Oct. 23, 2001

The Samford volleyball team finished in seventh place in the TAAC last season missing the tournament by one game. This year's squad would like to take care of the clinching a tournament berth as soon as possible. They get their first chance tonight at the Georgia State Sports Arena at 6 p.m.

The Bulldogs jumped into fourth place in the A-Sun standings by sweeping Mercer and Belmont over the weekend. Samford is 5-3 in the A-Sun and needs one win in its final two A-Sun matches to be assured of a tournament berth. Abby Miner recorded double-doubles in both Bulldog victories over the weekend while Shellie Ouldhouse had 12 kills and a .435 percentage against Belmont. Whitney Miller moved into second place on the Bulldogs career kills list with 18 kills against Mercer. Stefanie Pickett recorded seven aces in the two matches and five blocks that moved her into fifth place on the single-season block assists list.

The Lady Panthers are the defending conference champions. GSU is currently on a four-match winning streak and have won eight of their last nine and 18 of their last 20 matches since beginning the season 0-3. Their 10-match winning-streak earlier in the year was a school record. Anna Popenko who averages 4.55 kpg with a .393 attack percentage leads the Lady Panthers.

Georgia State holds a 21-9 advantage in the series dating back to 1987. The Lady Panthers have won the last four meetings. Samford last victory came in 1997, 3-2, in Birmingham. This is the third-straight season the two teams have met in Atlanta.

You can keep up with the action as it happens in tonight's match by clicking on the live coverage link found at www.samfordsports.com.