hitter, and freshman outside
hitter Brittany Grove made her debut against Saint
Peter's.
Bonner Earns 30th Victory
YSU head volleyball coach Joe Bonner
collected his 30th career victory when the Penguins defeated Toledo
on Aug. 29. He now has 36 victories in his career, all of which
have come at YSU. He won seven matches in 2005, 10 in 2006 and 12
in 2007.
YSU Wins Tournament in Charlotte
The Penguins went 3-0 to win the
Comfort Suites 49er Tournament on Sept. 5 and 6. YSU beat Norfolk
State and Howard in straight sets then defeated host Charlotte in
four sets to win the championship trophy. Three players were named
to the all-tournament team - Ebony Barbosa, Karla Everhart and
Haley Kapferer. Barbosa, a senior outside hitter, was named the
MVP, collecting 29 kills, 27 digs and a .271 hitting percentage.
Everhart, a senior setter, dished out 108 assists, had 17 digs and
seven blocks, and she helped YSU to an impressive .292 team attack
percentage. Kapferer, a sophomore middle hitter, had 28 kills, hit
.415 and had seven blocks.
Barbosa Named MVP of Comfort Suites 49er Tournament
Senior outside hitter Ebony Barbosa
was named the Comfort Suites 49er Tournament Most Valuable Player
in leading the Penguins to the tournament title. The senior outside
hitter had a team-high 29 kills, registered a .271 hitting
percentage and trailed only libero Laurie Shives in digs with 27 in
the three matches. She opened the tournament with nine kills, nine
digs and a season-best .412 hitting percentage against Norfolk
State. She then recorded her second double-double of the season
against Howard in the second match, posting 12 kills, 10 digs and
three block assists. The senior then had eight kills and eight digs
in the championship match.
