Unbeaten Skyhawks set to host volleyball classic

Posted: Thursday, September 1, 2011 11:02 pm

By KEVIN WEAKS
Press Sports
UT Martin’s volleyball program picked the perfect time to host its first-ever invitational event.
The Skyhawks will come into this weekend’s First State Skyhawk Invitational with a 3-0 record after a dramatic sweep through Mississippi State’s Maroon Classic in Starkville the previous weekend.
“This is the first time we’ve hosted a tournament, so it’s new ground for us,” Skyhawk head coach Darrin McClure said. “It’s beneficial for our players because we travel a lot at the beginning of each season. The competition is stiff, which will help prepare us for our conference schedule.”
The Invitational will bring three other teams to Skyhawk Fieldhouse, beginning 11 a.m. Friday when Illinois State faces Stephen F. Austin. Alabama-Birmingham will be the other team, and each will play three matches in two days.
Following the opening match, UTM plays UAB at 1 p.m. The evening session has UAB facing Illinois State at 5 p.m. and the Skyhawks taking on Stephen F. Austin at 7. Saturday, UAB and Stephen F. Austin play at noon, followed by UTM vs Illinois State at 2.
UTM rides into its round-robin event on, perhaps, the most early-season momentum in the program’s history. While the Skyhawks have been 3-0 two other times (2009 and 2000), it would be very difficult for those starts to match what the team did last weekend in Starkville.
UTM opened with a 3-0 win over Southeastern Louisiana on Friday and then won two dramatic matches on Saturday. The second match may have been the best ever as UTM rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 (22-25, 22-25, 27-25, 30-28, 15-8) over Southern Illinois.
UT Martin had earlier picked up a win over a Southeastern Conference school by knocking off Mississippi State, 3-1 (25-22, 16-25, 25-20, 25-23).
Skyhawk junior Kelly Hogan was named tournament Most Valuable Player, and junior Kasey Elswick joined Hogan on the all-tournament team.
McClure sees the win over SIU as one that could be a turning point — not just for the season but the program as a whole.
“I actually told the players in practice Sunday that we experienced three completely different types of games at Mississippi State,” the head coach said. “For us to come back from 0-2 and face match point three times in the third game (against SIU), that’s something we can definitely carry over. Now, we’ve been there and showed we can come back.”
Jenna Miller, UTM’s 5-10 senior setter, believes the sweep through Starkville merely whetted the team’s appetite for future success.
“We sang “We Are The Champions” after the (SIU) match,” she said. “We’re more determined now be-cause we’ve had a taste of what we can accomplish.”
Miller joined Elswick in earning weekly honors from the OVC. Miller was named the league’s Co-Setter of the Week, while Elswick was tabbed   as the top defensive player.
Elswick tallied 73 digs at the Maroon Classic, earning all-tournament honors.
Miller, the first UTM setter to be recognized by the league, racked up 145 assists in the three wins.
Published in The WCP 9.1.11