YSU volleyball team prepares for tourney

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

While the YSU football team opens its season and the Eric Wolford era at Penn State this weekend, the Penguins’ volleyball team will start a new era of its own when it plays its first match at Beeghly Center under first-year head coach Krista Burrows.

Burrows, who went 164-59 in six seasons at Walsh University, along with eight newcomers and six returners on the 2010 volleyball squad will welcome three teams to campus for the YSU Invitational.

Central Michigan and Niagara will open the round-robin tournament on Friday at 4 p.m., and the Penguins will play their first match of the weekend Friday at 6:30 p.m.

YSU will open Saturday’s action at 11 a.m. against Niagara, and the Penguins and Chippewas will close out the tournament later that night at 7. Also on Saturday, Howard and Central Michigan will play at 1:30 p.m., and Howard will play Niagara at 4:30 p.m. Admission is free to all matches.

The Penguins went 0-3 during the opening weekend of the season at the West Virginia Classic. YSU lost in straight sets to Buffalo, Akron and West Virginia at WVU, but the Penguins took both the Bulls and Zips past 25 points in sets.

Junior right-side hitter Tasha Reid led the Penguins offensively in all three matches, finishing with 23 kills in nine sets. Her .227 attack percentage was also a team high. Freshman Jenna Cavanaugh registered a team-best 10 blocks, and junior Brittany McNeal had 38 digs for an average of 4.22 per set. Reid and McNeal are two of five juniors on the squad, and middle blocker Haley Kapferer is the Penguins’ lone senior.

With eight newcomers on the squad, there were six Penguins who made their debut last weekend. Outside hitter Marissa Hundelt and Cavanaugh played in all nine sets. Both had 12 kills, and Cavanaugh posted 10 blocks and a .143 attack percentage. Other Penguins making their debut were freshmen Jackie Carlisle, Casey D’Ambrose and Chelsea Guerrieri and junior Brianna Kern. Carlisle was a first-team All-Ohio selection at Hubbard High, and Guerrieri played at Girard.

Howard also went 0-3 and did not win a set at the WVU Classic last weekend. Niagara will come to Youngstown with the best record in the field. The Purple Eagles went 2-1 at the La Salle Invitational last weekend. Central Michigan also went 0-3 to start the season with three losses at the Purdue Mortar Board Premier.