The Kentucky volleyball team begins Southeastern Conference play this weekend with a pair of Western Division teams when it hosts Arkansas and LSU in Memorial Coliseum. The Cats will face Arkansas at 7 p.m. on Friday, followed by a 2 p.m. Sunday match against LSU. The LSU match will be televised on SEC-TV.
The Wildcats (7-1) claimed the Kentucky Classic title this past week after defeating Villanova, Toledo and Georgia Tech. Junior middle blocker Nicole Britenriker (Cincinnati, Ohio) was named the tournament?s Most Valuable Player after hitting .367 with 43 kills (4.30 KPG), 17 digs and 10 blocks. Senior libero Jenni Casper (Louisville, Ky.) and freshman setter Sarah Rumely (New Palestine, Ind.) also were named to the all-tournament team.
Rumely was named the SEC Freshman of the Week for the second consecutive week. The freshman floor general dished out 136 assists (13.60 APG) and tallied 18 kills and 21 digs over the three-game span.
?This is a tough week to start off SEC play, but our team is looking forward to the challenge,? said second-year head coach Craig Skinner. ?We have continued to get better each week, so we should be prepared for both these teams this weekend.?
Kentucky owns a 15-10 all-time record in SEC openers after falling to Auburn in the league debut last year in Lexington. The Wildcats have not won an SEC opener since 2000, a 3-1 win over Mississippi State in Memorial Coliseum.
The Wildcats were picked to finish third in the SEC East this season after accomplishing that mark last year. UK went 10-6 in league play last year ? its best mark since the 1993 campaign.
Arkansas leads the all-time series with the Wildcats 12-6, though Kentucky claimed two of three meetings with the Lady ?Backs last season. Prior to last year, Arkansas had won 11 consecutive matches against the Cats. UK won both regular season meetings with Arkansas ? both 3-1 decisions ? before falling to the Lady ?Backs 3-1 in the SEC Tournament. The Wildcats claimed their first victory in the series since Sept. 27, 1996, with a 3-1 win in Lexington on Oct. 7, 2005.
Sunday?s match marks the 52nd meeting between Kentucky and LSU in a series dating back to Oct. 28, 1977 – UK?s first year of volleyball. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 23-18. The Cats and Tigers, coached by former UK head coach Fran Flory, split a pair of regular-season matches last year. UK won 3-1 at home before dropping a hard-fought five-match thriller in Baton Rouge. The Cats have won 13 of the last 18 matches in the series.
