Sept. 24, 1999
Illini Sweep Hoosiers to Start 1-0: The Fighting Illini volleyball team opened its Big Ten season with a 3-0 win over Indiana Wednesday evening at Huff Hall. The win gave Illinois its third 1-0 Big Ten start in the past four years. Sophomore Lydia Gard collected career highs in both kills (16) and swings (29) against the Hoosiers in leading Illinois to the win.
Scouting the Wildcats: Northwestern opens Big Ten play with a 2-8 overall record. The Wildcats are hitting .191 as a team with an average of 14.16 kills per game. However, the Wildcats have won two of their last three matches, counting wins over Oklahoma and Louisiana State at last weekend?s Wildcat Classic. Wildcats Sarah Ballog, Kitty Owen and Kelli Meyer were all named to the all-tournament team.
No. 25 Illinois (5-2/1-0) at Northwestern (2-8/0-0)
Sept. 24 - 7 p.m. - Welsh-Ryan Arena
The Series: Illinois leads the overall series against Northwestern, 31-18. The Illini had won 16-straight from the Wildcats before losing, 3-1, at Welsh-Ryan last Nov. 7.
Illini Volleyball, Football Winning Combo: The Illini volleyball and football teams teamed up to sweep the Louisville Cardinals Saturday in Louisville. The volleyball team started the fun in the afternoon, sweeping Don Hardin?s former team 3-0. Tracey Marshall and Shadia Haddad teamed up for 13 and 12 kills, respectively, to lead the cause. That evening, with the volleyball team cheering them on from the stands, the Fighting Illini football team defeated Louisville, 41-36, to improve to 3-0 in 1999.
Argabright to Redshirt: The volleyball team has decided that freshman Lisa Argabright will redshirt the 1999 season. The 6?6? Louisville, Ky., native will not compete for Illinois until the 2000 season. She will continue to practice and travel with the squad.
Illinois Captures 16th Annual Classic: Illinois captured the 16th annual Illini Classic this weekend at historic Huff Hall. The Illini defeated George Mason, 3-0, in Friday?s first round and then beat Georgia, 3-0, in Saturday?s championship match. Illinois? Betsy Spicer earned Classic MVP honors while teammates Shadia Haddad and Melissa Beitz joined her on the all-tournament team. With the championship, Illinois has now won five-straight Classic titles and 11 total titles.
Ohio State Game Time Change: Illinois? match at Ohio State, originally scheduled for the evening of Oct. 2, has been changed to a Sunday afternoon match in order to accomodate the Ohio State-Wisconsin football game scheduled for Saturday in Columbus. The match has been rescheduled for 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, Oct. 3.
Illini Drop Match Against USPV: After winning the Illini Classic Saturday night, Illinois made a quick turnaround and traveled to Chicago on Sunday for a match against the new United State Pro Volleyball team. Illinois dropped the match, four games to none. Senior Tracey Marhall, playing in her former high school gym at Downers Grove South, led the team with 15 kills.
Freshmen on the Floor: It didn?t take long for Illini freshman Sue Webber to see the court. She played in both matches at Long Beach, collecting three kills in eight attempts in six games. Webber?s classmate Anne Koester, who stands 6-5, made her first appearance as an Illini against UNC.
Two Illini Earn Preseason All-Big Ten Honors: Seniors Melissa Beitz and Tracey Marshall were both named to the 1999 Preseason All-Big Ten team. Beitz, a fourth-year starter at setter, is the returning assists leader in the Big Ten. She was named AVCA All-District a year ago after finishing second in the nation in assists. Marshall was a 1998 All-Big Ten pick and is on pace to break the Illinois career kills and digs records.
Illinois Picked Third in the Big Ten: In a preseason coaches poll, Illinois was picked to finish third in the Big Ten (behind Penn State and Wisconsin). A year ago, Illinois was picked to finish fourth and stayed true to form. The Big Ten volleyball coaches predicted the following order of finish: 1. Penn State, 2. Wisconsin, 3. Illinois, 4(T). Michigan State and Ohio State, 6. Minnesota, 7. Indiana, 8. Iowa, 9. Purdue, 10. Michigan, 11. Northwestern.
Illinois Ranked 14th Preseason: Ending the 1998 season ranked 14th in the nation, Illinoisearned that same ranking to start 1999 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association/USA Today preseason poll, released on August 12. Illinois is one of four Big Ten schools ranked in the poll: the coaches voted Penn State No. 1, Wisconsin No. 9, Illinois No. 14 and Michigan State No. 22.
Illini Return Four Starters: Despite losing five seniors to graduation, Illinois is returning four starters who have all earned Big Ten recognition at one point in their careers. Seniors Melissa Beitz (S), Tracey Marshall (OH) and Sara Sorrell (OH) all return along with junior Betsy Spicer (MB), one of the most effective blockers in the conference.
Another Tough Schedule: Illinois, which played the toughest schedule in the nation in 1998, faces another grueling schedule in 1999. In addition to stiff Big Ten competition that includes national runner-up Penn State, the Illini have matches scheduled against 1998 NCAA tournament participants Cal-Santa Barbara, North Carolina, Utah, Louisville and Illinois State. In addition, Illinois will play an exhibition against a team from the new United States Volleyball League.
Hardin Enters Fourth Year: Head Coach Don Hardin is entering his fourth year at the helm of the Fighting Illini volleyball team. Hardin, a graduate of Illinois and former assistant coach, has posted a 56-41 record in Champaign. In 1998 he took the team back to the NCAA tournament and Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 1995.
Quick Sets: Illinois took game two from George Mason, 15-0, on Sept. 10. The last time Illinois took a game 15-0 was against Delaware on Sept. 29, 1997, at the Jefferson Cup in Virginia . . . Senior Tracey Marshall is the only player to see every minute of action on the court so far this season . . . Freshman Betsy Eiserman made her first appearance for Illinois in the Sept. 17 exhibition against the Dresdner Sport Club . . . Illinois has been ranked in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 25 for 17 consecutive weeks, dating back to Sept. 15, 1998 . . . Illinois currently ranks seventh in the nation in home attendance with an average of 1,728 fans packing Huff Hall for each match.
1999 University of Illinois Fighting Illini
No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. Hometown/High School
1 Heather Wilson** S 5-8 Jr. Rantoul, Ill./Rantoul
2 Annie Stoessel** OH 6-0 Jr. Sumner, Iowa/Sumner
3 Betsy Eiserman S 5-9 Fr. Lake Bluff, Ill./Lake Forest
4 Shadia Haddad* OH 6-0 So. Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Ursula
5 Dena Schorn MB 6-1 Jr. Lostant, Ill./Putnam County
6 Kate Hill OH/DS 5-8 So. White Heath, Ill./Monticello/N?western
7 Sue Webber MB 6-1 Fr. Herscher, Ill./Herscher
8 Tracey Marshall*** OH 5-10 Sr. Bolingbrook, Ill./Downers Grove So
9 Lydia Gard* MB 6-1 So. Champaign, Ill./Centennial
10 Melissa Beitz*** S 5-8 Sr. Strasburg, Ill./Stewardson-Strasburg
11 Lisa Argabright MB/OH 6-5 Fr. Louisville, Ky./Sacred Heart
12 Sara Sorrell*** OH 6-0 Sr. Muncie, Ind./Central
13 Amber Lindner* DS 5-6 So. Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North
14 Betsy Spicer** MB 6-1 Jr. Barrington, Ill./Barrington
15 Anne Koester MB/OH 6-4 Fr. Muncie, Ind./Muncie Burris
Head Coach: Don Hardin (3rd year)
Assistant Coaches: Denise Baez (2nd year), Anne Kordes (1st year)
1999 Season Schedule and Results
Aug. 28 Alumni W, 3-0
Sept. 3-4 Long Beach State Tournament
Sept. 3 Cal-Santa Barbara L, 0-3
Sept. 4 North Carolina L, 2-3
Sept. 8 Illinois State W, 3-1
Sept. 10-11 Illini Classic
Sept. 10 Geo. Mason W, 3-0
Sept. 11 GEORGIA W, 3-0
Sept. 12 USVL (Exh.) L, 0-4
Sept. 17 Dresdner (Exh.) L, 2-3
Sept. 18 Louisville W, 3-0
Sept. 22 Indiana W, 3-0
Sept. 24 Northwestern 7 p.m.
Oct. 1 Penn State 6:30 p.m.
Oct. 3 Ohio State 1 p.m.
Oct. 8 Purdue 7 p.m.
Oct. 9 Wisconsin 7 p.m.
Oct. 15 Iowa 7 p.m.
Oct. 16 Minnesota 7 p.m.
Oct. 22 Michigan St. 7 p.m.
Oct. 23 Michigan 7 p.m.
Oct. 29 Wisconsin 7 p.m.
Oct. 30 Purdue 7 p.m.
Nov. 5 Ohio State 7 p.m.
Nov. 6 Penn State 7 p.m.
Nov. 10 Indiana 6 p.m.
Nov. 13 N?western 7 p.m.
Nov. 19 Michigan 6 p.m.
Nov. 20 Michigan State 6 p.m.
Nov. 26 Minnesota 7 p.m.
Nov. 27 Iowa 7 p.m.
All times are central and subject to change
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