Jan. 15, 2008
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.—Tatum Ailes (Bellevue, Neb.), who just completed her four-year collegiate playing career at the University of Missouri, has been added to the U.S. Women's National Volleyball Training Team, according to Team USA Head Coach “Jenny” Lang Ping. Ailes, a libero, participated in her first session with the U.S. Women's National Training Team yesterday. She was a member of the USA Women's National A2 Red Team that competed at the USA Volleyball Adult Open Championships last May.
A phone call from USAV's Tom Pingel broke the news to Ailes early last week.
“What a great opportunity this is for Tatum,” said Missouri Head Coach Wayne Kreklow. “She's worked very hard this year to improve her overall game, including her passing, and I can see why the coaches picked her. She'll have a lot of time with their coaches and I think that she has a great chance of staying in Colorado Springs for a while.”
Ailes, the first-ever defensive player to be named to the Preseason All-Big 12 Team, tallied over 2,000-career digs (2,017) becoming only the second person in Big 12 history to do so. As a senior, she averaged 5.03 digs per game as she broke her own school record with 583 digs in 2007. Ailes turned in a then-Missouri record 565 digs in 2006 as a junior. She was named the Big 12 Libero of the Year as a sophomore in 2005, thanks to a league-leading 4.08 digs per game during the conference season. In her freshman season in 2004, Ailes broke most of the Tigers' defensive records as she piled up 432 digs in 103 games for a 4.19 game average.
Ailes will join former teammate Lindsey Hunter on the training team for 2008.
Ailes, whose sister Gabi was the libero for the Stanford University Cardinal that finished second at the 2007 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship, majored in business management at Missouri. A
Prior to Missouri, Ailes attended Bellevue West High School (Neb.) and led the squad to a 46-2 record and the Nebraska Class A State Championship. She averaged 12 assists per game and 13 digs per match in the title season. Bellevue West reached the state semifinals in each of Ailes' first three high school seasons. Upon leaving high school, she was the Nebraska prep record holder for career assists and assists as a junior.
U.S. Women's National Volleyball Training Team
Tatum Ailes (L, Bellevue, Neb.)
Foluke Akinradewo (MB, Plantation, Fla.)
Cynthia Barboza (OH, Long Beach, Calif.)
Cassie Busse (Opp, Prior Lake, Minn.)
Nicole Davis (L, Stockton, Calif.)
Lindsey Hunter (S, Papillion, Neb.)
Angie McGinnis (S, Fraser, Mich.)
Tracy Stalls (MB, Denver, Colo.)
Katie Wilkins (OH, Lakeside, Calif.)
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