Volleyball

BEREA, OHIO --  The Baldwin-Wallace College volleyball team will begin the 2005 season in Forest Grove, Oregon for the two-day (Friday and Saturday) Boxer Kickoff Invitational Tournament hosted by Pacific Unviversity.  The Yellow Jackets will face some tough opposition to start the season.

B-W, selected to finish third in the 2005 Ohio Athletic Conference preseason poll, ended the 2004 season with a 22-13 record and advanced to the OAC Tournament championship game for the second straight season. 

The Yellow Jackets will be put to an early test beginning the tournament on Friday, Sept. 2 against Williamette (Ore.) University at 10:00 a.m. followed by a matchup against Gustavus Adophus (Minn.) College at 4:00 p.m.  Williamette finished the 2004 season with a 19-6 overall record and finished second in the Northwest Conference.  Gustavus ended its season last year 19-7 overall and a third place finish in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. B-W will conclude the tournament on Saturday, Sept. 3 against Linfield (Ore.) College which was 8-14 a year ago and host school Pacific University that posted a 5-19 record in 2004.

Leading the way for B-W in 2005 will be senior All-OAC rightside player Emily Albanese (Mentor). She played in 122 games last season and led the team in service aces (60). She also was third in kills (382), set assists (66) and blocks (51). Albanese was a second-team All-OAC selection last year.

Other top returning starters include sophomore outside hitter Kelsey Hills (Sylvania/ Toledo St. Ursula), sophomore libero Meggie Marten (Bowling Green) as well as sophomore backup middle hitter Betsy Gilbert (Mansfield/ Madison).

Hills, the 2004 OAC Co-Freshman of the Year played in 122 games and was second on the team in kills with 384. She also was second in total blocks (57) and had 131 digs. Marten and Gilbert will play an even more pivotal role this season. Both saw action in 122 games a year ago. Marten had 42 service aces, 402 digs and 182 kills. Gilbert recorded 38 total blocks and had 62 digs.

In addition to the top four returnees, B-W welcomes a number of freshman players led by middle hitter Maria DePeters (Buffalo, N.Y./Mount St. Mary Academy), middle hitter Brooke Hinkle (Wellington) and outside hitter Rachel Selgo (Grand Rapids, Mich./West Catholic) who will look to make an impact this fall. Also, Head Coach Vicki Brault will welcome junior transfer setter Angie Camp (Norwalk/ St. Paul), who played at Division II Ashland University a year ago.

Other returning letter winners include sophomore defensive specialist Toni Ward (Mogadore/ Field) and sophomore outside hitter Nicole Marisavljevic (Mogadore/ Field).

Following the Boxer Kickoff Tournament, the Yellow Jackets open their home schedule on Sept. 7 when it hosts traditional rival Hiram College at 7:00 p.m. and also hosts the annual Marcia French Memorial Tournament on September 9-10 in Berea.

FOR MORE B-W SPORTS INFORMATION, please contact Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple at 440-826-2327 or via e-mail at kruple@bw.edu. Head Coach Vicki Brault can be reached by telephone by calling 440-826-3254 or via e-mail at vbrault@bw.edu.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
* All start times are Pacific Standard Time

                                Friday, Sept. 2
                                10:00 a.m.      Gustavus Adolphus (Minn.) vs. Pacific (Ore.)
                                                     Williamette (Ore.) vs. Baldwin-Wallace
                                1:00 p.m.       Williamette (Ore.) vs. Cal State East Bay
                                                     Linfield (Ore.) vs. Mount St. Joseph
                                4:00 p.m.       Baldwin-Wallace vs. Gustavus Adolphus (Minn.)
                                6:00 p.m.       Linfield (Ore.) vs. Cal State East Bay
                                8:00 p.m.       Mount St. Joseph vs. Pacific (Ore.)

                                Saturday, Sept. 3
                                10:00 a.m.      Lindfield (Ore.) vs. Baldwin-Wallace
                                                     Williamette (Ore.) vs. Gustavus Adolphus (Minn.)
                                1:00 p.m.       Baldwin-Wallace vs. Pacific (Ore.)
                                                     Cal State East Bay vs. Mount St. Joseph
                                4:00 p.m.       Linfield (Ore.) vs. Gustavus Adolphus (Minn.)
                                6:00 p.m.       Williamette (Ore.) vs. Mount St. Joseph
                                8:00 p.m.       Cal State East Bay vs. Pacific (Ore.)