University of Houston Athletics
Volleyball Heads West for Bankers Classic
11/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 23, 2006
Houston Volleyball Notes - Bankers Classic (PDF)
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HOUSTON - The University of Houston volleyball team concludes the 2006 regular season with a trip out west to the Bankers Classic on the University of Pacific campus. The Cougars are coming off a 2-1 showing at the Conference USA Tournament before falling to Memphis in the semifinals a weekend ago.
"We're looking forward to having an opportunity of getting a 20-win season (the program's first since the 2000 season)," head coach Bill Walton said. "We're fired up about the opportunity to try and win a tournament. It's not the conference tournament but still would be a tournament victory against three solid west coast programs."
Houston will be playing in the Golden State for the first time since the 2003 season when the Cougars dropped a 3-0 decision to eventual national champion USC. The trip also will serve as a homecoming for California native Kinsey Cave. The Placentia native will be playing approximately five hours away from her hometown.
With 45 kills last weekend at the Conference USA Tournament, Kelly McAnelly continues her climb towards the top of the Cougar career kills list. The Houston native enters this weekend's action with 1,464 career kills and is tied for second with Lilly Denoon (1991-94). McAnelly also is one kill from Trish Ladusaw (Cincinnati, 1999-2002) and moving into the No. 16 spot in Conference USA history.
Krystal Schulle has stepped in nicely for an injured Kelsey King at setter. This season is the first time since high school that Schulle has played the setter position.
The Lockhart native has fueled the Cougars to a 14-9 record. She is second in C-USA action, dishing out 13.08 assists per game. The Houston offense has posted 15.73 kills per game during that stretch.
Schulle has racked up 13 double-doubles, including three in her last four outings. She has eclipsed the 50-assist mark nine times, including a 66-assist performance against Marshall in the C-USA quarterfinals. The Cougars have won 10 of its 14 matches via the sweep with Schulle at setter.
After being named to the 2005 Conference USA All-Freshman Team, Justine Farmer has been proving there is no such thing as a sophomore slump. The El Paso native headlines the squad with a league-leading and program single-season record 24 double-doubles this season.
Farmer has reached double-digit kills in 36 of her last 39 matches dating back to last season. She is the only player in C-USA to be in the Top 10 in kills and digs per game. Farmer ranks fourth in C-USA, averaging 4.79 kills per game and is 10th in the league, posting 3.77 digs per contest. She also is fifth in C-USA, notching 5.32 points per game.
With 604 kills this season, Justine Farmer is one of only three Cougars to reach the 600-kill mark for a season. She enters the weekend 43 kills shy of setting a new program single-season mark.
Farmer is coming off a C-USA All-Tournament Team selection after averaging 5.83 kills per game over a three-match stretch. She has reached the 20-kill plateau 13 times in addition to the 20-dig marks in eight matches. Only a sophomore, Farmer has already fired in 1,019 career kills and 839 career digs, surpassing her kill and dig totals from a season ago.
Becca Sartori joins McAnelly on the prowl of chasing down career marks in the Houston and Conference USA record books. After popping 34 at the Conference USA Tournament, Sartori has secured a spot in the program's Top Five by registering 1,346 career kills. She also joins McAnelly in the C-USA Top 30 list.
With eight blocks assists last weekend, Sartori now has 339 career block assists. The Houston native is 16 block assists shy of Loure Dews (2001-2004) for the No. 4 spot. Sartori also ranks in the Top 10 in program history for total blocks. She enters this weekend's action one block away from matching Marie Tourillon (1994-96) for the No. 7 spot in program history and 10 blocks from the No. 19 position in the Conference USA record book.
Ashley Calhoun and Erin Rice are two Cougar freshmen that have made an instant impact in 2006. Calhoun has reeled in double-digit digs in 23 of her 28 starts at libero, including her last eight outings. She paces the squad with 497 digs and is eighth in C-USA, posting 3.91 per game. The Wisconsin native bumped her average up to 4.28 digs per contest in league matches.
Rice has been a blocking machine in C-USA action, recording 75 blocks in 48 games. She paces the C-USA, posting 1.56 blocks per game in league play. Rice came through with a 13 block performance against Marshall in the C-USA quarterfinals. The Illinois native has blocked at least five balls in nine matches with eight of the nine outings coming against C-USA opponents.
The Cougars open the Bankers Classic against San Francisco 7pm Friday before taking on either host Pacific or Portland State on Saturday.
