Aug. 26, 2009

Complete Release in PDF Format

This Week
The Mizzou volleyball team will open its 2009 campaign with the Tiger Invitational, which will feature teams from BYU, Ole Miss and Texas State. The tournament will begin at 11 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 28. A complete schedule of matches is below.

Friday, Aug. 28
• 11 a.m. - Texas State vs. Ole Miss
• 4 p.m. - BYU vs. Ole Miss
• 6:30 p.m.- Mizzou vs. Texas State

Saturday, Aug. 29
• 10 a.m. - BYU vs. Texas State
• 12 p.m. - Mizzou vs. Ole Miss
• 6:30 p.m.- Mizzou vs. BYU
* Mizzou's matches listed in italics

Tiger Invitational History
This season marks the sixth time in the last eight seasons that Mizzou has played host to the Tiger Invitational. In the previous five Tiger Invitationals, Mizzou has claimed tournament titles in four and has never finished lower than second. In the most recent Tiger Invitational - held back in 2007 - the Tigers won after topping Notre Dame and falling to Florida International in five sets. Mizzou was still named tourney champs after winning the tournament on a plus-two tie-breaking set margin. 2005 was the last outright title for the Tigers as they topped Utah and swept then No. 9-ranked Tennessee. The only year that the Tigers have not claimed the Tiger Invite title was in 2004 when they compiled a 3-1 overall record at the event. Their only loss was to eventual champ, Creighton, in the first match of the tournament.

Last Time Out
The Tigers hosted the annual Black and Gold scrimmage last Friday (Aug. 21) and in front of nearly 1,200 fans, the Black team topped the Gold, 3-1 (15-8, 15-6, 7-15, 15-13). The Tigers also held a free youth clinic prior to the match which saw more than 300 youngsters get volleyball pointers from the team.

Ninth Time in Ten Seasons?
Since the Kreklows took over the Mizzou program in 2000, the Tigers have appeared in eight NCAA Tournaments and have ranked amongst the Big 12 and national elite. This season will mark Wayne and Susan Kreklow's 10th year at the helm as they will look to make it nine out of 10 in 2009. The Tigers' best NCAA Tournament run came back in 2005 when they advanced to the NCAA Regional Final after topping Hawaii in the round of 16.

Are You Experienced?
The Tigers may have been young during the 2008 season, but that youth label will be shredded heading into the 2009 season. Mizzou returns five starters and its libero from last season as nearly 70-percent of the team's point production returns to the floor, highlighted by Julianna Klein, who finihed 2008 with a team-best 446.0 points. The Tigers also return 91-percent of their season dig total as all three back-row regulars - libero Caitlyn Vann, Annie Lopez and Priscilla Armendariz - each return for another season. The trio accounted for 1,052 digs in 2009, accounting for 62-percent of the returning defense. Each of the nine players returning in 2009 saw action in at least 22 of Mizzou's 30 matches in 2008.

Senior Circuit
The Tigers' pair of seniors - Amanda Hantouli and Lei Wang-Francisco - will be the cornerstone of the Tiger team in 2009. Both players have been with the program for five seasons and have been on three NCAA Tournament teams. The two also earned starts in all 30 matches for the Tigers in 2008 and played in all 115 sets. Hantouli was the team's leader in blocks (106) and hitting efficiency (.253) in 2008 while Wang-Francisco led the team in assists (1,109), was second in digs (267) and third in blocks (89).

From Colombia to Columbia
Junior transfer Paola Ampudia joins the 2009 Tiger roster after spending two years at Miami Dade Community College. Ampudia, a Cali, Colombia, native, was dubbed Preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year by the Big 12's coaches earlier this month. In 2007, Ampudia led Miami Dade to the National Junior College Athletics Association (NJCAA) national title game and helped the Sharks to a 30-0 regular season record that season. For her efforts, Ampudia was named NJCAA National Player of the Year as she ranked in the nation's top 10 in both hitting efficiency (.578) and kills per set (3.85). Ampudia finished the Black and Gold scrimmage with seven digs, one kill and a block assist.

Home, Sweet Hearnes
After not playing a home match at the Hearnes Center until Sept. 21 last season - the Tigers opened with 10-straight matches on the road - Mizzou will start its season with three matches at home to begin 2009. This season marks the first time since 2005 that Mizzou will start the season at the hallowed Hearnes Center. The Tigers then hit the road for two weekend-long tournaments - the Utah Valley Invitational and the Michigan/Pepsi Challenge - and then return home for the start of Big 12 play against arch rival Kansas in the first installment of the Border Showdown.

Dazzling Debuts
Both Lindsey Petrick and Rosa Medrano made their Tiger debuts last Friday (Aug. 21) at the annual Black and Gold scrimmage, and both performed exceptionally well. The pair combined for 15 kills and 20.5 total points in the four-set match. Petrcik finished with seven kills along with seven blocks (one solo, six assists), leading the Tigers in total points with 11.0. Medrano finished the contest with a team-high eight kills without committing an attack error, hitting at a clip of .500 to pace the team. The pair was one of the main reasons for the Black squad's four-set victory. Freshman Marissa Ferri also had a fine debut, tallying nine digs in the four-set match.

Scouting Texas State
The Bobcats come into the 2009 season as the defending Southland Conference Champion and return a bulk of their offensive and defensive production from a season ago. Overall, Texas State finished with a 23-14 record in 2008, including a 14-2 mark in league play. The Bobcats are led by senior Jessica Weynand, who led the team in kills (372), digs (365) and service aces (35).

Texas State finished the 2008 season with 1,722 kills, by far the most out of any of the four teams in this weekend's tournament. The Bobcats also hit .247 as a team last season, .047 better than their opponents. Despite returning a talented group in 2009, Texas State is faced with the daunting task of replacing middle hitter Emily Jones Wilkes, who finished the `08 campaign with 252 kills, 111 blocks and a .335 hitting percentage. Junior Melinda Cave, who posted 261 kills and 58 blocks in `08, will likely fill that role this season. The only meeting between the two programs came in 2007 when the Tigers topped the Bobcats in four.

Scouting BYU
BYU underwent a transitional year in 2008. After finishing with a 24-8 record and an NCAA Tournament berth in 2007, the Cougars finished 14-12 in 2008 and a 7-9 mark in conference play. One of the biggest reasons for their decline in wins was that the team hit .062 worse in 2008 versus the 2007 season. In fact, BYU's .271 hitting percentage was one of the nation's top marks in 2007, but the team struggled to hit better than .200 for most of the season in 2008.

One of the strengths of the team last season was their blocking ability and overall defensive numbers. In fact, BYU help opponents to a .177 hitting percentage and finished the season with 253.5 total blocks, averaging 2.67 per set, the best out of any team at the four-team tournament this weekend. BYU is led by All-Mountain West selection Kayla Walker, a 6-5 outside hitter that led the team with 285 kills last season. Anchoring the Cougars in the back row is libero Melissa Wright, who led BYU with 253 digs in 2008. Mizzou trails the all-time series with BYU 0-1, with the only meeting coming back in 2008, which was a five-set loss for the Tigers.

Scouting Ole Miss
The Rebels finished the 2008 campaign with a 14-15 mark and a 10-10 record in SEC play. Led by sophomore Katie Norris, who paced the team with 321 kills in 2008 despite only starting 15 matches, the Rebels have one of the youngest teams in the SEC with only one senior on their roster. The lone senior - Caitlin Weiss - finished second on the team with 205 kills during the 2008 season.

Ole Miss enters the Tiger Invitational as the worst hitting team - according to the percentages - in the four-team tournament. The Rebels hit just .182 last season while allowing their opponents to hit .219. In fact, only three regulars in last year's rotation hit better than .200. The good news for the Rebels is that two of those three - Regina Thomas and Miranda Kitts - return this season. Thomas led the team with a .320 attack percentage and tallied 200 kills while Kitts hit .242 with 193 kills. The pair also finished 1-2 in blocks, totaling 69 and 81, respectively. The departure of libero Allison Weber has left a job open in the back row, one that will likely be filled by DS Morgan Springer, who tallied 259 digs last season. The Tigers lead the all-time series with the Rebels, 4-3, with the most recent meeting coming in 2007, when the Tigers fell in five.

Big 12 Preseason Prospectus
After going 13-17 last in 2008, the Tigers were picked to finish eighth in the Big 12 this season according to the preseason poll, picked by the Big 12's 11 head coaches. The pick is the Tigers' lowest since prior to the 2000 season when the team was picked ninth. That year, all the Tigers did, under then head coach Susan Kreklow, was compile a 24-7 record while finishing second in the Big 12 with a 14-6 record. Mizzou is hoping for similar results this season as they search for another bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Defending Big 12 Champ Texas was picked to win the league this season, just edging out perennial powerhouse Nebraska by five points in the poll. Iowa State, who advanced to the Elite Eight last season, was picked third while Texas A&M, Baylor and Kansas State round out the top six in the league. Four Big 12 teams rank in the ACVA Top 25 poll (left).

Joining Ampudia on the list of major award winners are two standouts from the Longhorn roster. Destinee Hooker was dubbed Big 12 Player of the Year while her teammate, Bailey Webster, earned Freshman of the Year.

A Vann-tastic Season in 2008
During her sophomore season in 2008, libero Caitlyn Vann anchored the Tigers in the back row after putting together one of the finest statistical defensive seasons in Tiger history. After totaling 560 digs, Vann moved into third-place on the single-season dig list at Mizzou, trailing only former Tiger Tatum Ailes. Had the scoring system been to 30 points in 2008, like it was when Ailes played, according the percentages, Vann would have smashed Ailes' record by more than 90 digs, earning her a spot amongst the Big 12's elite liberos. For her career, Vann is now averaging 3.79 digs per set, which is the second-best career total as well, trailing only Ailes.

The Tigers' Crown "Jules"
After missing most of the 2007 season with a knee injury, Julianna Klein bounced back in a big way during 2008. Klein finished 2008 with 393 kills to lead the team. She is now 10th on the all-time kills per set list, averaging 3.08 and her 3.74 assists per set ranks ninth all time. Also, Klein posted 1,257 attacks in 2008, the third most in a single season in Mizzou history. Those attacks moved her career total to 2,474, which ranks 15th on the career attack list at Mizzou. For a complete look at the Tigers that will make their way up the record books this season, check the `Record Watch' section on page five.

A New Addition
There is a fresh new face on the Tiger bench this season and that face is assistant coach Chirs Muscat. Muscat joins the Tiger staff after spending two years as an assistant under coach John Dunning with the Stanford Cardinal women's volleyball team. At Stanford, Muscat was a part of two Pac-10 championship teams and two national runner-up squads. Muscat's many duties while at Stanford included player development, video analysis and opponent scouting. Stanford posted a 63-7 record during Muscat's tenure with the Cardinal and produced seven All-Americans.

As a player, Muscat was a member of two national championship teams at UCLA in 1998 and 2000 as a middle and outside hitter. Due to injury, he sat out during his last season and graduated with a degree in Biology. Muscat's primary responsibilities will be working with the Tigers at the net, working with outside hitters and middle blockers on their attacking and blocking technique, as well as playing a large role in the recruitment of future players to the Missouri program.

One of Mizzou's Finest
Freshman Annie Lopez was recently named to the Omicron Delta Kappa list of top freshmen at the University of Missouri. Only the best 14 students in their first year of college are selected to the group and Lopez had no idea at the time that one of her fellow teammates believed she had the credentials to make the group.

"I received an e-mail one day and found out I had been selected a finalist for the award, and that Lei (Wang) had nominated me," Lopez said. "I was honored that one of my teammates would think so highly of me."

Getting nominated was the first step, but it was far from the last, as Lopez would need to write an essay and submit a resume to make it to round two. She made it to round two, which consisted of an hour-long interview where she, and 20 other people, would be asked questions about themselves and any obstacles they've overcome in their lifetime. Soon after she completed the entire application process, Lopez received word that she had been selected as one of the 14 Omicron Delta Kappa honorees for the 2009 class. Lopez' current major is Textile Apparel Management with minors in Spanish and possibly Business.

All-Access Video and Radio
Be sure to follow the Tiger volleyball program all season long on www.mutigers.com. The matches will be streamed live on Mizzou All-Access and KCOU, Mizzou's student radio station, will provide play-by-play of each home match over the video. Also, select road matches will be available for radio streaming on www.mutigers.com. Those matches will be announced at a later date.

The Key Returners
Mizzou returns five players that started every match during 2008 and seven that saw action in all 30, including the Tigers' leaders in each of the major statistical categories - kills, digs, hitting percentage, blocks and assists - during the 2008 season. Below is a look at several of the key returners for the Tigers this season.

• Senior Setter Lei Wang-Francisco
The Tigers' three-year starter at the setter position, Wang-Francisco comes into the season ranked fourth on the all-time Mizzou career assist list with 3,677 during her three seasons. Wang-Francisco has posted two triple-doubles in her career and boasts nine matches with at least 60 assists during her career.

• Senior Middle Blocker Amanda Hantouli
Also a seasoned veteran, Hantouli led the Tigers in both total blocks (106) and hitting percentage (.253) last season and has led the team in hitting in each of the past two seasons. She also added 214 kills to her ledger in 2008, ranking her fourth on the team in that category. Hantouli is a three-year letterwinner heading into her final campaign with the Tigers.

• Junior Outside Hitter Julianna Klein
Julianna Klein had six kill-dig double doubles in 2008 and led the team with 3.46 kills per set. Klein finished the season with 393 kills including four matches with more than 20 kills. Klein also finished the season with a total of 1,257 attacks, the third-most in a single season ever by a Tiger. She had a career-high 66 attacks at Texas A&M last season and she finished the five-set match with 20 kills.

• Junior Libero Caitlyn Vann
Vann will anchor the Tigers in the back row this season after she put together one of the finest statistical defensive seasons in Tiger history during the 2008 campaign. After totaling 560 digs, Vann moved to third-place on the single-season dig list at Mizzou, trailing only former Tiger Tatum Ailes. Had the scoring system been to 30 points in 2008, like it was when Ailes played, according the percentages, Vann would have smashed Ailes' record by more than 90 digs, earning her a spot amongst the Big 12's elite liberos.

• Junior Middle Blocker Weiwen Wang
Wang was one of the Tigers' top attackers during the 2008 season, finishing ranked second on the team in both kills (246) and hitting efficiency (.242). Wang is also the 2007 Big 12 Freshman of the Year and finished 2008 with 90 total blocks, ranking her second on the team, just behind Hantouli.

• Sophomore Defensive Specialist Annie Lopez
Lopez was a spark for the Tigers in 2008, totaling 242 digs in her first season as a Tiger, a mark that ranked fifth on the team.

• Sophomore Defensive Specialist Priscilla Armendariz
A key contributor off the bench, Armendarz played in all 115 sets during the 2008 season while starting in 21 contests. After racking up 250 total digs on the season, Armendariz finished the campaign with the fourth-most digs on the team.

• Junior Middle Blocker Catie Wilson
Wilson rounds out the key returners for the Tigers in 2009. During her sophomore season, Wilson earned 83 kills despite only seeing action in 57 sets. Wilson posted a career-best 12 kills at Kansas State last season and finished 2008 averaging nearly 1.46 kills per set while hitting .239, third-best on the team.

The Key Newcomers
Five fresh faces will don the black and gold for the first time in their careers on Friday - three freshmen and two junior college transfers from Miami Dade College. Below is a brief look at the key newcomers for the Tigers.

• Junior Outside Hitter Paola Ampudia
Ampudia joins the Tigers as a standout transfer from National Junior College Athlete Association (NJCAA) powerhouse Miami Dade. Ampudia led the Sharks to the NJCAA National Championship game in 2007 and was named the NJCAA National Player of the Year that season. The Big 12 coaches have tabbed Ampudia as the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year as she will likely make an immediate impact on the Tiger roster this season.

• Junior Middle Blocker Rosa Medrano
Medrano was a teammate of Ampudia's at Miami Dade and followed her close friend and teammate to Mid-Missouri. Medrano brings a great all-around approach to the Tiger roster as she can play nearly every position on the floor. With a strong beach and indoor volleyball background, Medrano brings plenty of experience to the competition floor this season. Posted a team-best eight kills while hitting .500 at the annual Black and Gold scrimmage.

• Freshman Middle Blocker Lindsey Petrick
The freshman from Overland Park, Kan., led the team with 11 total points during the annual Black and Gold scrimmage. Petrick finished the match with seven kills, one solo block and six block assists in the four-set match.

• Freshman Defensive Specialist Marissa Ferri
The Naperville, Ill., native tallied nine digs during the Black and Gold scrimmage, adding depth to an already spectacular back row for the Tigers in 2009.