Sept. 8, 2010

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KINGSTON, R.I. - The University of Maryland Eastern Shore women's volleyball team (1-6) travels to Kingston, R.I., this week to play in the Art Carmichael URI Volleyball Inviational Sept. 9-11 at Keaney Gymnasium. The tournament marks the Hawks' third consecutive of five on the road and sixth overall.

HAWKS GO 0-3 AT FIESTA BOWL TOURNAMENT UMES went 0-3 at the 18th Annual Fiesta Bowl Volleyball Tournament hosted by Northern Arizona, losing to Rider and NAU, 3-0 and Texas A&M Corpus Christi, 3-1. The host Lumberjacks captured their 11th tournament title, finishing the weekend undefeated.

SCOUTING RHODE ISLAND Rhode Island comes into the tournament at 3-2 with wins over Fairfield, Quinnipiac and Stony Brook.The Rams are third in thr Altantic 10 in hitting percentage (.219), and fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.179). URI is led by Lauren McIntosh, who is averaging 2.57 kills per game and Kalyn Klaess at 2.37 digs per game. Jill Anderson is second in the A-10 in blocks per game at 1.54. Rhody is coached by Bob Schneck in his 30th season with a record of 511-406-2.

SCOUTING MARIST Marist is 5-3 on the season with wins over Holy Cross (twice) NJIT, Hartford and Prairie View A&M. The Red Foxes lead the MAAC in blocks per game at 1.79 and are fifth in hitting percentage at .176. Individually, Grace Hill is sixth in the conference in kills per game (3.29) while Hanna Stoiberg is tied for fifth in assists per game (7.5). Kayla Burton is second in blocks per game (1.07).Tom Hanna is in his fifth season as head coach at Marist and holds a 58-72 record at the school.

SCOUTING NEW HAMPSHIRE New Hampshire is 2-4 on the season with wins against St. John's and Fairleigh Dickinson. The Wildcats lead America East in kills per game at 11.82, are second in opponent hitting percentage (.171) and assists per game (10.82). UNH is also third in hitting percentage (.172) and blocks per game (1.91). Lauren Laquerre leads the team and is third in the conference with a 3.62 kills per game mark, Sarah Helman leads the league in assists per game at 9.45 and Jayde Huxtable is also second in digs per game with 4.36. UNH is coached by Jill Hirschinger in her 15th season.

SERIES HISTORY Rhode Island and UMES will meet for the second time Thursday. The only previous meeting between the two came Nov. 5, 2006 at the Blackbird Invitational, hosted by LIU. The Rams won that matchup, 3-1. UMES and Marist will play for the third time since the 2002 season on Friday. The Red Foxes defeated the Hawks on Sept. 8-9, 2006 in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., by scores of 3-1 and 3-2. New Hampshire are UMES have never met in women's volleyball.

BOWENS NAMED FIESTA BOWL ALL-TOURNAMENT Junior outside hitter was named to the Fiesta Bowl Volleyball Tournament All-Tournament Team last weekend. The 5-foot-11 Long Beach, Calif., native had a .191 attack percentage with 3.30 kills per game in losses to Rider, Texas A&M Corpus Christi and Northern Arizona. Bowens tied for the match high with 12 kills against Rider and collected a team-high 10 against NAU.

LEADING THE MEAC UMES leads the MEAC in three statistical categories after the second week of the season. As a team, the Hawks lead the conference in hitting percentage (.176), while junior outside hitter Zoe Bowens is tops in kills per set (3.52) and points per game (4.14).

QUEEN OF THE MEAC Junior outside hitter Zoe Bowens is tops in the MEAC in her class in two statistical categories. Bowens leads all MEAC juniors in kills and points per game with marks of 3.52 kills and 4.14

UMES PICKED TO WIN MEAC NORTH AGAIN On July 21, UMES was chosen to win the MEAC Northern Division for the third straight time since the conference began divisional play in 2008. The Hawks garnered 20 of 22 first-place votes and 258 total points in the preseason poll, voted on by conference head coaches and sports information directors. Florida A&M was tabbed to win the south again with 18 first-place votes and 251 points.

HAWKS GET THREE ON PRESEASON ALL-MEAC TEAM Redshirt senior middle blocker Samantha Chukwura, junior outside hitter Christine Edwards and sophomore setter Bella Jade Romero were named to the 2010 Preseason All-MEAC Volleyball Team prior to the season. UMES was the only school in the conference to have three players named to the team. Edwards and Romero also earned Second Team All-MEAC and MEAC Rookie of the Year honors in 2009, respectivly, but were dismissed from the team in preseason workouts for disaplinary reasons.

METIL EARNS SECOND MEAC COACH OF YEAR HONOR Hawks' fourth-year head coach Don Metil was named MEAC Coach of Year for the second time in his time at UMES at the end of last season. Metil, who also coached fortwo years at conference rival Coppin State prior to coming to Princess Anne, Md., holds a 73-23 (.760) mark. Metil has also yet to lose a confence match in his tenure, going 30-0.

UMES OFF TO WORST START SINCE 2005 At 1-6 UMES has had its worst start to a season since the 2005 squad, coached by Alex Temkin, went 1-11.

2009: TIED FOR THIRD MOST WINS EVER The 2009 Hawks won 24 total matches, which tied for the third highest win total in school history. The 2003 team won 26 matches, the most in UMES history. The 2003 squad was led by one of the greatest players in UMES history, Jana Milin. She was named MEAC Player of the Year in both 2002 and 2003. Milin still holds the single-season record for kills with 644 in 2003.

UMES LEADS NCAA IN ACES PER GAME in 2009 For the second time in head coach Don Metil's tenure, UMES led NCAA in aces per game with 2.54. The Hawks also took the individual statistical crown in the 2007 season with a 2.84 per game average.The Hawks had two players (both of whom did not return to this year's squad) place in the top-9 individually in aces per game.

THREE-YEAR DOMINANCE IN THE MEAC Since head coach Don Metil arrived in Princess Anne, Md., the Hawks have had a stranglehold on the entire conference. In 2009, the Hawks dropped just one conference set and again in 2008, they went a 10-0 against MEAC opponents. In 2007, it was the same story. UMES was again perfect in the conference. In fact the Hawks had one of the nation's longest overall winning streaks at 22 matches that season.

PROTECTING THE HYTCHE CENTER The Hawks are 23-1 in their last 24 games inside the friendly confones of the William P. Hytche Athletic Center. UMES lost to Sacred Heart in its home opener last season to mark head coach Don Metil's first home loss at UMES. The Hawks open their 2010 home slate on Oct. 1 against North Carolina Central in the UMES Hawk Invitational.

CHUKWURKA LED MEAC, 8TH IN NCAA IN HITTING Redshirt senior middle blocker Samanatha Chukwura led the MEAC with a .397 hitting percentage, finishing eighth in the country. The 5-foot-9 Brooklyn, N.Y., native tallied 186 kills and just 47 errors in 350 total attacks.