University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Friday, August 24
Huntsville, Texas
7:00 PM
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
at
Sam Houston State
Volleyball Starts 2012 Campaign in Huntsville
8/23/2012 6:46:00 PM | Volleyball
Contact: Matt Hebert
HUNTSVILLE, Texas – The Ragin' Cajuns volleyball team serves it up for the first time in the 2012 season on Friday, Aug. 24 when the squad takes the court against Sam Houston State inside Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
First serve is set for 7 p.m., in a match that opens play for both UL and SHSU in the 27th annual Sam Houston Volleyball Invitational which runs through Saturday, Aug. 25.
On Saturday, Louisiana wraps up participation in the SHSU Invitational with matches against Pac-12 member Colorado at 10 a.m., and Texas Southern at 4 p.m.
All of the Cajuns matches in the tournament will be streamed live by the Bearkat Sports Network. Streaming is available on a subscription basis at a cost of $8.95 for the weekend. To purchase the live video package visit www.gobearkats.com.
UL heads into the 37th season in program history and fifth under the direction of head coach Heather Mazeitis-Fontenot.
“I am extremely excited to get the season underway,” Mazeitis-Fontenot said. “Talent-wise – from top to bottom – we are much more talented than we've ever been in my entire tenure here.
“The competition that we'll have at each position is going to be vital to our success,” Mazeitis-Fontenot stressed. “And based upon what I've seen every day at practice, we have the ability to do special things this season.”
The Cajuns are appearing in Huntsville for the third time in the past four years (2009, 2010, 2012). In the previous two trips to Hunstville with Mazeitis-Fontenot, the Cajuns posted a combined 6-2 record finishing as tournament runner-up each time.
The Cajuns 2012 roster is bolstered by the return of six players who all saw significant time as a starter last season – seniors Mandi Gavin (setter) and Blair Claypoole (middle blocker), juniors Taylor Meade (libero/outside hitter), Lavinia Tatran (outside hitter) and Tonice White (middle blocker), plus sophomore Caitlyn Auxilien (defensive specialist/libero).
Gavin, a preseason All-Sun Belt selection, headlines the list of returners as she enters her third season as starting setter. The Arlington, Texas, native's 6-foot-2 frame allows the Cajuns to utilize her in blocking schemes, in addition to setting her teammates on offense. Gavin has been Louisiana's second-leading blocker the past two years, registering 60-plus blocks both seasons.
Last season, Gavin accrued 30-plus assists in 19 of 32 matches played. In addition to her setter duties, Gavin posted 100-plus kills, nearly 300 digs (297 actual) and accounted for 1.71 points per set in 2011.
The Cajuns service in 2011 was boosted by Meade who led the Sun Belt Conference in aces per set (0.43). Meade, who returns for her junior campaign in 2012, registered a Sun Belt-leading tally of 48 service aces, finishing five shy of the SBC rally scoring era single season Top 5.
UL does have to replace its leader in kills from the previous two seasons, Lesley Mirarchi, and Mazeitis-Fontenot has implemented a change in offensive scheme to counter the loss.
“We've always been a middle-based team, now we're looking to running a '6-2' and also to be primarily an outside-based offense,” Mazeitis-Fontenot said. “The way we recruited has allowed us to make the change. We have two phenomenal setters in Mandi (Gavin) and Andrea (Hole) and I just cannot envision a lineup without the two of them in it at all times. They are both great attackers which in another advantage for us.”
With the change in offense, the Cajuns will rely on accuracy of their front-line hitters with White and Tatran being the two the club will rely on heavily.
White enters the 2012 season coming off her best offensive season with the Ragin' Cajuns. White increased her kills tally by nearly 200 last season, finishing with 276 through 112 sets (had 85 in 72 sets in 2010). An increase in playing time (64 sets in 2010 up to 87 sets in 2011) as a sophomore saw Tataran jump from 23 kills as a freshman in 2010 to 178 as a sophomore in 2011.
Defensively, the Cajuns back row will once again be patrolled by Meade and Auxilien. The duo reached 300-plus digs a year ago (Meade with 316 and Auxilien with 308), a key stat in UL returning 87 percent of its digs total (1,639).
In all, Louisiana returns 10 letterwinners, making the 2012 squad the most-experienced of the Mazeitis-Fontenot era.
Mazeitis-Fontenot enters the weekend two wins shy of her 50th triumph with the Cajuns. Her 48 wins are fourth-most in program history.
The Cajuns have been on a steady rise under Mazeitis-Fontenot since she took over the program in January 2008. In 2010, UL notched 17 victories for the first time in a decade and qualified for the Sun Belt Tournament for the first time since 2002. Over the past two seasons combined, UL has produced a 14-win improvement when compared to the first two seasons with Mazeitis-Fontenot (17 wins from 2008-09; 31 wins from 2010-11).
For all of the latest news and information on Ragin' Cajuns Athletics, visit RaginCajuns.com. Fans can also follow the athletics department on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/ULRaginCajuns along with @ULRaginCajuns on Twitter.
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