Sept. 13, 2012
Golden Dome Invitational Notes
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame volleyball team returns back to Purcell Pavilion this weekend as it welcomes in Kansas, Loyola Marymount and Xavier for the 2012 Golden Dome Invitational.
Action gets underway on Friday night as Loyola Marymount and Kansas play at 4:30 p.m. (ET), with Notre Dame and Xavier to follow at 7 p.m. (ET). On Saturday Kansas and Xavier play at 10:30 a.m. (ET), the Irish battle Loyola Marymount at 1 p.m. (ET) and Xavier and Loyola Marymount play at 7 p.m. (ET). The tournament concludes on Sunday with Kansas and Notre Dame playing at 1 p.m. (ET). All tournament matches can be followed via live stats, while all Notre Dame matches will be free for fans online via live video. Links for both can be found on UND.com.
Notre Dame (5-4) is coming off a weekend in Los Angeles where it went 1-2 against elite competition. After sweeping Cal Poly 3-0, the Irish dropped close contests to No. 16 San Diego (3-2) and No. 3 Southern California (3-0). For another strong weekend, sophomore right side hitter Toni Alugbue earned her second consecutive spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.
The four losses for the Irish are a bit deceiving as they have all come against ranked opponents including No. 1 Nebraska, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 USC and No. 16 San Diego.
Kansas (9-1) has earned six 3-0 wins on the year, with their lone loss coming at Arkansas. Last week the Jayhawks beat College of Charleston, Arizona State and Wyoming by a combined score of 9-1 to win the Jayhawk Invitational.
Caroline Jarmoc leads the Jayhawks on offense as she averages 3.91 kills per set and is attacking at a .468 clip. She also averages 1.41 blocks per set. Setter Erin McNorton averages 12.50 assists per set.
Xavier (7-4) is coming off a pair of 3-0 sweeps over Columbia and Delaware and is led by Sarah Brown’s 3.13 kills per set and Alex Smith’s 2.31 kills per set.
Loyola Marymount (6-3) is coming off a 2-1 win at the High Point Invitational, where they took down High Point and George Mason and fell to Virginia Tech. Kathleen Luft’s 4.31 kills per set and Litara Keil’s 3.06 kills per set lead the Lions.
The weekend will surely prove to be a great one for fans as there will be activities throughout. Friday is Free Shirt Friday with each fan receiving a t-shirt they can wear to support the Irish. The Notre Dame volleyball pep band will also be in attendance. On Sunday there will be a post-match Irish Spiker Youth Clinic. To register fans can call 574-631-7356. Finally, the entire weekend will be “Camper Reunion Weekend,” as any former camper can wear their camp T-shirt and receive free admission.
–ND–