Sept. 1, 2011
UMES Game Notes- USF Invitational
UMES BEGINS 2011 SEASON AT USF INVITATIONAL
The Hawks head to Tampa, Florida to start the 2011 campaign with the USF Invitational after the cancellation of the Tiny Laster Invitational in Hampton last weekend due to Hurricane Irene. UMES is set to play four matches over three days, debuting against MEAC opponent Bethune-Cookman on Friday. The next day, the team will take on tournament host South Florida followed by Bowling Green, finishing up the invitational with Eastern Kentucky on Sunday. All matches will be broadcast live on WGOP 540 AM and online by clicking here.
VAITAI NAMED MEAC PRESEASON POY
Sophomore outside hitter Maline Vaitai was named MEAC Preseason Player of the Year by the conference in August. Last season she earned MEAC Rookie of the Year after leading the conference in kills with 407, kills per set at 3.45, points with 476.5 and points per set at 4.04. In addition, senior outside hitter Zoe Bowens was also named to the MEAC Preseason Team with 350 kills and 79 aces in 2010.
UMES PICKED TO FINISH 1ST IN MEAC NORTH
The Hawks were chosen to fi nish fi rst in the MEAC Northern Division, receiving 21 of 26 first-place votes. UMES is currently the four-time defending MEAC North champion. Delaware State was picked to finished second to UMES, while Florida A&M is picked to finish first in the Southern Division over defending MEAC champion South Carolina State.
BOWENS FINISHES #1 IN DIVISION I IN ACES PER SET
Zoe Bowens led all of Division I in aces per set last season with 0.67, totaling 79 in 118 sets, standing as the top season rate in the NCAA during the 25-point format period. Her 79 aces ranks second highest in a season during the same period. Bowens finished the year with at least four aces in ten different matches, including a season high against Coppin State, hitting seven aces on October 17, 2010.
UMES #1 TEAM IN DIVISION I IN ACES PER SET
With Zoe Bowens leading the way with 0.67 aces per set, the Hawks led all of Division I in aces per set for the third time in four years, averaging 2.04 a set, finishing with 246 in 118 sets. Along with Bowens, Maline Vaitai and Kaveigna Lea'Aetoa each finished in the top-125 individually in aces per set. Vaitai hit 44 aces in 118 sets for 0.37 a set, 51st in Division I, while Lea'Aetoa landed 38 aces in the same number of sets to average 0.32 a game, 119th overall. In addition, Rebecca Prado and Stephanie Sierra each contibuted 32 service aces last season. UMES earned this same honor in 2007 and 2009.
2010 IN REVIEW
With a roster of just nine players, the Hawks went 20-12 and 8-2 in the MEAC to secure their fourth straight MEAC Northern Division title and 20-win season. After a 1-7 start, UMES went on a 16-2 run, including a streak of 11-straight three set victories and an 8-0 run at home. The Hawks earned a 1-seed in the MEAC Tournament and defeated Bethune-Cookman 3-1 before a defeat to eventual conference champion South Carolina State 3-1 in the semifi nals. Maline Vaitai earned MEAC Rookie of the Year and First Team All-MEAC while Samantha Chukwura, Kaveinga Lea'Aetoa and Stephanie Sierra earned Second Team All-MEAC.
VAITAI NAMED COBRA MAGAZINE ALL-PRESEASON THIRD TEAM
In their annual August preseason issue, COBRA Magazine named Maline Vaitai to the All-Preseason Third Team, being the only MEAC player to receive this honor. Last season, Vaitai along with Zoe Bowens and Samantha Chukwura received All-National Honorable Mention as well as All-East Region Team. UMES was last represented on a COBRA All-National Team in 2009 when Whitney Johnson received second team honors.
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN'
With the newest Hawks recruiting class, UMES boasts three outside hitters from the state of California. Senior Zoe Bowens and freshman Saitaua Iosia each went to Long Beach Poly High School, plus freshman Victoria Williams comes to UMES from Los Angeles.
GLOBETROTTER
The Hawks roster includes players from four different countries on three different continents. In addition to the players from the United States, freshman Jessie Vicic hails from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. Returner Jingqiao Li comes from Beijing, China, while freshman Nadja Nemeth calls Bettlach, Switzerland home. Since the 2005-06 season, UMES volleyball has also had players from Barbados, France, Israel, Serbia and Sweden.
NEW SET DESIGN.....
With the departure of Stephanie Sierra and Desirae Cencieros, UMES brings in two new setters for the 2011 campaign. Corey Haynes, a 6-3 junior who transferred from St. Peter's, joins the Hawks after getting triples digits in assists (436), digs (218) and kills (160) last year with the Peahens. Also joining is Jessie Vicic, a 5-9 freshman from Canada, suiting up for UMES after leading Forest Heights to four championships plus competing with the KW Predators club team.
......SAME WALLS OF DEFENSE
UMES returns its two leaders in digs last season and only players to don the libero jersey. Senior defensive specialist Rebecca Prado led the Hawks with 292 digs, adding 32 aces and 25 blocks. Sophomore Jingqiao Li served as the primary libero last season, finishing with 234 digs.
TOWERING ABOVE THE COMPETITION
Last season's roster player averaged a height of 69.3 inches (just over 5-9), with the tallest player being Maline Vaitai at 6-0, the lone six foot tall player that year. This year the average height of a UMES volleyball player is 70.9 inches (just under 5-11) with four players at least six feet tall joining the team to total five with Vaitai, including 6-3 Corey Haynes and 6-3 Victoria Williams.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS:
Bethune-Cookman, defeated by UMES in the first round of the MEAC Tournament last season, has started this year 1-1 with a win over Savannah State and a loss to the Citadel. Junior outside hitter Krysta Gardner has emerged as an early leader for the Wildcats, tallying 24 kills in her fi rst two matches, while sophomore libero Jennifer Jimenez got 29 digs with three aces to begin the year.
Tournament host South Florida fell in their matches against New Mexico and New Mexico State in the MCM Elegante Lobo Classic to start at 0-2 on the season. Junior outside hitter J'beria Davis led the Bulls in kills in each match, totalling 28 for the weekend, while freshman outside hitter Valerie El Houssine got 13 kills and 18 digs combined in the two matches.
Bowling Green comes to Tampa as the Kristen Dickmann Invitational champion after going 2-0 last Friday in Annapolis with wins over Air Force and Navy. Sophomore right side hitter Danielle Tonyan was named MVP of the Tournament with 27 kills and a .418 hitting percentage, while senior middle blocker Emily Kauth was named to the All-Tournament Team nine blocks and kills combined in the two matches.
Eastern Kentucky competed in the Pitt Panther Invitational last weekend, defeating Howard followed by losses against Pittsburgh, Rhode Island and Duquesne to finish at 1-3. Freshman setter Abbey Cvelber concluded the tournament with 113 assists and 26 digs, landing on the All-Tournament Team, while freshman middle blocker Hannah Burkle led the Colonels with 35 kills and 10 total blocks.
METIL APPROACHING 100 AND 200 WINS
Don Metil is approaching two different milestones this season. He is seven victories away from reaching 100 with UMES, currently standing at 93. He is also 22 wins from reaching 200 as a head coach dating back to 2002, including stops at Notre Dame (MD), Lees-McRae and Coppin State. Metil's first win in Division I came at Coppin State against UMES 3-2 on Sept. 25, 2005, while his first UMES win came against Coppin State 3-0 on Aug. 24, 2007.
UMES 12TH LONGEST ACTIVE HOME WINNING STREAK
Winning their last 15 matches in Princess Anne, the Hawks have the 12th longest home winning streak in the NCAA. Their last loss in the Hytche Athletic Center came on Sept. 26, 2009 with a 3-0 defeat from Sacred Heart. During this win streak, UMES has gone a perfect 45-0 in sets in Princess Anne. In addition, this streak marks the longest in the MEAC. Currently Cincinatti leads the country with 39 straight wins at home.
Team Current Win Streak (as of 8/31)
1- Cincinatti 39
2- Central Arkansas 30
3- Lipscomb 27
4- Tulsa 24
5- Nebraska 22
6- Western Michigan 21
7- Hawaii 17
7- Sacred Heart 17
7- Texas 17
7- Ball State 17
11- Florida 16
12- UMES 15
13- Duke 14
13- Middle Tennessee State 14
UMES MATCHES TO AIR ON WGOP
WGOP 540 AM and 100.7 FM is now the fl agship station of Hawks volleyball and will air all matches live on the radio this year. Dave Vatz returns for his second season with UMES and will provide play-by-play for each match. Fans can listen online on umeshawks.com. Each broadcast will begin with the GEICO Pregame Show 10 minutes before the first serve.
USF INVITATIONAL SCHEDULE
Friday, September 2nd
Bowling Green vs. Eastern Kentucky 11:00 a.m.
UMES vs. Bethune-Cookman 2:00 p.m.
Bethune-Cookman vs. Bowling Green 5:00 p.m.
Eastern Kentucky @ South Florida 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, September 3rd
UMES @ South Florida 11:00 a.m.
UMES vs. Bowling Green 2:00 p.m.
Bethune-Cookman vs. Eastern Kentucky 5:00 p.m.
Bowling Green @ South Florida 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, September 4th
UMES vs. Eastern Kentucky 12:00 p.m.
Bethune-Cookman @ South Florida 2:00 p.m.
