Rice University Athletics
Volleyball: Game Notes #11
11/7/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
The Owls host Stephen F. Austin State in a non-conference match on Tuesday, November 7 at 7 p.m. at Autry Court.
at Fresno State (12-13, 5-6)
Rice faces Fresno State in the first match of their California swing on Friday, November 10 at 9 p.m. (PST).
at San Jose State (18-6, 9-2)
The Owls face the second place team in the WAC when they take on San Jose State on Saturday, November 11 at 9:30 p.m. (PST).
Rice's Probable Starting Lineup (2000 per game averages)
RICE OWLS 2000 RECORD (14-13, 3-8)
OH 3 Klara Zelinka (zuh-LINK-uh) 6-0, Sr.-3L, Houston 2.5k, 2.8d
MB 4 Briana Cook (BRI-an-uh) 6-1, So.-1L, Houston 1.7k, 1.4b
DS 5 Michelle Craven 5-7, Jr. 2-L, Fort Worth 1.9d
OH 10 Rebekah Neal 5-9, Fr.-HS, Paramount, Calif. 1.0k, 1.5d
OH 11 Leigh Leman (le-MAHN) 5-9, Jr.-2L, Magnolia 3.9k, 4.0d
OH 12 Karolina Zelinka (zuh-LINK-uh) 6-0, Sr.-3L, Houston 4.2k, 3.5d
RICE BENCH
OH 1 Remi Aderohunmu (ah-DARE-uh-moo) 5-10,Sr.-3L, Irving 1.0d
OH 2 Rhonda Sigman 5-8, Fr.-HS, Spring, Texas
OH 7 Alison Broadfoot 6-0, Jr.-2L, Clear Lake 0.5k, 0.5d
S 8 Mariel Davenport Pollock 6-0, So.-1L, Bethesda, Md. 9.4a, 2.1d
MB 9 Elizabeth Davenport Pollock 6-1, So.-1L, Bethesda, Md. 1.5k, 1.2b
OH 13 Allison Donohue 5-9, Fr.-HS, Los Gatos, Calif.
MB 14 Courtney Smith 6-0, Jr.-2L, San Diego, Calif. 1.3d, 0.6b
Rice Coach Julio Morales
Morales (Puerto Rico, 1974; M.Ed., Houston, 1975; Ph.D., Maryland, 1991) is currently in his fifth year as head coach of the Owls... He is 127-95 overall in his 10+ years as a head coach... He has compiled a 71-88 overall record in his years at the helm for the Owls... An internationally recognized coach, Morales has guided both mens and womens squads at the college and international level... As the head coach of the womens team at the University of Puerto Rico, Morales guided his alma mater to a 56-7 record over six seasons (1975-81)... Along with his 88.9 winning percentage, he led his womens teams to four University Athletic League Championships... Morales also served a pair of stints as the head coach for the Gamecocks mens team, 1986-87 and 1992-95... As the mens coach, he tallied a 58-20 mark with a championship and four runner-up finishes... He is assisted by Jose Santiago (Puerto Rico, 1993; M.A., Indiana State, 1998), who is in his fifth year with the Owls, and Tiffany Carrethers (Rice University, 1998), who is in her first year with the Owls after spending the past year and a half with the United States Professional Volleyball League.
Rice Versus The Field
The Owls lead the series against Stephen F. Austin State, 13-8. The Ladyjacks defeated Rice at home in 1999, 15-4, 15-11, 15-12. Earlier this season, the Owls posted a win at home over Fresno State 15-4, 8-15, 15-2, 10-15, 15-8 to post their first victory over the Bulldogs, who lead the series 4-1. San Jose State improved their record over Rice to 5-0 with a 12-15, 11-15, 15-12, 15-6, 15-11 win at Autry Court earlier this year.
A Look Back
Rice lost their eighth straight last weekend with a 15-11, 8-15, 7-15, 15-10, 13-15 loss at UTEP. With her eighteenth double-double on the year, 18 kills and 17 digs, senior outside hitter Karolina Zelinka became the all-time digs leader at Rice with 1,133. Junior outside hitter Leigh Leman knocked down 14 kills, collected nine digs and went up for a career high nine blocks, while freshman outside hitter Rebekah Neal tallied a personal best 33 assists and nine blocks. Senior outside hitter Klara Zelinka had 11 kills and eight digs, and served up two service aces for the Owls. Rice was held hit-less by the Miners in games two and three, going 12-12-38 in game two, and 6-6-28 in game three. However, the Owls hit over .300 in games one (.314), four (.390) and five (.368), for an overall .211 for the game. The Owls and Miners split the season series this year with each squad winning on their home court.
Number One
Karolina Zelinka is now the all-time digs leader at Rice with 1,133. Heading into last weekend's match at UTEP, she needed just 14 digs to claim the top spot. Her 17 against the Miners clinched the title for this 6-0 senior from Houston.
Record Watch
In addition to claiming the all-time digs leader title, Karolina Zelinka finds herself splattered all over the record book at Rice. She jumps to third all-time in kills with a career total of 1,435, and needs just 91 to move into the second-place spot. She cracks the top 10 in service aces, with 115. She moves to eighth all-time in total blocks (229) and block assists (202). Her younger sister, Klara Zelinka, leaps to third in digs with 988, cracks the top 10 in kills with 916, stands at sixth in block assists with 264 (she needs just five to claim the fifth spot all-time) and owns the seventh spot in total blocks with 285. Sophomore middle blocker Briana Cook stands at seventh in block assists (235) and is eighth total blocks (270), behind teammate Klara Zelinka. Cook also stands alone in eighth-place in solo blocks with 35. Leigh Leman makes a move to fifth all-time in digs with 978.
Opponent Outlook
Stephen F. Austin State University comes into this match at 15-12 overall, 11-7 in Southland Conference play. The Ladyjacks are coming off a 3-1 win over Lamar, 15-6, 14-16, 15-13, 17-15. Leading SFA this season is junior middle blocker Kristy Rhodes, who has tallied 501 kills so far this fall. She has also hit the court for 211 digs, and gone up for 82 blocks. Setting for the Ladyjacks is junior Marissa Dorcheus, who has put up 1,325 assists (14.56 apg). Senior outside hitter Jenny Orndorff is also playing well for SFA, knocking down 288 kills and leading the squad in digs with 314. Head coach Debbie Humphreys is in her 12th year at the helm of the Ladyjacks, and owns a 259-143 record. She is one of the most successful coaches in Southland Conference history and has led SFA to to three SLC regular-season titles and five post-season tournament appearances.
The Fresno State Bulldogs stand at 12-13, 5-6 in the WAC (5th place) and are coming off a conference match at Hawaii. The Bulldogs battled Hawaii before being swept by the Rainbow Wahine 15-7, 15-9, 15-5 on Saturday night. FSU is led by junior middle blocker Shauna McQuaid who has tallied 328 for the season, good for seventh best in the WAC. Sophomore middle blocker Lindsay Closs leads the Bulldog squad in blocks with 103 total blocks this season, in addition to knocking down 259 kills. Lindy Vivas is in her 10th season as head coach of the Bulldogs. She owns a 261-186 record in her 13 years as a head coach.
San Jose State has put together an impressive season so far this fall. The Spartans are 18-6, 9-2 in WAC play, and find themselves second behind Hawaii. SJSU defeated Nevada on Saturday, 15-11, 15-8, 9-15, 15-13, behind the superior hitting of senior middle blocker Joslynn Gallop. Gallop is hitting .296 on the year (498-149-1181) and averages 2.77 digs per game. She ranks sixth in the WAC in hitting percentage, and leads the league in kills, with a per game average of 5.66. Junior setter Savannah Smith ranks second in the WAC in assists, with 1154 total (13.26 apg). Head coach Craig Choate was the 1999 WAC Coach of the Year. He owns a 173-165 overall record in his 10 years as a head coach.
Traveling Woes
The road continues to hurt the Owls, as they have not yet won a road conference match, and have only tallied three victories when not at home. Rice has defeated North Carolina State, Sam Houston State and McNeese State on the road. The last road win for the Owls came against the McNeese State Cowgirls back on September 26. With six matches remaining for Rice, three of those are on the road... Fresno State, San Jose State and nationally ranked Hawaii.
Losing Matters
The Owls have lost eight straight. They haven't won a match since defeating Texas-San Antonio at home on October 10. The record for most consecutive losses in a single season at Rice is nine. The Owls are one away from tying that record.
Rice in the WAC
After several weeks of leading the league in blocks, the Owls have relinquished that rank to Hawaii. The Rainbow Wahine average 3.24 blocks per game, followed by Rice, who averages 3.20. The Owls do still lead the conference in digs, with 1774 total, 17.39 digs per game. Briana Cook finds herself in second place in the WAC in blocks, with 1.39 per game, while Karolina Zelinka leads in service aces with 39. Leigh Leman and Zelinka are second and third, respectively, in the WAC in digs, with a per game average of 3.98 and 3.50.
Looking Ahead
Rice will host their final two home games next week when TCU comes to Autry Court on Thursday, November 16. The SMU Mustangs are the opponent for senior night on Saturday, November 18. The Owls end their season in Hawaii against the nationally ranked Rainbow Wahine on Tuesday, November 21.
