Volleyball Terps Get Season Underway With Maryland Invitational
8/25/2002 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Aug. 25, 2002
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland volleyball team begins its 2002 season this week by hosting the Maryland Invitational, a two-day round-robin tournament featuring the Terps, Binghamton University and local opponents UMBC and George Washington.
Maryland coach Janice Kruger hopes for three seniors and five juniors to carry Maryland back to the top of the Atlantic Coast Conference standings this season. A trio of sophomores also returns from the 2001 club. Five freshmen also should contribute early in their careers, with redshirt freshman Stephanie Smith or true freshman Rachel Wagener likely to start at one middle blocker spot, opposite senior Amanda Ayres.
Ayres joins All-ACC hitter Carey Brennan and All-ACC candidate setter Lindsay Davey among the crop of seniors who have their sights on helping the Terps return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1997.
Match times for this week's tournament have Maryland hosting G.W., in Friday's nightcap at 7 p.m. The tournament tips off with UMBC facing Binghamton at 5.
Admission is free for all Maryland volleyball events.
Competition continues on Saturday with the Terps opening the action against Binghamton at 11 a.m., followed by UMBC and G.W. at 1. Evening matches pit Binghamton against George Washington at 5. Maryland battles UMBC in the tournament finale at 7.
The tournament opens an exciting season which continues on Sept. 6-7 at the Days Inn/JMU Invitational in Harrisonburg, Va. The Terps play at Georgetown on Sept. 10 before hosting another four-team round-robin invitational, the Terrapin Invitational, on Sept. 13-14. Coming to College Park that weekend are national foes Boston College, Indiana and Loyola Marymount.
Maryland plays its final season at Ritchie Coliseum in 2002, ending a six-year run since renovations were complete during the 1997 season. The Terps will move their home court to the Comcast Center in 2003.
Click here to view the 2002 Maryland volleyball preview.
Here is a look at Maryland's 2002 roster, complete with up-to-date biographies as the Terrapins open the fall campaign.
2002 Maryland Volleyball Roster No. Name Pos. Yr. Ht. Hometown 2 Amanda Ayres MB/OH Sr. 6-0 Chesapeake Beach, Md. 1 Carey Brennan OH Sr. 5-10 Smithsburg, Md. 9 Lindsay Davey S Sr. 5-8 Aurora, Colo. 14 Fiona DeFreitas DS Jr. 5-4 Lanham, Md. 6 Jennifer Dewalt OH So. 6-1 Bethlehem, Pa. 8 Maria DiLivio OH Jr. 6-1 Hamilton, Ontario 7 Stephanie Doiron OH Fr. 5-11 Windsor, Ontario 5 Jenny Dunn MB Fr. 6-3 Peachtree City, Ga. 3 Aimee Huddleston S So. 5-10 Keller, Texas 4 Lynnsy Jones OH Jr. 5-10 Castro Valley, Calif. 11 Carrie Lagler DS Fr. 5-8 Gaithersburg, Md./Gaithersburg 16 Kathy Shahrokh DS Jr. 5-4 Ellicott City, Md. 18 Stephanie Smith MB R-Fr. 6-2 Bethesda, Md. 10 Sarah Treadwell OH So. 5-11 Pearland, Texas 13 Rachel Wagener MB Fr. 6-4 Chesapeake, Va. 17 Lauren Wilson DS Jr. 5-4 North East, Md. Head Coach: Janice Kruger, 15th year at Maryland, 25th overall (Nebraska, '77) Assistant Coach: Jennifer LaGrange, third year at Maryland (Louisiana State, 94) Assistant Coach: Xiangrong "Sean" Liu, third year at Maryland (Xiamen, '86)
