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Senior Kim Turner will go for the Utah all-time block assists record this weekend in her native Arizona.
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Aug. 25, 2003
SALT LAKE CITY -
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THIS WEEK:
Utah travels to Tempe, Ariz., to participate in the Sun Devil Classic this Friday and Saturday. The Utes face host Arizona State at 7 p.m. (PST) on Friday, Aug. 29. On Saturday, Aug. 30, Utah will play San Diego, which finished No. 25 in the final 2002 poll, at 10 a.m. (PST), followed by a 5 p.m. (PST) match against Ohio.
SUN DEVIL CLASSIC SCHEDULE:
Aug. 29 (Fri.) San Diego vs. Ohio 5 p.m.
UTAH vs. Arizona State 7 p.m.
Aug. 30. (Sat.) UTAH vs. San Diego 10 a.m.
Ohio vs. Arizona State noon
UTAH vs. Ohio 5 p.m.
Arizona State vs. San Diego 7 p.m.
A QUICK LOOK AT UTAH:
The Utes, picked to win the Mountain West Conference for the second year in a row, return four starters and eight letterwinners from last year's squad that advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth year in a row, won its second-consecutive Mountain West Conference Tournament championship and reached the 20-win plateau for the seventh-successive season
Leading the Utes is All-America candidate and preseason MWC Player of the Year Kim Turner, a three-time all-conference selection and the reigning co-MWC Player of the Year. The senior needs just five block assists and 435 kills to move into first place all-time in both categories at Utah. Turner should get the first record this weekend, when the Utes open the season at the Arizona State Sun Devil Classic. An Arizona native, Turner will be playing in the tournament against four former club teammates from Arizona State.
Adding to the Utes' attack is junior Lyndsey Henderson, who averaged 2.28 kills and 1.27 blocks per game in her first season as a Ute last year. Junior setter Kelsie Kartchner, already a two-year starter, also returns. Kartchner joined Turner on the preseason all-conference team that was selected by the MWC coaches. Meanwhile, senior libero Jackie Morrill, who was named the top libero in last year's MWC Tournament, has a year under her belt at that position.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION:
Arizona State
2002 Overall Record: 15-12
2002 Conference Record/Place: 8-10/7th
2002 Postseason Finish: 1-1
Returning Starters/Letterwinners: 6/8
Top Returners: Juliana Escobar (4.27 kpg, 3.36 dpg, first-team all-Pac-10) and Cheryl Anglin (9.94 apg, 1.87 dpg).
San Diego
2002 Overall Record: 25-8
2002 Conference Record/Place: 10-4/3rd
2002 Postseason Finish: 0-1
Returning Starters/Letterwinners: 4/9
Top Returners: Devon Forster (4.43 kpg, 3.50 dpg, first-team all-WCC in 2001 and 2002); Kristen Hurst (1.98 kpg, 2.91 dpg, honorable mention all-WCC in 2002); and Lindsey Sherburne (13.67 apg, 2.89 dpg, 2002 Co-WCC Freshman of the Year).
Ohio
2002 Overall Record: 25-9
2002 Conference Record/Place: 14-4/2nd-East
2002 Postseason Finish: N/A
Returning Starters/Letterwinners: 5/8
Top Returners: Laura Hageman (3.41 kpg, 3.49 dpg, 1.27 bpg, 2002 MAC Player of the Year, All-Mideast Region); Briana Adamovsky (10.84 apg, 2.47 dpg, second team All-MAC in 2002); and Julia Winkfield (1.99 kpg, 1.05 bpg, named to 2002 MAC All-Freshman Team).
SERIES SHORTS:
* Utah trails the all-time series with Arizona State 2-8. In their last meeting on Sept. 7, 1985, the Utes fell 3-2 in Tempe. Utah is 1-3 at home, 0-3 away and 1-2 at a neutral site vs. the Sun Devils.
* The Utes are 3-3 all-time against San Diego. The last time the two teams faced each other was Sept. 9, 2000, when the Utes won 3-2 at the Cal Poly Tournament. Utah is 0-0 at home, 1-2 away and 2-1 at a neutral site vs. San Diego.
* This is the first-ever meeting between Utah and Ohio.
QUOTING HEAD COACH Beth Launiere:
On the upcoming Sun Devil Classic - "This is a really tough opening tournament for us. Both Arizona State and San Diego made it to the NCAA Tournament last year. We're ready for it. We're ready to play to see where we're at as a team."
USA Today/AVCA Preseason Top 25Rank School Total 2002 Last
(1st-place Votes) Points Record Year
1 USC (64) 1624 31-1 1
2 Hawai'i (1) 1518 34-2 3
3 Florida 1476 34-3 4
4 Stanford 1447 32-5 2
5 Pepperdine 1281 26-7 6
6 Minnesota 1238 32-6 11
7 Nebraska 1219 31-2 5
8 Northern Iowa 1071 34-3 9
9 UC Santa Barbara 1048 30-3 8
10 Arizona 978 20-12 10
11 Penn State 850 25-8 16
12 Georgia Tech 668 33-6 17
13 UCLA 650 20-14 15
14 Santa Clara 588 24-7 19
15 Kansas State 573 21-9 21
16 Long Beach State 519 28-4 14
17 Wisconsin 496 24-9 18
18 Ohio State 425 21-11 13
19 Washington State 409 24-8 7
20 North Carolina 388 32-4 12
21 Missouri 361 26-8 20
22 Louisville 315 28-6 NR
23 Texas 266 23-9 NR
24 California 245 20-12 NR
25 Michigan State 221 21-12 22
Others receiving points and listed on two or more ballots: Miami 174, Temple 171, Washington 130, Colorado State 121, Notre Dame 116, Texas A&M 99, Pacific 88, Utah 73, Eastern Washington 55, BYU 40, San Diego 39, Michigan 18, Arkansas 14, Duke 14, South Carolina 14, Arizona State 13, Loyola Marymount 9, Fresno State 7, Indiana 3.
MWC PRESEASON POLL
Rank Team (1st place votes) Points '02 Finish
1 Utah (5) 47 3rd
2 Colorado State (2) 41 1st
3 BYU 36 4th
4 San Diego State (1) 35 2nd
5 UNLV 23 5th
6 Wyoming 22 6th
7 New Mexico 13 7th
8 Air Force 7 8th
2003 Preseason All-MWC Team
Player Yr. Pos. Team
Kim Turner* Sr. MB Utah
Aspen McPartland Sr. MB SDSU
Michele Rauter Sr. OH Wyoming
Kelsie Kartchner Jr. S Utah
Laura Nielsen Sr. MB BYU
Setter: Melissa Courtney Jr. Colorado State
Libero: Lindsey Kerr Jr. Colorado State
* Preseason Player of the Year
SEASON OPENERS:
The Utes are 12-16 all-time in season openers. Utah has won its last three home openers and four of its last five. Last year, the Utes swept New Hampshire at the Utah Classic to open the season.
TURNER SELECTED AS PRESEASON MWC PLAYER OF THE YEAR:
Senior Kim Turner, the reigning Co-MWC Player of the Year, was selected by the league's head coaches as the 2003 preseason MWC Player of the Year. The only two-time MWC Tournament MVP in league history, Turner needs five block assists and 435 kills to move into first place all-time in both categories at Utah.
Joining Turner on the preseason all-conference team was junior setter Kelsie Kartchner, who was named the Best Setter at last year's MWC Tournament.
ALMOST IN:
Utah is ranked 33rd with 73 points in the USA Today/AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll. Utah will face eight teams this season that are ranked or received votes in the preseason poll: Washington State, Missouri, Colorado State, Notre Dame, BYU, San Diego, South Carolina and Arizona State.
SUNDAY NIGHT SPIKE:
Utah will face Colorado State on live television at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 26, at Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colo. The match is part of the College Sports Television (CSTV) and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Sunday Night Spike package.
NEXT WEEK:
The Utes host the Hampton Inn Classic next Friday and Saturday, Sept. 5-6. Utah faces No. 19 Washington State at 7 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 29. On Saturday, Aug. 30, Utah plays Utah Valley State at noon and No. 21 Missouri at 7 p.m.
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