Sept. 2, 2010

Complete Release in PDF Format

Bump, Set, Spike Coastal
Coastal Carolina travels to the Hokie Invitational in Blacksburg, Va Sept. 3-4, hosted by Virginia Tech. The Chanticleers will face host Virginia Tech Friday, Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. and Jacksonville State and Long Island on Saturday at 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. Coastal is 1-3 all-time against the Hokies with the only win coming in a five-set match in 2002. It will be the second tournament of the season after going 0-3 at the Deacon Invitational the weekend before returning home for the Comfort Suites Myrtle Beach Invitational Sept. 10-11.

This Week’s Matches:
    at the Hokie Invitational
    -Friday, September 3 at Virginia Tech, 7 p.m.
    -Saturday, September 4 vs. Jacksonville State, 10 a.m.
    -Saturday, September 4 vs. Long Island, 5 p.m.

The Opponents
Virginia Tech Hokies (Tournament Host)
2010 Record: 2-1
2010 Conference Record: 0-0 (ACC)
Head Coach: Chris Riley
Series Record: Virginia Tech leads 3-1
Last Meeting: Coastal won 3-2 on Sept. 21, 2002
Notes:  Picked to finish eighth in the ACC... Senior Felicia Willoughby named Preseason All-ACC for third year in a row... Started season with a win against Chattanooga and Xavier, but lost to #19 Tennessee in their opening tournament... Cara Baarendse leads the team with 29 kills, averaging 2.64 kills per set... Willoughby leads the team with 13 blocks. 

Jacksonville State Gamecocks
2010 Record: 2-2
2010 Conference Record: 0-0 (Ohio Valley)
Head Coach: Rick Nold
Series Record: First Meeting
Last Meeting: First Meeting
Notes:  Had a 17-1 record during the 2009 season and won their first NCAA Tournament win... Return all but one starter this season... Picked to finish second in the Ohio Valley... Senior Caitlin Vorbeck and sophomore Jen Meyer were selected to the Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference team...  Three girls lead the team with 30+ kills in Vorbeck with 39, averaging 3.00 kills per set, Kara Slater with 34, averaging 2.62 per set and Alyx Schulte with 30, averaging 2.31 per set.

Long Island Blackbirds
2009 Record: 0-3
2009 Conference Record: 0-0 (Northeast)
Head Coach: Kyle Robinson
Series Record: Long Island leads 1-0
Last Meeting: Long Island won 3-1 on Sept. 18, 2004
Notes:  Picked to win the Northeast Conference in the Preseason Poll... Went 21-14 overall last season, including a perfect 16-0 in conference play en route to their sixth consecutive NEC title... Breanna Cullity was a four-time NEC Rookie of the Week last season...

Laffin Named to All-Tournament Team
Freshman Meghan Laffin earned her first All-Tournament team honor of her collegiate career at the Deacon Invitational hosted by Wake Forest.  Laffin finished the tournament with 17 kills, three digs and eight blocks, including two solo blocks against East Tennessee State Aug. 28. 

Freshmen Make Immediate Impact
Three freshmen saw their first collegiate action at the Deacon Invitational Aug. 27-28.  Meghan Laffin got her first collegiate starts in all three matches at the event, registering eight blocks, including two solo blocks on the weekend.  Lauren Alejo started her first collegiate match against East Tennessee State Aug. 28 as the setter and averaged 5.10 assists per set in the event.  The final freshman making her collegiate debut was Lindsay Gill in the libero spot, who averaged 3.40 digs per set at the tournament. 

Kills the Thrill for Kimes
Senior Chelsy Kimes recorded her first two double-digit kill matches against Wake Forest with a season-high 14 and East Tennessee State with 13.  She also registered her first double-double of the season against the Demon Deacons with 14 kills and 15 digs. 

Kimes Selected As Candidate for Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award
Senior Chelsy Kimes was selected as a candidate for the first-ever Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in volleyball, announced Aug. 26 by the Awards Committee.  Kimes was one of 30 student-athletes who were selected and to be eligible for the award, the student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition.  Kimes has maintained a 3.84 cumulative grade point average as a biology major and has been named to the Big South Presidential honor roll her freshman, sophomore and junior years.  She has been a leader both on and off the court throughout her time at Coastal.  Kimes has served as the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative for the volleyball team and has been a part of numerous community service experiences around the Myrtle Beach area.  Athletically, she is known as one of the Big South’s most lethal attackers and was recently named the league’s Preseason Player of the Year.  Last season, she helped lead the Chanticleers to their first Big South Tournament title and NCAA Tournament appearance since 1998.  Kimes was named the Tournament MVP and also received first team All-Big South honors.  In the record book, she ranks fourth in career kills in Coastal Carolina history and second in career kills per set at 3.74.  She also ranks fourth in the Big South in season kills per set.

Familiar Names and Faces
Coastal Carolina returns 10 of 13 players from 2009. The veterans include seniors Megan Bickford, Chelsy Kimes, Amanda Russell, and Kristin Cozzens, juniors Erika Lightsey, Kelsie Mauck and Simone Autry and sophomores Sierra Livesay and Samantha Palka. 

Welcome, Freshmen!
Five freshmen join the Coastal Carolina’s roster for the 2010 season. New to the team this year are Lindsay Gill, Lauren Alejo, Kindra Bailey, Meghan Laffin and Michelle Fowle.

Bauer Hires Two New Assistant Coaches
During the off season, head coach Kristen Bauer welcomed two new assistant coaches to the Coastal volleyball family.  Tucker Short and Pavlina Steffkova both joined the staff for the 2010 season.  Short comes to Coastal after being on staff of the prestigious TCA Volleyball Club in Southern California and prior to his time in California, Short served as assistant coach at University at Buffalo as the program’s recruiting coordinator and setter coach.  Steffkova joins the Chanticleer staff after being on staff at Alabama for two seasons and prior to Alabama, Steffkova served as both head and assistant coach at Birmingham-Southern. 

Coastal First in Preseason Poll
In the Big South Conference Preseason Poll, Coastal Carolina was picked to finish first by the league’s coaches. The Chanticleers collected 74 points and four first-place votes in the poll. Liberty was a close second with 71 points and two first-place votes. 

Kimes Named Preseason Player of the Year
Chelsy Kimes was selected as the Big South Preseason Player of the Year.   Kimes, a senior from Munster, Ind., was named the 2009 Big South Volleyball Championship MVP after guiding Coastal Carolina to its first Big South Championship since 1998. A 2009 All-Big South First Team honoree, she led her squad with 483 kills, averaging 3.72 kills per set. She also topped her squad with 38 aces. She posted 28 double-digit kill matches a season ago, including a string of 17-straight matches with more than 10 kills. Kimes also closed the season out tied for second-place in the League with 17 double-doubles.

Bickford Selected to Preseason All-Big South
Senior Megan Bickford joined teammate Chelsy Kimes on the Preseason All-Big South team.  Bickford remains a consistent contributor and ranks fifth in the Big South in career hitting percentage and first in the Coastal Carolina record book.  She also ranks fifth all-time in total blocks and fourth in assisted blocks. 

It’s A Long Road...
Coastal Carolina will start off the 2010 season playing its first seven matches on the road.  The Chants will travel just over 1,100 miles round-trip on the road in its first two weekends.  They start at the Deacon Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C., and then head to Blacksburg, Va. for the Hokie Invitational.  The team returns home for its annual home tournament before finishing up tournament play at the Kennesaw State Owl Invitational in Kennesaw, Ga.

Crowned Champions!
The No. 4-seeded Chanticleers were crowned the 2009 Big South Tournament Champions after defeating No. 2 Liberty 3-1 in the Big South Tournament Championship match on Nov. 21, 2009.  The last time the Chants won the Big south Tournament was in 1998, where they beat Liberty 3-1 and the last time a No. 4 seed won the tournament was in 1994 when Towson State defeated UNC Greensboro 3-0.  Coastal earned the league’s automatic big to the NCAA Tournament and fell to No. 10 Nebraska on Dec. 4, 2009.  It was Coastal’s third appearance ever in the event, having gone in 1996 and 1998, and the first under head coach Kristen Bauer. 

On the Attack
Senior Chelsy Kimes hit double-digit kills in 28 matches, including 17 double-digit kill performances in a row and notched 17 double-doubles.  Coastal Carolina went 13-4 in 2009 when Kimes had a double-double. 

Chants play spoiler...Three Times
In both regular-season meetings with UNC Asheville during the 2009 season, the Chanticleers came up victorious.  In the first meeting, the Chants snapped the Bulldogs seven-match win streak and handed them their first Big South loss of the season.  In the second meeting, Coastal rallied back after dropping the first two sets to beat the Bulldogs in the Justice Center, snapping a three-match win streak.  Both matches went to five sets and two of the three UNC Asheville regular season losses were to the Chants.  In the third meeting at the 2009 Big South Tournament, Coastal took control early and beat the Bulldogs 3-0, knocking them out of the tournament. 

Kimes Joins the 1000-Kill Club
Senior Chelsy Kimes reached the 1,000-kill mark last season and currently has 1,351 kills, ranking her third all-time at Coastal Carolina.  Kimes recorded her 1,000th kill against Western Carolina on Sept. 19, 2009. 

When In August
Under head coach Kristen Bauer, Coastal Carolina is 9-11 in the month of August. Of those eight wins, seven have come in tournament action.

Coming Up Next
The Chanticleers return home to host the Comfort Suites Coastal Carolina Invitational Sept. 10-11 in Kimbel Arena.  Coastal will face the Citadel, Norfolk State and USC Upstate.