Sept. 18, 2008

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford University volleyball team is home this weekend co-hosting a tournament with the UAB Blazers. The Bulldogs will host three matches at the Pete Hanna Center, the first matches hosted by the Bulldogs this season. The only tournament matches that will be played at Samford are the ones that Samford is participating in. All other matches will be played at Bartow Arena on the UAB campus.

On Friday, Samford (8-2) will take on Memphis at 2 p.m. and Troy at 7 p.m., and tournament play will wrap up for the Bulldogs on Saturday as they take on Alabama A&M at 2 p.m. The Memphis match was originally scheduled for 1 p.m.

The Bulldogs continue their best start ever for the program as they come off a weekend at the Crimson Tide Invitational where they went 2-1. Samford fell to a tough Alabama team in three sets on Friday afternoon but bounced back with a 3-2 victory over Murray State on Friday night and a 3-1 win over South Florida on Saturday morning.

"This is the last group of matches in the preseason phase of our season and the team is excited to end it at home," Samford head coach Derek Schroeder said. "Obviously our preseason has been very successful in the wins column, but I am most impressed with how our level of play has improved each week. We had a great practice Wednesday on the defensive side of the ball and plan to have another today in preparation for Friday's and Saturday's matches."

"I have been very happy with the maturity this team has shown this season so far and we had a nice talk about maturity and the pitfalls we could run into this weekend," Schroeder said. "Home opener, friend and family distractions, commitments with recruits are all areas which could lead us to not be as focused, alert and determined as we have been so far. I will be very proud of this team if they can set these things aside and execute three solid game plans this weekend."

Samford is led by reigning SoCon Player of the Week Ashley Adams. The senior outside hitter knocked down 31 kills last Friday night against Murray State, notching a school record and taking her place in the AVCA's 30-Kills Club. She ranks 19th in the country in kills per set (4.29) and is hitting .370 on the year so far. Helping out is sophomore setter Hillary Fountain. Fountain has dished out 402 total assists so far in 2008 and is ranked 14th in the country in assists per set (11.49). Junior defensive specialist Sarah Gardner is tied for 38th in aces per set (0.53 saps). As a team, Samford ranks in four different categories: sixth in hitting percentage (.297), 39th in assists per set (12.66), 44th in kills per set (13.63) and tied for 43rd in win-loss percentage (.800).

"It is a nice weekend of matches for us playing teams that will push us and force us to execute," Schroeder said. "Memphis and Troy both have great middles and our first contact will have to be exceptional to counter that advantage."

Memphis (7-3) comes off a weekend in which they went 3-0 in the Mississippi State Invitational. The Tigers opened the season hosting two tournaments at home, going 2-1 in the Memphis Invitational and 2-2 in the Tiger Invitational the next week. The Tigers are led by sophomore Libero Becky Shaffer and sophomore middle blocker Emily Underwood. Shaffer is ranked 42nd in the country in aces per set (0.53) and leads her team in digs, averaging 2.18 per set. Underwood is the top-ranked blocker in the country right now, knocking down 1.84 blocks per set. She is also currently third on the team in total kills (82) and boasts 63 block assists and eight blocks solo on the year.

Troy comes into this weekend off a 3-0 sweep of in-state rival Jacksonville State. The Trojans are 6-4 so far this season, starting the year off with a 1-2 record at the Mississippi State Tournament, then going 3-1 at the Memphis Invitational and finally winning all three of their matches in the Coastal Carolina Tournament. Junior middle hitter Meghan Gilroy leads the Trojans with 4.34 kills per set, which ranks her 15th in the country. She is helped by senior middle hitter Aubre Smith who ranks 31st in the country in blocks per set (1.31).

Alabama A&M began its preseason going 0-3 in its first two tournaments but bounced back tremendously going 3-0 in the Alabama State Tournament defeating North Carolina A&T 3-1 and sweeping both Clark Atlanta and Southern. The Bulldogs come into this weekend's tournament after falling to Tennessee State 3-1. A&M is led by sophomore middle hitter Courtney Jenkins who has 60 total kills and 12 blocks on the season.

Admission for matches at Samford is free and there will be no live stats available. A full recap and results of the Bulldogs' matches will be available on www.samfordsports.com upon the completion of each match. For information on matches that will be held at UAB, visit www.uabsports.com.