Spartans Set To Host Mr. Gatti's Provisional Invitational
11/18/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 18, 2008
Provisional Invitational Tournament Central
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - After 29 regular season matches, the USC Upstate volleyball team will get a small taste of the postseason this weekend when it hosts the six-team Mr. Gatti's Provisional Invitational. The two-day tournament will feature 12 matches with round robin play on Friday before a six-team tournament is set for Saturday. Heading into the final weekend of the season, the Spartans need just two wins to reach 300 in the 33-season history of the program at the Hodge Center.
All-Time vs. Winston-Salem State: Upstate leads, 2-0. The Spartans won both meetings, 3-0, during the 2007 season.
All-Time vs. Central Arkansas: First meeting.
All-Time vs. N.C. Central: Possible first meeting.
All-Time vs. Presbyterian: Upstate leads, 29-20. The Spartans won the lone meeting, 3-2, in 2008. The Blue Hose won both matchups in 2007 to start the teams' DI rivalry.
All-Time vs. North Florida: North Florida leads, 25-2. In three meetings at the DI level, the Lady Ospreys have won all three matches by a score of 3-2.
Home Court Advantage
Upstate heads into its final weekend of play on the cusp of reaching a historic milestone for the Hodge Center. In 33 seasons, the Spartans have posted a 298-98 (.753) in the building, leaving them just three wins from reaching 300 in the building. All three Spartan teams (men's and women's basketball and volleyball) that play in the Hodge have had similar success in the gym, as the teams have a combined record of 841-393 (.682).
Mauldin Leaves Her Mark
Playing the final regular-season matches of her career, senior Holly Mauldin played some of her best volleyball, as the USC Upstate volleyball team's setter set a career-high in assists on Friday against ETSU and followed that with a career-high in digs on Saturday against Campbell. For her efforts, the Columbia, S.C., native was awarded the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Week, the conference office announced on Monday.
This is the third A-Sun Player of the Week award for the Upstate volleyball program and the second of the season. Sophomore Sandra Campbell won the award on Sept. 8 of this season and also earned the award on Nov. 5, 2007.
Playing in the final A-Sun matches of her career, she posted a career-high 42 assists and 11 digs in a five-set match with ETSU on Friday. She also notched two aces in the match. On Saturday, while playing in a 6-2 setting rotation for the whole match, she had 28 assists and a career-high 19 digs as the Spartans capped their A-Sun season with a four-set win over Campbell. She also tied a career high with five kills and carried a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage in the match against the Camels.
The Four-Headed Monster
At times this year, the Spartans have seen promising play from senior Jovana Lubura, sophomore Sandra Campbell and freshmen Morgan Thomas and Kelsie Queen. Against ETSU and Campbell, the quartet all delivered at once, as they each notched at least 10 kills in both matches. Against ETSU on Nov. 11, Campbell posted 22 kills while Thomas had 12, Lubura 11 and Queen 10, marking the first time in the DI era that four Spartans posted 10 kills in the same match. The next day, the Spartan foursome did it again against Campbell, with Lubura posting 14 kills, Queen and Campbell each adding 12 and Thomas notching 11.
Campbell's Possibilities
With a possibility of five matches this weekend, sophomore Sandra Campbell has an outside chance at setting the school's single-season record for kills at the Division I level. Jesicah Ambrisco set the mark with 361 kills in 2007 and Campbell, with 306 kills needs 55 play-stoppers during the Provisional Invitational to tie the mark.
Past 500
Sophomore Sandra Campbell used a career-high 22 kills on Nov. 11 against ETSU to surpass 500 career kills, becoming just the 29th player in school history to reach the milestone. Campbell, a 6-1 middle blocker from Orlando, Fla., leads the Spartans with 306 kills this season and she is currently seventh in the conference with an average of 2.83 kills per set.
Nearing 500
Senior Jovana Lubura needs just eight kills to become the 30th player in school history to reach 500 career kills. A two-year letterwinner, Lubura is ninth in the A-Sun with an average of 2.75 kills per game. The Spartans' top outside hitter as senior, she started her career by posting 200 kills and averaging 2.25 per game as a junior.
Serbian Sensation
Senior Jovana Lubura has put together one of the most impressive streaks in the Spartans' short Division I tenure, as the 6-2 Serbian strung together four straight double-doubles from Oct. 18 to Oct. 25. Lubura, who has averaged 12.4 kills and 10.4 digs per set in the last 15 matches, started her run of consecutive double-doubles with 14 kills and 14 digs at Mercer. She followed that with 16 kills and 10 digs against The Citadel, 19 kills and 16 digs against Stetson and 12 kills and 11 digs against Florida Gulf Coast. The run ended on Oct. 31 at Jacksonville, as she managed just three kills and nine digs, but against North Florida the next night, Lubura started posted 18 kills and 10 digs. She also added another double-double with 11 kills and 15 digs in a five-set match with ETSU on Nov. 11.
Growing Up Fast
The three Upstate freshman have had an immediate impact this season, with all three appearing in at least 97 of the team's 108 sets. Jane Hawryliw is averaging 0.92 kills per set and also adds 1.52 digs per set. The Saskatchewan native posted a match-high 14 kills in Upstate's 3-0 win over Hampton on Sept. 5. Morgan Thomas, a middle blocker, is averaging 1.65 kills and a team-high 0.66 blocks per set. Thomas posted back-to-back 10-kill games, including notching a season-high 12 kills against ETSU on Nov. 11. Kelsie Queen is averaging 1.93 kills and 0.92 digs per set. Queen posted three straight 15-kill matches from Oct. 21 to Oct. 25.
