Tribe to Compete at UC Irvine Invitational This Weekend

09/05/07 10:50AM

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - After earning second-place honors at the Tribe Classic last weekend, the William and Mary volleyball team will return to action when travels to California for the UC Irvine Invitational this weekend. W&M’s first match will be against Southern Mississippi on Friday at 5 p.m. (PT), while it will square off against fifth-ranked UCLA on Saturday at 11 a.m. (PT). The College’s final match will be against UC Irvine on Saturday at 7 p.m. (PT).

Last weekend, the Green and Gold (3-2) posted a 2-1 record at the Tribe Invite and earned victories against East Carolina and Southern Illinois. Leading the way for W&M were sophomore Jillian Brown and freshman Cassie Crumal, who were both selected to the all-tournament team. Brown averaged 2.90 kills per game, while Crumal dished out 12.25 assists per game.

In addition to her all-tournament team accolades, Crumal was also named the Colonial Athletic Association Rookie of the Week. The selection marked the second consecutive week that she has garnered the award. The Castle Rock, Colo., native currently leads the conference with 12.00 apg.

In addition to Crumal, a number of other Tribe players currently rank among the CAA’s top 10 in various categories. Junior Molly Bohman is second in the league in blocks (1.19 bpg), while freshman Ginny Bray stands fourth (1.06 bpg). Additionally, junior Jill Nowadly ranks sixth in digs (3.62 dpg), while Owens ranks second (3.58 dpg).

As a team, W&M ranks second in the CAA with 2.43 blocks per game.

Southern Mississippi enters this weekend’s action with a 2-5 record. Mari Ruddick and Ashley Petrinec lead the Golden Eagles with 3.00 kpg, while Petrinec also averages 3.00 dpg.

Ranked fifth nationally, UCLA sports a 4-1 record with its lone loss coming to top-ranked Nebraska. The Bruins’ victories have come against No. 16 Hawaii, No. 21 Utah, No. 25 Kansas State and Louisville. Ali Daley leads the team with 3.76 kpg, while Rachell Johnson is averaging 3.41 kpg on .385 hitting. All-American setter Nellie Spicer is dishing out 12.59 dpg.

UCI began the season with six consecutive wins before falling to Loyola Marymount, 3-2, in its last match. Kari Pestolesi leads the squad with 3.31 kpg and 1.88 dpg. Alexandra Filkins is contributing 2.16 kpg on .310 hitting.