Volleyball to Host No. 14 Texas A&M
11/2/2001 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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BAYLOR
vs.
TEXAS A&M
5 p.m. CDT
Nov. 3, 2001
Ferrell Center
Waco, Texas
Baylor will return to action Saturday, hosting No. 14 Texas A&M for a 5 p.m. match at the Ferrell Center. The Bears enter the match at 16-7 on the season, 7-7 and tied for sixth place in the Big 12 Conference. Baylor is coming off a tough 23-30, 27-30, 30-22, 30-26, 15-13 loss Wednesday at No. 22 Colorado. The Bears are currently 29th in the Ballicora computer rankings, they are also among those also receiving votes in the Volleyball Magazine Top 20. Texas A&M, currently ranked 14th in the USA Today/AVCA Coaches Poll, 15th in the Volleyball Magazine Top 20 and 11th in the Ballicora computer rankings, enters the match with a 17-3 overall record and a second-place 10-2 mark in the Big 12. The Aggies only losses have come against then-No. 9 Stanford, Colorado and then-No. 2 Nebraska. A&M is coming off a 30-23, 30-24, 30-23 victory Wednesday at home against Oklahoma. Live stats for the Baylor-Texas A&M match will be available online at www.GoBaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor athletics.
Head coach Brian Hosfeld
Baylor is in its sixth season under the direction of head coach Brian Hosfeld. During his tenure, the Bears have compiled a 106-84 (.558) overall record and a 47-67 (.412) mark in the rugged Big 12 Conference. In 1999, Hosfeld led the Bears to the greatest season in the program's 24-year history. Baylor posted a 26-9 record and finished fifth in the conference at 13-7. The 1999 Bears matched the school record for wins in a season and shattered the standard for conference wins. The season culminated with the Green and Gold making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. There, Baylor knocked off Temple in the first round before falling to eventual national champion Penn State. Hosfeld holds the highest winning percentage in school history. He is tied for first all-time at Baylor in total wins and has amassed the most conference wins of any coach in school history.
Hosfeld now Baylor's winningest coach
With the Bears' five-game victory last Saturday at Kansas, head coach Brian Hosfeld claimed his 102nd-career victory as Baylor's head coach, breaking the Baylor record for career coaching victories. The mark was previously held by Tom Sonnichsen (1989-1995). Hosfeld reached 101 wins in his 182nd match, Sonnichsen took 247 matches to amass his win total. Hosfeld currently holds the highest career winning percentage of any coach in school history at .558 (106-84).
Hosfeld against Texas A&M
Head coach Brian Hosfeld is 3-8 against Texas A&M, he is the only Baylor coach to ever defeat the Aggies more than twice. All three Baylor wins against A&M under Hosfeld have come in Waco, including a four-game victory in his first season, 1996, that was the program's first-ever triumph over a ranked team (the Aggies were ranked 10th at that time). Despite holding a five-match edge during Hosfeld's tenure, Texas A&M has not dominated all the matches, the games tally stands at 29-13 in favor of the Aggies.
The Texas A&M series
This will be the 43rd meeting between the two schools with Texas A&M leading the all-time series 35-7. The Aggies have won the last four meetings, including a three-game victory Sept. 26 in College Station. The Aggies have the distinction of being the first nationally ranked team to lose to Baylor. The Bears posted a 15-12, 15-10, 13-15, 15-13 victory at home Nov. 9, 1996 over then-No. 10 Texas A&M. Since the beginning of Big 12 volleyball, the Aggies lead the series 8-3. During that time, the Bears are 3-2 against the Aggies in Waco.
Last time against Texas A&M
Baylor was held to a team attacking percentage of .160 as the Bears dropped a 30-19, 30-25, 30-23 decision to 15th-ranked Texas A&M. Stevie Nicholas posted her eighth double-double of the season with match highs of 14 kills and 14 digs, however, the Fullerton, Calif., sophomore hit just .132 on the night with nine attacking errors in 38 swings. Tatiana Kenon also reached double figures in kills for Baylor with 11 and an attacking percentage of .304. Sunny Nicholas added seven kills with one error in 16 swings (.375), while Tisha Schwartz led the Bears in blocks with five. A slow start spelled doom for the Bears in the first game. Texas A&M scored the first three points of the match and went on to build a 12-3 lead. Baylor began to hold ground, scoring four of the next seven points, but the Aggies quickly answered and pushed their lead back out to 23-9. From there, the Bears could never get any closer than nine points, doing so on three occasions. Game two featured an old-fashioned slugfest that would have made for a long side-out scored match. With the Bears leading 19-18, A&M scored the next two points to take a 20-19 lead. From there, the Bears and Aggies traded serve 12 consecutive times before A&M outside hitter Brandi Mount toed the line and served five straight points to give the Aggies the 30-25 win. Melissa Munsch and Jessa Moscovic got the game-winning run started for the Aggies, blocking Stevie Nicholas at 26-25. In the third game, Baylor saw an early 4-3 lead disappear when A&M scored three straight points, the Bears never led again. The Aggies led by as many as nine points at 27-18 before the Bears cut their deficit to five points at 23-18. However, Baylor could not cut into the A&M lead any further as Beth Skypala served out the game 30-23. Just as was the case three days earlier against Colorado, the Bears saw this match come to an end when an opponent's serve hit the net, rolled over and hit the floor.
Nicholas sisters now tied for fifth on Baylor kills list
Senior MB Sunny Nicholas and sophomore OH Stevie Nicholas ironically enter Saturday's match with the exact same career kills total. The sisters are currently tied for fifth all-time at Baylor with 1,049 career kills. Next on the list is fourth-place Jenny DeLue, who amassed 1,241 kills from 1990 to 1993. Elisha Polk (1996-1999) holds the Baylor career kills record at 2,272.
Weekend warriors
Baylor is 12-3 this season in matches played during the weekend, 4-0 on Fridays, 7-3 on Saturdays and 1-0 on Sundays. On the other hand, the Bears are just 4-4 in midweek games, going 1-0 on Mondays, 1-0 on Tuesdays and 2-4 on Wednesdays.
Bears getting familiar with five-game matches
After not playing a five-game match in their first 16 matches this season, the Bears have played six in their last eight matches. That is a school record for an eight-match stretch. Since the beginning of the 1999 season, Baylor has played 19 five-game matches, a school record for a three-year span.
Baylor in Big 12 rankings
The Bears lead the Big 12 Conference in two statistical categories and rank in the top four of nine others in the latest rankings released Oct. 29. Baylor's 2.19 service aces is atop the conference leaderboard. Baylor is also leading the conference with 1.80 aces per game in conference matches. Meanwhile, the Bears are fourth in attacking percentage (.249), fourth in assists per game (15.45), second in fewest kills per game allowed (13.60) and second in fewest assists per game allowed (12.27). In conference matches, Baylor is tied for fourth in attacking percentage (.228), third in fewest kills per game allowed (15.06), fourth in fewest assists per game allowed (13.57) and fourth in fewest digs per game allowed (16.65).
Five of six starters listed among conference statistical leaders
Baylor has the distinction of having five of six starters listed among the leaders in at least one of the six statistical categories the conference charts, according to the latest rankings released Oct. 29. Sophomore OH Stevie Nicholas leads the conference in kills per game (5.10), well ahead of Liz Wegner of Kansas State (4.62). Sophomore OH Laura Daniela Lloreda leads the conference in service aces per game at 0.57, while Stevie Nicholas is second (0.54) and senior RS Tatiana Kenon is ninth (0.39). Senior S Dana Chuha is third in the Big 12 with 13.25 assists per game, and Senior MB Sunny Nicholas is 10th in attacking percentage at .339. Lloreda also ranks ninth in digs per game at 3.36. In conference matches, Stevie Nicholas ranks first in kills per game at 5.04, well ahead of second-place Mira Topic of Texas (4.55), and tied for third in service aces per game (0.45). Lloreda is fifth with 0.43 aces per game, while Kenon is eighth at 0.35. Chuha ranks fifth in such matches with 12.58 assists per game. Lloreda is sixth in conference matches with 3.61 digs per game.
Bears rank high in NCAA statistical rankings
Baylor ranks in the top 30 nationally in three of the six statistical categories charted by the NCAA Statistics Bureau, according to the latest rankings released Oct. 22. The Bears are sixth in kills per game, eighth in assists per game and tied for 24th in service aces per game. Individually, two Bears are ranked nationally in three categories. Sophomore OH Stevie Nicholas is ninth in kills per game and 24th in service aces per game, while senior S Dana Chuha is 13th in assists per game.
Bears looking strong at the service line
After averaging an all-time program-low 1.25 service aces per game a year ago, the Bears have been dominant at the line in 2001. Through 22 matches, Baylor is averaging a Big 12-best 2.09 per contest. OH Stevie Nicholas and DS Kimmy Scott led the Bears last season with 20 each. Thus far this season, OH Laura Daniela Lloreda has a team-high 46, OH Stevie Nicholas has 44 and RS Tatiana Kenon has 32. In all, seven Bears have tallied at least 10 service aces this season. As a team, Baylor has amassed 175, including 29 over the past four matches.
Big 12 Conference showing its strength
Easily one of the top volleyball conferences in the nation, the Big 12 is proving itself this season. Along with having three teams (Nebraska, Texas A&M and Colorado) currently ranked in the USA Today/AVCA Coaches Poll, seven of the conference's 11 teams are playing .600-or-better ball, and nine teams are above .500. In all, seven Big 12 teams have been ranked at some point this season (add in Baylor, Kansas State, Missouri and Texas), while two others (Kansas and Texas Tech) have been listed among those also receiving votes at some point this season. Last year, the conference sent six teams (Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Colorado) to the NCAA Tournament with conference champion Nebraska winning the national championship. Since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996, 10 of the 11 schools have made at least one appearance in the NCAA Touranment.
Lloreda, Bears ace Southwest Texas State
Sophomore OH Laura Daniela Lloreda tied the Baylor school record with nine service aces in a match Monday to lead the Bears past Southwest Texas State. Lloreda matched the total amassed by Jana Ranly in a five-game match Oct. 3, 1985 against Rice. A native of Veracruz, Mexico, Lloreda's mark will stand alone as the school record for aces in a three-game match. Her total is also a Big 12 record for a match of any length. In all, Baylor had 14 service aces against SWT, one shy of the school record for aces in a three-game match.
Stevie Nicholas etches name in Baylor records book yet again
Sophomore OH Stevie Nicholas tied Elisha Polk's school record for kills in a match Saturday when she pounded 36 in Baylor's five-game win at Kansas. She now has five matches with at least 30 kills in her career, one shy of Polk's school and Big 12 mark. Along with the fact that Stevie Nicholas posted her 36 kills under the new rally scoring format, what made the performance most amazing was that she hit .405 for the match. Entering the fourth game, she had already amassed 25 kills with only one error in 53 swings (.453). The percentages finally caught up with the Fullerton, Calif., native in the fourth game as she hit just .118 (5-3-17). However, an eye-popping 9-0-13 (.692) performance in the fifth game not only allowed Stevie Nicholas to tie Polk's record, it also led Baylor to victory.
Baylor reschedules four matches
Baylor has rescheduled four matches for the 2001 season, the changes include the rescheduling of the two matches postponed due to the national tragedy Sept. 11. The Sept. 12 match at Iowa State has been rescheduled for Friday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m., the night before the Bears' match at Missouri. Baylor's Sept. 15 contest against Kansas has been moved to Sunday, Oct. 28 at 5 p.m., the day following the Bears' match at home against Texas. Two other matches have been affected. Baylor was originally scheduled to host Southwest Texas State at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2. That match has been moved to Monday, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. to accommodate the Bobcats' rescheduling efforts. Also, the Bears' final match of the regular season, Nov. 24 at home against Missouri, has been moved from a 7 p.m. start to 7:30 p.m. That match will be the final event in a triple-header of Baylor athletic events, including football and men's basketball.
Bears match best start in program's history
With its four-game victory over Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Baylor moved to 8-0 on the season and matched the best start in the 24-year history of the BU volleyball program. The Bears started the 1999 season 8-0 before dropping a five-game decision at Southern Methodist. That team finished 26-9, tying the school record for best winning percentage and tying the school mark for most victories in a season. This marks the fifth time in school history the Bears have started the season with at least five wins, three of those have come in the past three seasons. Baylor opened the 1993 season 7-0, the Bears finished 26-15 that season and advanced to the championship match of the NIVC Tournament.
Bears claim fifth Baylor Classic title
Baylor's four-game triumph over Cal Poly San Luis Obispo gave the Bears the team title at the Baylor Classic, marking the fifth time in 11 Classics that BU has claimed first place. The Bears also won their own event in 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1999. Baylor is now 30-10 (.750) all-time in the Baylor Classic after winning 13 of its last 14 such contests dating back to the 1996 tournament. The lone loss in that time was at the hands of then-No. 11 UCLA in the championship match of the 2000 Baylor Classic.
Stevie Nicholas again leads all-tournament squad
Sophomore OH Stevie Nicholas claimed her third-career tournament MVP award at the Baylor Classic, earning such honors for the second time this season. She was so honored in her first weekend of collegiate volleyball last season at the Crowne Plaza Invitational hosted by Rice and again in this season's opening weekend at the NOKIA Sugar Bowl Classic hosted by Tulane. Joining Stevie Nicholas on the all-tournament squad at the Baylor Classic were fellow Bears S Dana Chuha and MB Sunny Nicholas. Cal Poly SLO was represented on the team by S Carly O'Halloran and MB Worthy Lien, other all-tournament selections were North Texas S Kristin Sheppard, and Rhode Island MB Yolanda Bogacz.
Baylor dominates NOKIA field
With wins over Nevada-Las Vegas, Louisiana State and host Tulane, Baylor claimed the team title at the NOKIA Sugar Bowl Classic last weekend as the only undefeated team. It marked the 14th regular-season tournament title in the program's history, the eighth during head coach Brian Hosfeld's tenure. The Bears enjoyed two impressive attacking games during the weekend. In game two against LSU, Baylor went 20-2-36 (.500). The Bears came out on fire against Tulane, going 19-1-32 (.562) in the first game. The lone error was a back-row attack call on an attempted set by S Dana Chuha. In that game, OH Stevie Nicholas was 10-0-13 (.769).
Four Bears selected NOKIA all-tournament, Stevie Nicholas named MVP
Just as the NOKIA Sugar Bowl Classic was dominated Baylor, the all-tournament team was also dominated by the Bears. Of the seven athletes chosen to the team, four donned the Green and Gold. OH Stevie Nicholas led the way as a unanimous MVP selection. She tallied 57 kill sin the three matches, averaging 5.40 per game and hitting at a .319 clip. Stevie Nicholas also averaged 3.40 digs and 0.80 service aced per game. Joining her on the all-tournament team were S Dana Chuha, RS Tatiana Kenon and MB Tisha Schwartz. It was the third all-tournament selection of Kenon's career, while Chuha and Schwartz were so honored for the first time in their careers.
Smith out for season with ACL tear
Less than two weeks before the beginning of the 2001 season, Baylor volleyball learned Wednesday that junior OH Lisa Smith will be forced to miss the entire season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee. Smith is in her first season with the Baylor program after transferring to the school from Blinn County College in January. A second-team junior college all-America selection last season at Blinn, Smith sustained the injury Aug. 16 during the Bears' final practice of their two-week training session in Japan. It is expected that she will receive a medical redshirt for the 2001 season.
Baylor conducts two-a-days in Japan
Baylor got a taste of international volleyball during the preseason two-a-days session, spending Aug. 6-17 in Japan. The Bears held daily practices and scrimmaged against various teams during their two-week stay in the Land of the Rising Sun. During the first week, Baylor was stationed at Tohoku Fukushi University in Sendai, Japan. There, the Bears competed against the host team, which has won four national collegiate titles and has reached the national tournament in each of the past 23 seasons. Baylor also held scrimmages against Shokei Women's Junior College, the top-ranked junior college team in Japan, and various area high school teams. The Bears spent the second week in Tendo/Yamagata, Japan, training with and competing against the Pioneer Red Wings. Coached by legendary international coach Arie Selinger, the Red Wings are Japan's top professional team. Selinger also coached the U.S. women's national team from 1978 to 1984, under Selinger's leadership, Team USA won gold medals at the 1980 World Championships and at the Games of the 23rd Olympiad in Los Angeles, Calif.
Big 12 coaches tab Baylor to finish seventh
Perhaps following status quo from the 2000 season, the 11 head coaches in the Big 12 Conference picked Baylor to finish seventh in their annual preseason poll. The Bears tied Texas for seventh last year, both with 8-12 records in conference play, UT was picked to finish eighth this season. Nebraska was an overwhelming selection to win its fourth consecutive Big 12 title and fifth in the league's six-year history. Texas A&M was picked to finish second, and Colorado was slotted for third. Kansas State and Missouri tied for fourth, followed by Texas Tech. Kansas, Oklahoma and Iowa State rounded out the coaches' preseason rankings.
Stevie Nicholas, Lloreda earn preseason Big 12 honors
Stevie Nicholas, the 2000 Big 12 and AVCA South Central Region freshman of the year, joined seven other athletes on the preseason all-conference team. Meanwhile, Laura Daniela Lloreda was chosen preseason newcomer of the year. Nicholas, a first-team all-Big 12 pick last season, joins Greichaly Cepero (S, Nebraska), Nancy Metcalf (OH, Nebraska), Laura Pilakowski (OH/MB, Nebraska), Jenna Moscovic (S, Texas A&M) and Elizabeth Gower (S, Colorado) on the team. Lloreda joins Baylor this season from Universidad de las Americas in Mexico, she also played for the Mexican National Team last year. Cepero was chosen preseason player of the year, while fellow Cornhusker Allyne Rebholz was tabbed preseason freshman of the year.
Baylor on the web
Baylor volleyball information can be accessed 24 hours a day at the school's athletic website www.GoBaylorBears.com. Fans and media alike can find the latest news and notes on the site along with match recaps, box scores, player features, player and coach bios and various other informational resources. Live stats will also be available for all Baylor volleyball matches, beginning with the first home conference match.
