Oct. 9, 2003
NOTRE DAME, Ind. –
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The 15th-ranked University of Notre Dame volleyball team (12-2, 4-0) returns home for two BIG EAST Conference matches this weekend. The Irish will take on Seton Hall (14-6, 0-3) on Friday at 7 p.m. (EST) before playing host to Rutgers (7-10, 1-2) on Sunday at 2 p.m. Notre Dame holds an 18-0 combined all-time record against the schools, winning 54 of 55 total games.
LIVE STATS AVAILABLE ON www.und.com: Fans and media unable to attend Notre Dame home matches can follow the action via live statistics on the official Irish athletic website. Live stats can be accessed at http://und.ocsn.com/livestats/w-volley. Be advised, however, that statistics displayed are not official. For other ways to follow the Irish, see “Keeping Up With ND Volleyball” on page 7 of this release.
SNAPSHOT OF THE IRISH: Notre Dame’s women’s volleyball program has experienced a wealth of success since the arrival of head coach Debbie Brown in 1991. In her 12+ seasons, Brown has guided Notre Dame to a winning record every year, compiling a 312-104 (.750) mark. The Irish have earned 11 consecutive berths to the NCAA Championship, including three trips to the round of 16 (1994, ’95, and ’97) and a ’93 quarterfinal finish. Since joining the BIG EAST Conference in ’95, Notre Dame has dominated the league, winning seven regular-season and seven tournament titles in eight years. Overall, the Irish are 91-4 in regular-season BIG EAST play and 16-1 in conference tournament action. Notre Dame is 51-0 in BIG EAST matches in the Joyce Center.
The 2003 Irish team returns 12 monogram winners and six starters from last year’s squad that was 24-8 and earned the No. 16 seed in the NCAA Championship, playing host to first- and second-round play. The Irish also finished second in the nation in blocks per game (3.66) with all the players responsible for that number returning to the fold. Notre Dame again ranks second in the nation in blocks this season, at 3.44.
After playing the first 10 matches with a 6-2 rotation, the Irish have returned to their traditional 5-1 offense over the last four matches. Senior S Kristen Kinder (the ’01 BIG EAST Setter of the Year) orchestrates the Notre Dame attack for the third consecutive season. On the right side, junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis, the ’02 BIG EAST Championship Most Outstanding Player and a preseason all-conference selection, leads the Irish in kills after doing the same a year ago. She already has set two school records this season: most kills in a match without an error (24, 9/9 vs. Valparaiso) and consecutive matches with 10+ kills (20, current streak dating back to last season). The middle is patrolled by a pair of sophomores named Lauren. MB Lauren Kelbley, the ’02 BIG EAST and AVCA Northeast Region Rookie of the Year, and MB Lauren Brewster, who set the Notre Dame record for block assists (161) last year, return for the Irish after stepping in immediately as freshman starters. They have combined to win three BIG EAST Player of the Week awards already this season (Kelbley-two, Brewster-one), while Brewster leads the BIG EAST and ranks sixth in the nation in blocks (1.61). On the left side, OH Jessica Kinder, twin sister of Kristen, is one of the hardest hitters and also one of the top defensive players on the team. She set a school record for digs in a three-game match (28) on Sept. 9 vs. Valparaiso. Senior OPP Katie Neff was a front-row presence off the bench to start the season before moving into the starting lineup last weekend. L/OH Meg Henican, the team leader in digs, is now the starting libero after playing on the left side in the 6-2. DS/L Danielle Herndon, the lone freshman on the Irish, started the season at libero, but now is a back-row sub.
LAST TIME ON THE COURT: Notre Dame opened BIG EAST play 4-0 for the eighth time in nine years in the league. In their first road action in nearly a month, the Irish won 3-0 last Saturday vs. St. John’s before triumphing in four games on Sunday against Connecticut.
Notre Dame turned in its best hitting performance of the season against St. John’s, with a 30-24, 30-24, 30-19 win. The Irish offense, under the guidance of S Kristen Kinder (Fresno, Calif./Bullard H.S.), hit .369 on the day. Kinder had 45 assists. Leading the way offensively was junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.), who hit .500 while leading all players with 16 kills and 18 points. Sophomore MB Lauren Kelbley (Bascom, Ohio/Hopewell-Loudon H.S.) had 11 kills and just two errors on 21 attempts for a .429 hitting percentage, while senior OPP Katie Neff (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy) had 10 kills. Senior OH Jessica Kinder (Fresno, Calif./Bullard H.S.) hit well, with eight kills and just one error on a .368 percentage.
The Irish won their fifth in a row on Sunday, 30-22, 20-30, 30-28, 30-18 over Connecticut. Sophomore MB Lauren Brewster (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood H.S.) turned in the best hitting match of her career, matching her career high with 17 kills and setting a new career best with a .596 hitting percentage. She had just one error in 27 attempts and also was in on eight blocks. The Notre Dame defense was a key to the victory. The Irish outdug the best digging team in the conference, finishing with 88 as a team, with five players having 10 or more. Leading the way was sophomore L Meg Henican (New Orleans, La./Isidore Newman H.S.), who had 20 digs. Jessica Kinder had 19.
IRISH MOVE UP TO 15TH IN NATIONAL RANKINGS: After running its winning streak to five with a pair of road wins over the weekend, Notre Dame moved up two spots to 15th in this week’s USA Today/AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25, released Monday. It marks the second time this season the Irish have been 15th (also Sept. 8), and Notre Dame has not been ranked higher than this since since Sept. 30, 1996, when it was 12th. The Irish are 14th in the RichKern.com poll and 15th in the RKPI rankings, which are designed to emulate the NCAA’s RPI rankings.
Three ’03 Irish opponents are listed in the top 10 of this week’s AVCA top 25. Stanford (Nov. 29, away) leads the way at fourth, while Pepperdine (L, 1-3) is sixth, and Northern Iowa (Nov. 11, away) is 10th. North Carolina (Oct. 21, away) received votes, but was not in the AVCA top 25.
Lauren Brewster NAMED BIG EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sophomore MB Lauren Brewster (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood H.S.) was named a BIG EAST Conference Co-Player of the Week on Monday after helping Notre Dame to a pair of road victories in the second weekend of league play. Brewster, who had 24 kills on .457 hitting to go with 15 blocks in accounting for 35.5 points, continued the Irish domination of the award as the fourth Notre Dame winner in six weeks this season. Also sharing the honor this week was Wendy Hatlestad of Pittsburgh.
The Irish middle blocker turned in the best hitting match of her career in helping Notre Dame to a 3-1 win Sunday at Connecticut. She matched her career high with 17 kills and set a new career best with a .596 hitting percentage, making just one error in 27 attempts. Brewster, the conference leader in the category, also was in on eight blocks. In all, she accounted for 24 points.
In Saturday’s straight-game victory at St. John’s, Brewster had seven kills and was in on seven of 10 Irish blocks.
BLOCK PARTY: Once again, Notre Dame has one of the best blocking units in the nation. The Irish have 185.5 blocks in 14 matches this seson, an average of 3.44 per game, which is good enough for second among Division I teams. Stanford is first at 3.59. Notre Dame leads the BIG EAST Conference, with second-place Connecticut averaging 2.54 blocks. The Irish have been particularly effective of late, averaging 4.44 blocks per game over their last five matches (80 blocks, 18 games).
Sophomore MB Lauren Brewster (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood H.S.) leads the BIG EAST in blocks (79/1.61) and ranks sixth in the nation in the category. Rachel Wagener of Maryland is first at 1.76. Sophomore MB Lauren Kelbley (Bascom, Ohio/Hopewell-Loudon H.S.) is third in the conference (64/1.21), while junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) and senior OPP Katie Neff (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy) also are both averaging over 1.00 block per game. In 2002, the Irish finished second nationally to Nebraska with a school-record average of 3.83 blocks per game.
LOOMIS SETS SECOND SCHOOL RECORD OF SEASON: Junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) has had 10 or more kills in each of the last 20 matches, the longest streak by an Irish player in the history of the program. The second-longest streak of that kind was a 17-match stretch by Angie Harris from Oct. 5 to Nov. 28 in 1997. Loomis had 10 kills on Sept. 28 vs. Georgetown to notch her 18th consecutive match with double-digit kills. She has done it in all 14 contests this season, as well as each of the final six in 2002. Loomis also set the Notre Dame record for most kills in a match without an error earlier this season (24, 9/9 vs. Valparaiso).
GOOD START: Notre Dame opened BIG EAST Conference play 4-0 for the eighth time in nine years since joining the league in 1995. The Irish have posted six undefeated conference seasons and also started last year 11-0 in BIG EAST matches. The only year Notre Dame did not win at least its first 11 league matches was 1998, when the Irish lost at Connecticut in their third league match of the year.
CLASS OF THE CONFERENCE: Since Notre Dame joined the BIG EAST Conference in 1995, the Irish have experienced incredible success in league play. Overall, Notre Dame is 91-4 in conference regular-season matches and 16-1 in the BIG EAST Championship. In eight seasons, the Irish have won seven regular-season titles and seven tournament titles. Notre Dame is 51-0 at home in BIG EAST matches.
HOME, SWEET HOME: Playing in the Joyce Center has been a nightmare for opponents, especially since head coach Debbie Brown took over the Irish program in 1991. In that span, Notre Dame is 152-22 (.874) at home, including a school-record 36-match winning streak from 2000-02. In addition to holding a 51-0 all-time mark at home in BIG EAST matches, the Irish have had incredible success against unranked teams. In the Brown era, Notre Dame is 145-5 (.967) against unranked foes in the Joyce Center, with the losses coming to Santa Clara in 1993, Ball State in ’96, Oral Roberts in ’98, Michigan State in the ’02 NCAA tournament, and South Carolina in ’03. Each of the first three defeats came in five games. The loss to MSU snapped the 36-match overall home streak and a 52-match home winning streak against unranked teams.
BIG EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK DOMINANCE: Notre Dame has dominated the BIG EAST Player of the Week award this season, gaining at least a share of it four times in six weeks. Junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) won the initial honor of the season, on Sept. 1. She led the Irish with 42 kills and 14 blocks in the opening weekend of play, while posting a .365 hitting percentage. Against #10 Arizona, she had 14 kills and only two errors for a .522 attack percentage. In the Eastern Washington match, she hit .412, registering 18 kills. Overall, she was responsible for 51 points.
Sophomore MB Lauren Kelbley (Bascom, Ohio/Hopewell-Loudon H.S.) was named a BIG EAST Co-Player of the Week Sept. 8 after her tournament-MVP performance in the Longhorn Classic, in which she slammed 30 kills, while making just five errors for a .446 attack percentage. In addition, she was in on a team-high 14 blocks. Against Houston, Kelbley registered a career-high 22 kills on .462 hitting to go along with eight blocks in helping the Irish to a come-from-behind 3-2 victory. She hit .412 vs. host Texas, while notching eight kills (with only one error) and six blocks.
Kelbley won her second award of the season on Sept. 29 after helping Notre Dame to a pair of convincing victories in the opening weekend of league play. She had 26 kills on .478 hitting to go with 12 blocks. On Sept. 28 vs. Georgetown, she registered 12 kills and no errors on 17 attempts for a .706 attack percentage.
Sophomore MB Lauren Brewster (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood H.S.) was named a BIG EAST Conference Co-Player of the Week on Oct. 6 after helping Notre Dame to a pair of road victories in the second weekend of league play. Brewster had 24 kills on .457 hitting to go with 15 blocks in accounting for 35.5 points. She turned in the best hitting match of her career vs. Connecticut, matching her career high with 17 kills and setting a new career best with a .596 hitting percentage. Brewster also had eight blocks and 24 points.
SCHOOL RECORD I — JESS DIG IT: On Sept. 9 vs. Valparaiso, Notre Dame senior co-captain OH Jessica Kinder (Fresno, Calif./Bullard H.S.) set a Notre Dame record with 28 digs, the most ever by an Irish player in a three-game match. Her performance, which featured 10 digs in the first game, three in the second, and 15 in the final frame, bettered the previous record by three. Tracey Shelton scrambled for 25 digs in a three-game win over Butler on Oct. 25, 1989. Other than Shelton and Kinder, no other Irish players have ever had more than 21 digs in a straight-game match. Kinder’s previous career high was 22 vs. Pepperdine last September in a five-game affair. She came into Tuesday having registered 40 digs over the first five matches of the season. Kinder’s 28 were the most in any length match for an Irish player since October 25, 1993, when Christy Peters had 31 at Arizona State in a four-game contest.
SCHOOL RECORD II — LETHAL LOOMIS: In the Sept. 9 Valparaiso match, junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) set a Notre Dame record for most kills in a match without an error (24), while falling just shy of the school record for kills in a three-game match. The previous mark for most kills without an error was 23, done by Jaimie Lee on September 8, 1995 at Indiana in a five-game victory. Just seven days after that match, Angie Harrris had 25 kills in a three-game win against Colorado, setting the record for kills in a 3-0 decision. Loomis joined Christy Peters in the 24-kill club in three-game matches. Peters turned the trick in a straight-game defeat against Long Beach State in Chicago on September 11, 1993. Against Valpo, Loomis had 42 attack attempts for a .571 attack percentage.
IRISH AMONG THE BIG EAST LEADERS: A number of Irish players are among the BIG EAST Conference statistical leaders through six weeks of play. Sophomore MB Lauren Brewster (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood H.S.) leads the league in blocks (1.61) and is sixth in hitting percentage (.333) and eighth in points (4.59), while sophomore MB Lauren Kelbley (Bascom, Ohio/Hopewell-Loudon H.S.) is among the top five in two categories: blocks (1.21) and hitting percentage (.338). Junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) is ninth in hitting percentage (.325) and 10th in kills (3.83). In digs, senior OH Jessica Kinder (Fresno, Calif./Bullard H.S.) is eighth (3.39) and sophomore OH Meg Henican (New Orleans, La./Isidore Newman H.S.) is 10th.
In the team statistics, Notre Dame leads the conference in blocks, at 3.44 per game. The Irish are in the top five in five other categories: hitting percentage (4th, .249), opponent hitting percentage (4th, .165), assists (4th, 13.70), and kills (4th, 15.56).
Notre Dame is dominating in the leaders counting only conference matches. The Irish are first in five of the seven categories and second and fourth in the other two. Notre Dame leads the BIG EAST in hitting percentage (.297), opponent hitting percentage (.131), kills (17.07), blocks (4.36), and aces (1.79) and is second in digs (17.50) and fourth in assists (15.07).
In the individual leaders in conference matches, Brewster is first in blocks (1.92), second in hitting percentage (.396), third in aces (0.46), and fifth in points (5.46). Kelbley is fourth in hitting percentage (.383) and blocks (1.43), while Jessica Kinder (3.93) and Henican (3.86) are third and fourth in digs. In addition, Loomis is 10th in points (4.86), while senior S Kristen Kinder (Fresno, Calif./Bullard H.S.) is ninth in aces (0.36).
PRESEASON BIG EAST FAVORITES: Once again Notre Dame is the favorite in the BIG EAST Conference. The Irish, who have captured seven regular-season and seven tournament crowns in their eight years in the league, garnered nine first-place votes and were chosen as the favorite in the preseason volleyball poll of conference head coaches. Miami gained four first-place votes and was picked second with 136 points. The teams will meet in the Joyce Center on November 9 in a match televised by College Sports Television (CSTV) in its Sunday Night Spike national match-of-the-week package.
Two Irish players, junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) and sophomore middle blocker Lauren Kelbley (Bascom, Ohio/Hopewell-Loudon H.S.), were selected to the preseason all-BIG EAST team. Loomis was the Most Outstanding Player in the ’02 BIG EAST Championship, while Kelbley was the conference rookie of the year.
FIVE IN A ROW (AGAIN): Notre Dame had a six-match winning streak earlier this season and currently has won five straight. In each of the last 13 seasons — every year under head coach Debbie Brown — the Irish have put together at least one winning streak of five or more. The Irish had three in 2002, winning five straight in mid-September, seven in a row to end that month and begin October, and six in a row to end October and begin November.
JUST TRY TO GET IT PAST US: Notre Dame is giving up just 0.98 aces per game this season. The Irish are on pace to set a school record for fewest aces surrendered per game. The best mark in school history is 1.11, which was done in 1996. This weekend Notre Dame faces the top serving team in the league, Seton Hall, which is averaging 2.34 aces per game. In addition, the top two servers in the conference — Seton Hall’s Katherine Whitney (0.80) and Rutgers’ Shayla Bush (0.48) — will be in the Joyce Center this weekend.
HIGH AS A KITE: A number of Irish players have registered career highs already this season. Some of the more notable performances are highlighted below.
Sophomore MB Lauren Brewster (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood H.S.) set a number of career bests in the matches vs. #5 Pepperdine and UConn. Against the Waves, she had career highs with 17 kills and 29 attempts for a .483 attack percentage (her best in a four-game match). Brewster matched her total of 17 kills against the Huskies, while hitting .593, her best-ever percentage. Brewster also matched her career-high of six digs against Texas and set a new best in hitting percentage in a five-game match with a .476 mark vs. Houston. More recently, she had a career-best 13 blocks vs. Utah and Purdue.
Sophomore MB Lauren Kelbley (Bascom, Ohio/Hopewell-Loudon H.S.) set career-high marks in kills twice already this season, most recently with 22 vs. Houston. Against Georgetown, she had a career-best .706 hitting percentage.
Senior OH Jessica Kinder (Fresno, Calif./Bullard H.S.) set a pair of personal bests against Houston, dishing out 10 assists and hitting .368, her best career mark in a five-game match. In addition, she had a career-high 28 digs vs. Valparaiso, in setting an Irish record for digs in a three-game match. She had a career-best six blocks vs. UConn.
Sophomore S Kelly Burrell (Phoenix, Ariz./Xavier Preparatory School) had a career-best 12 digs vs. Texas and delivered three service aces vs. Utah after never having multiple aces previously in her career.
Senior OPP Katie Neff (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy) had a career-high nine blocks vs. Utah and hit .375 against Indiana, her top career mark in a four-game match.
Sophomore OH Meg Henican (New Orleans, La./Isidore Newman H.S.) had a big Shamrock Invitational, hitting career highs in each match. Against Indiana, she had five blocks. In the Utah match, she had 31 attack attempts and a .226 hitting percentage (her best in a five-game affair). After matching her career high in the final match of the Shamrock, Henican then set a new high mark with six assists vs. Purdue.
Junior OPP/OH Emily Loomis (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers H.S.) posted a career-best 24 kills vs. Valparaiso and had 17 digs at UConn. Also in the Valpo match, junior DS/MB Kelly Corbett (Mountain View, Calif./St. Francis H.S.) had a career-high six digs and sophomore MB/OPP Carolyn Cooper (Houston, Texas/Lutheran South Academy) posted personal bests with six kills and two aces.
IRISH vs. PIRATES: Seton Hall comes to the Joyce Center with a 14-6 (0-3 BIG EAST) record, just one win shy of matching its total from last season. The Pirates opened 4-0 then lost all three matches in the Coors Invitational, to California, Colorado State, and Cal State Northridge. After an eight-match winning streak to put SHU at 12-3 heading into league play, the Pirates have struggled, losing in BIG EAST play to Miami (3-0), Virginia Tech (3-1), and Rutgers (3-2). Most recently, Seton Hall beat Siena on Tuesday on the road.
Seton Hall was 15-18 (5-8 BIG EAST) in 2002, tying for sixth in the BIG EAST. Three starters return from that team, including senior OH Jenna Meyers, who leads the team in kills (252/3.88) and ranks ninth in the BIG EAST. Freshman OH/RS Katherine Whitney has made an immediate impact. She is second on the team in kills (242/3.78) and leads the conference in aces (51/0.80), while ranking sixth in points (300/4.69) and ninth in digs (216/3.38). The pair has been especially effective since BIG EAST play started, both ranking among the top four in the league in kills. Junior S Shawn McDonald orchestrates the Pirates attack and is second in the conference in assists (11.89).
Head coach Rich Pickrell is in his sixth year at Seton Hall, with a 67-69 (.493) record.
Notre Dame and Seton Hall will meet for the ninth time, with every meeting coming since the Irish joined the BIG EAST in 1995. The Irish have taken all 24 games played by the teams, with the closest being a 30-26 game-one triumph in 2001. No team has played Notre Dame more without taking a game. This is Seton Hall’s fifth trip to the Joyce Center.
On Oct. 6, 2002, the Irish and Pirates met in South Orange, N.J. The Irish were strong offensively, hitting .362 on the setting of Kristen Kinder. Notre Dame had 14 players see action and seven hit .345 or better. The Irish, which hit .565 in the opening frame, were led by Emily Loomis, who had 14 kills. Lauren Kelbley had eight kills on .571 hitting to go along with three aces. and seven different players hit .340 or better. Seton Hall got 10 kills from Meyers.
IRISH vs. SCARLET KNIGHTS: Rutgers enters the weekend with a 7-10 (1-2 BIG EAST) record, scheduled for a match at Syracuse on Friday night. The Scarlet Knights played in the Gator Invitational to open the season, dropping three matches. After that, they won six of their next eight contests before losing five of their next six. In league play, Rutgers has beaten Seton Hall (3-2) and lost to Virginia Tech (3-0) and Miami (3-1).
In 2002, Rutgers was 17-11 (6-7 BIG EAST) and finished tied for eighth in the BIG EAST. The Knights return three starters, including senior OH Shayla Bush and junior OH Dawn Christjaener, who are the top offensive threats. Bush leads the team in kills (247/3.92), digs (211/3.35), and aces (30/0.48). She ranks second in the league in aces, eighth in kills, and 10th in points. Christjaener is second in kills (234/3.77) and digs (177/2.85).
Head coach Ann Leonard-House is in her 10th year at Rutgers with a 150-132 (.532) and 17th year overall 331-220 (.601).
Notre Dame and Rutgers will meet for the 11th time, with all but one coming since the Irish joined the BIG EAST in 1995. Notre Dame has won all 10 previous meetings, taking 30 of 31 total games. The only time Rutgers won a game against the Irish was 1998, when the Scarlet Knights got a 17-15 triumph in game three to prolong the match. This will be the sixth trip to the Joyce Center for Rutgers, including for a conference semifinal match in 2000. The pre-BIG EAST meeting came in 1986 in the Hackerman Showcase in Houston, Texas.
In 2002, the teams played on Oct. 5 in Piscataway, N.J., with Notre Dame winning 30-16, 30-24, 30-19. The Irish were outstanding offensively, with 48 kills and just 10 errors for a .418 hitting percentage, powered by the setting of Kristen Kinder, who assisted on 35 of the kills. Emily Loomis led Notre Dame with 13 kills on .600 hitting, while Lauren Kelbley had 11 on .579 hitting, and Jessica Kinder had six on .750 hitting. Keara Coughlin had 16 digs. For Rutgers, Bush had 16 kills to lead all players. Dawn Christjaener led the Knights with 10 digs.
HEAD COACH Debbie Brown: Irish head coach Debbie Brown is in her 13th season at the helm of the Notre Dame program. She has led the Irish to a 312-104 (.750) mark, while holding a 429-187 (.696) overall record. Brown’s Notre Dame teams have earned 11 consecutive NCAA tournament berths, advancing to the regional finals in 1993 and the regionals in ’94, ’95, and ’97. An eight-time conference coach of the year (4 MCC, 3 BIG EAST, 1 Pac-10), she has coached four Irish players to All-America honors, while 20 have gained all-BIG EAST mention since 1995. The Irish also have claimed 11 regular-season conference titles (4 Midwestern Collegiate, 7 BIG EAST) and 11 league tournament crowns (4 MCC, 7 BIG EAST). The captain of the 1980 U.S. Olympic volleyball team after winning a pair of national championships and earning All-America honors twice playing at USC, Brown graduated from Arizona State in 1982 and coached her alma mater from 1983-88, helping the Sun Devils to five NCAA tournaments.
“NOTRE DAME PRIMETIME” AIRING ON CSTV & WHME-TV: Among the new fall programming for College Sports Television (CSTV) is “Notre Dame Primetime,” a weekly one-hour show dedicated entirely to Notre Dame athletics. It airs on Sundays at 8:30 p.m. (EDT) and can now be seen in the South Bend area on Mondays at 7 p.m. (EST) on WHME-TV. A number of Irish volleyball personalities already have been featured on “Notre Dame Primetime,” including head coach Debbie Brown, OPP/OH Emily Loomis, and OH Jessica Kinder.
KEEPING UP WITH ND VOLLEYBALL: For the fastest results of Notre Dame volleyball matches, call the Notre Dame Sports Hotline at (574) 631-3000 and choose #5 and #1. The hotline provides schedules and result information for varsity sports and serves as a supplement to the match recaps and weekly releases provided on the official athletic website at www.und.com. The hotline is the first medium updated with results of each Notre Dame volleyball match.
Once again, www.und.com will be the best place for in-depth coverage of Irish volleyball. Live scoring of all home matches, as well as live internet broadcasts of eight contests available to College Sports Pass subscribers supplement the regular match previews and recaps. All three Shamrock Invitational matches (Sept. 12-14), as well as both BIG EAST Championship contests (Nov. 22-23) and the conference tilts with Georgetown (Sept. 28), Virginia Tech (Nov. 7), and Miami (Nov. 9) will feature live broadcasts.
In addition, media members and fans may be added to the sports information e-mail release list by contacting sports information assistant Bo Rottenborn at Rottenborn.2@nd.edu. All requests for story ideas, interview access, match credentials, and further information on Irish volleyball should similarly be directed to Rottenborn. Credential and interview requests should be made at least 24 hours in advance.