LEXINGTON, Ky. ? The University of Kentucky will host two tournaments at Memorial Coliseum and compete with seven 2007 NCAA participants to highlight the , announced Tuesday by head coach Craig Skinner.
The Wildcats are coming off one of their most successful seasons in school history in 2007. Skinner and his squad have made three consecutive NCAA appearances for the first time in school annals. UK topped 20 wins for the first time in nearly 15 seasons; while senior-to-be Queen Nzenwa earned All-America honorable mention honors, becoming the first player since 1993 to earn All-America status.
For the third consecutive season, Kentucky will play a home-and-home series with each Southeastern Conference team in lieu of a league tournament.
The Wildcats begin their season with the first of two home tournaments beginning Aug. 29. Kentucky will host Pittsburgh to jump-start its 2008 campaign, a team they played during spring ball. Following Friday night?s opening match, UK will also play Western Carolina and NCAA participant Wisconsin in the Kentucky Classic.
After a mid-week tilt with Morehead State on Sept. 2, the Wildcats will travel to College Park, Md., for the University of Maryland?s home tournament. UK will see St. John?s, Missouri and the host Terrapins Sept. 5-6.
UK will then host another mid-week match against Tennessee State before showcasing the Kentucky Tournament Sept. 12-13. The Blue and White will entertain Eastern Kentucky, Albany and Indiana in the two-day affair.
Kentucky begins SEC action on Sept. 19 when it plays host to Alabama in Memorial Coliseum. Other highlights of the home slate include dates with top-25 ranked LSU (Oct. 31) who the Cats took down in Lexington in 2007 and the annual meeting with perennial power Florida on Nov. 16. Kentucky will host Tennessee in the final home match of the season on Nov. 28. The date with the Volunteers will also serve as senior day for Nzenwa and Alisa Pierce.
UK finished the 2007 season with a 22-10 record and a 13-7 clip in SEC play, marking the most wins since 1993. Additionally, the Blue and White tallied the most road victories (9) since the ?93 campaign.
Stay tuned to UKathletics.com for complete coverage of the Kentucky volleyball team.
