Gators Host Aquafina Invitational To Open 2008 Slate
Thursday, August 28, 2008 | Volleyball
The Gators are coming off a 29-3 record in 2007 that resulted in their 17th consecutive Southeastern Conference Championship, their 17th consecutive NCAA Tournament berth and their 16th NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance in the last 17 years.
“I think for every coach in the country, this is the fun part,” Florida head coach Mary Wise said. “We have put in all the hard work not just in the pre-season, but all the way back until January. We had 12 of our 14 players here this summer training and we certainly saw the results of that by how hard we were able to practice these past few weeks. I truly believe that this is a team that no one will want to play come the end of the season. We're looking at it not where we're starting, but where we finish.”
The first 2,500 fans to the match receive a free schedule cling courtesy of Sun Sports, while the first 200 students receive free pizza. Pizza will be distributed starting at 6:15 p.m.
Florida boasts one of its youngest lineups in recent years, as there are just four upperclassmen on the Gators' 2008 roster - seniors Kelsey Bowers and Christina Diaz, and juniors Elyse Cusack and Kristina Johnson. Cusack, as just a sophomore, became the first All-America selection at the libero position in school history and she returns to anchor the Florida back row this season.
Sophomore outside hitter Callie Rivers returns as the Gators' top returning kill leader, having averaged 2.71 kills per game and also was third on the team with 0.54 blocks per game. Bowers was the squad's leading blocker a year ago, averaging 1.31 rejections per game, while Cusack led the defensive effort with 5.89 digs per game.
The Gators are 3-0 all-time vs. UAB and 19-1 in program history vs. members in the current alignment of Conference USA. Florida is 16-8 all- time in season opening matches, including a 13-4 record under Wise.
The Gators have won four consecutive season openers and have not lost a season-opening match that was played at the O'Connell Center since falling to Colorado State in the 2000 NACWAA Classic in Gainesville. This marks the second time in program history that Florida is opening its campaign against the Blazers, as the Gators won a 3-0 decision against UAB on Aug. 30, 2002 in the University Centre Hotel Invitational.
UAB finished its 2007 campaign with a 24-10 record, including a 12-4 mark in Conference USA play. The Blazers finished third in the C-USA standings a year ago after qualifying for their first NCAA Tournament in school history in 2006.
UAB returns five starters from a year ago, including first-team All- Conference USA selection and the Most Valuable Player at last year's C- USA Tournament Ivana Bozic, a senior outside hitter who averaged 4.25 kills per game and 3.80 digs per game with 57 service aces last season.
“When we made this schedule, little did I know that UAB had the opportunity to start five seniors and three of them are international players with a lot of experience,” Wise said. “This is a great way to test our players to see where we are at this point in the '08 campaign.”
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