Sept. 9, 2008

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -

Complete Release in PDF Format

THIS WEEK...

BRIEFLY...
Following a successful showing in which the Lions finished 2-1 at the Blue Raider Bash in Murfreesboro, Tenn. last weekend, LMU will return to Gersten Pavilion for the first time this season to host Ohio State in the Lions’ home-opener on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.

FOLLOWWW THE LIONS...
It’s easy to follow the Lions throughout the 2008 season! Just log on to LMULions.com for all the latest Lion volleyball coverage.  All LMU home matches, and the majority of the matches on the road, will be broadcast live via Gametracker.  In addition, every Lion home match will also be broadcast online courtesy of the Lions Audio Network.  Just visit the Lion volleyball page at www.LMULions.com, click on schedule, and click on the link located on the right side of the schedule for that particular match.

GAMEDAY AT GERSTEN…
Fans, come cheer on the Lions this year in Gersten Pavilion.  LMU will host 15 home matches this season (including three matches in Burns Recreation Center as part of the LMU Four Points Sheraton LAX/LMU Volleyball Classic).  When traveling to the venue, please remember that the Loyola Marymount University campus is located in Westchester at One LMU Drive, approximately four miles north of the Los Angeles International Airport.  Fans traveling to LMU must use the main entrance off of Lincoln Blvd. on LMU Drive.  Those seeking handicap parking must also use the main entrance, where they can get directions from the guard at the front gate.  Gersten’s doors open one hour before the start of the match.

TEAM LMU THIS WEEK…
Friday’s men’s water polo match against USC will be the first of three “Team LMU” days around the Westchester campus for men’s water polo.  “Team LMU” was created to generate awareness and excitement for LMU sporting events on game days.  Staff and students are encouraged to wear LMU gear on designated “Team LMU” days and to attend the games.

LION TRACKS…
LMU is coming off a 2-1 weekend at the 2008 Blue Raider Bash on Friday and Saturday.  The Lions opened the tournament with a bang, defeating Lipscomb 3-1 by scores of 25-19, 25-20, 23-25, 25-19.  Four Lions finished with double-digit kill marks on the day, led by senior Emily Day's match-high and season-best of 22.  Day, a native of Torrance, Calif. notched a double-double after also recording a match-best 15 digs, a block solo and one block assist.  Sophomore Becky Stehling posted a career-best 13 kills on 22 attacks for a .545 hitting percentage.  As unbelievable as Stehling's mark was in the hitting percentage column, it proved only second-best for the Lions as fellow sophomore Megan Nash finished with a career-high .562 percentage (11-for-16) to lead all players in that category.  Sophomore setter Renee Horton dished-out a season-high 55 assists as LMU hit .309 (66-for-149) as a team against Lipscomb.  LMU went on to be swept by host and No. 15 Middle Tennessee State in match two of the tournament, 25-19, 25-22, 25-15, on Saturday.  Day, Stehling and freshman Ariana Covington each recorded five or more kills and a service ace in the loss.  Day finished with seven kills, while Stehling and Covington each contributed six.  Nash continued to connect at a high percentage, leading the team with a .400 mark (four-for-10).  LMU rebounded well after the loss, posting a 3-1 victory over Appalachian State on Saturday night to close the tournament.  Day once again led the Lion offense with a match-high 18 kills on 49 attacks, teaming the kills with a team-best 15 digs for the double-double.  Covington posted 10 kills, while sophomores Stehling and Nash each contributed nine in the victory.  Stehling, along with freshman Lauren DeGrandmont, served-up two service aces to help LMU to a total of six in the match.  Nash, as she has been all season, was efficient on the attack, hitting .444 (nine-for-18) over the four sets.

BUCKEYE BABBLE…
Head coach Geoff Carlston is in his first season with the Buckeyes. Ohio State is 5-2 on the season after wins over Coastal Carolina (3-0), Idaho State (3-0) and Cal State Bakersfield (3-1) and a 3-2 loss at Wichita State last week.  Leading the Buckeyes in points per set is Katie Dull at 4.61. Kristen Dozier ranks second at 4.12 with Kaila Calhoun third at 3.70. Dull is the team leader in kills per set at 3.84. Dozier ranks second at 3.52 with Calhoun third at 3.04. OSU’s top percentage hitter is Dull at .365. Calhoun ranks second at .331 with Dozier third at .298. At setter, Betsy Hone is averaging 8.47 assists per set with Ashley Hughes having a 7.63 average. Hone has a team-high .41 aces per set average with seven aces. Chelsea Noble ranks second at .36 with a team-high nine aces. Calhoun is third at .24 with six aces. Allie Schwarzwalder leads the team in blocks per set at 1.00 with two solos and 23 assists. Dozier ranks second at .92 with three solos and 20 assists with Hughes and Dull tied for third at .89. Hughes has three solos and 14 assists while Dull has four solos and 13 assist blocks. Leading the team in digs per set at 3.20 is Calhoun. Susan Halverson ranks second at 2.76 with Noble third at 2.44. Laura Kastein has a 1.000 reception percentage handling 42 attempts without an error. Calhoun is at .972 with two errors in 72 attempts. Susan Halverson ranks third at .967 with 3 errors in 90 attempts. Noble has a team-high 219 attempts with 10 errors and a .954 percentage.  Ohio State is averaging 18.58 points, 14.40 kills and 13.64 assists per set. The Buckeyes average 1.40 aces, 13.20 digs and 2.78 blocks per set. OSU opponents are averaging 13.32 points, 10.68 kills and 9.80 assists per set. They are averaging 1.00 aces, 11.00 digs and 1.64 blocks per game.

WEST COAST CONFERENCE CHATTER…
Julie Rubenstein, this week’s WCC Player of the Week, earned her second tournament MVP award in as many weekends as she led Pepperdine to three wins and the championship of the Oregon State Asics Classic.  She averaged 5.17 kills along with a .359 hitting percentage (62-16-128) and had totals of 72.0 points (6.00), 25 digs (2.08), nine blocks (0.75) and five service aces (0.42).  Along with leading the conference, Rubenstein's 5.14 kills per game ranks her No. 1 in the country.  She is also second among league leaders in service aces with nine for the season. Two West Coast Conference women's volleyball teams are ranked in national polls.  The University of San Diego is ranked No. 20 in the CSTV/AVCA Coaches Poll, while Pepperdine University is ranked No. 13 in the Volleyball Magazine Poll and just recently broke into the top 25 CSTV/AVCA Poll at No. 24.  Several players in the WCC rank among the nation's best in several categories.  Notable leaders are Kapua Kamana'o (SMC) and Jessica Nyrop (USD) who are third and fifth in assists per game and Julie Rubenstein (PEP) and Amy DeGroot (USD) are first and 10th in kills per game.  As a team, San Diego ranks first in assists per game and second in kills per game.

LMU RECORD BOOKS…
Three Lions have already cemented their names in the LMU record books as the Lions continue to play in 2008.  Senior Emily Day currently ranks sixth in total attacks (3,120), seventh in kill average at 3.41, eighth in kills (1,125), and 10th in digs (923) and dig average (2.80).  Sophomore Renee Horton already ranks eighth in assists in a single season, totaling 1,318 last year.  Combined with this year’s numbers, Horton has totaled 1,477 assists in less than two years of play, ranking seventh in the LMU record books in that category.  The native of Wildomar, Calif. is also a lock to enter the career assists average top-10 list at the end of the season.  Like Horton, fellow sophomore Whitney Leonard already pervades the single-season record books after one year at LMU, claiming second in dig average (4.53) and sixth in total digs (426).  On the career records side, she is in prime position to place in the top-10 for dig average at the end of the season.

LOBO CLASSIC TRIFECTA…
Senior Emily Day and sophomores Megan Nash and Becky Stehling were named to the 2008 MCM Elegante Lobo Classic All-Tournament team after leading the Lions to a runner-up finish at the two-day event.  Day, who like Nash and Stehling, started all three matches for LMU on the weekend, finished the tournament with 41 kills, two assists, four service aces and 37 digs.  As always, Day was active at the net, posting a block solo in each of the three matches, seven total block assists and 10 total blocks.  As expected, Day was a go-to player from the start, averaging 4.10 kills per set during the tournament.  Nash found time in all 10 sets for the Lions over the weekend, posting 18 kills at a .362 clip (18-for-47) and making only one attack error.  In addition, the Manhattan Beach, Calif. native dished-up two assists and collected 10 digs.  Playing an essential role in the Lions’ defense at the net, she tallied one block solo, 12 block assists, including eight against Idaho State on Friday, for a total of 13 blocks on the tournament.  Stehling also played in all 10 sets for the Lions, collecting 28 kills at a .356 clip (28-7/59).  The native of Austin, Texas also posted five block assists, including four in the Championship Match against New Mexico.  Stehling posted 12 of her 28 kills in the opening match on Friday, connecting at a .435 clip (12-2/23).  She proceeded to hit .350 on Saturday morning, tallying 10 kills on 20 attacks and committing three errors.

THE STATS ON STRAT...
Steve Stratos completed his 18th season at the helm of the program with an 18th straight winning year in 2007.  In his tenure at LMU, Stratos has led the Lions to nine 20-win seasons and 11 postseason appearances.  He has posted a career record of 363-180, the most victories in LMU volleyball history and second-most among current WCC coaches.  His .669 winning percentage entering the 2008 season placed him in the top-50 (46th) among active Division I coaches.  In conference play, he owns a record of 170-82, for a .675 winning percentage.  With 170 career conference victories, Stratos again ranks second among active coaches in the WCC.