November 21, 2002

Furman Volleyball Set To Open Southern Conference Tournament Friday

Greenville, S.C. ­ The Furman volleyball team will open play in the 2002 Southern Conference Volleyball Championships Friday morning when it battles Western Carolina in a 10:00a.m. match at Davidson's Belk Arena.

The Lady Paladins, who finished the regular season with a 20-13 overall record and 15-5 mark in conference play, enter the tournament as the number four seed. Coach Michelle Young's squad tied Davidson for third in the SoCon standings, but the Wildcats were awarded the third seed as a result of their two victories over Furman in the regular season.

Furman claimed victories in both regular season encounters with the fifth-seeded Catamounts of Western Carolina. The Lady Paladins defeated the Catamounts 3-0 in Greenville on October 9, and escaped with a 3-2 win in Cullowhee, N.C., on November 10.

Western Carolina enters the conference tournament at 22-11 overall and 13-7 in the Southern Conference.

The Lady Paladins, winners of six of their last seven conference matches have been led by the play of seniorsAbby Simon, Carrie Rowley and Laura Bush. Simon, an outside hitter, leads the Lady Paladins in kills with 458 and ranks secon on Furman's all-time kills chart with 1,557 kills. Rowley leads the Lady Paladins in digs with 397 and ranks third all-time with 1,473 digs. Bush, a native of Kingsport, Tenn., has recorded 417 kills and contributed 82 blocks in 33 matches this season.

The winner of Friday's match will take on the winner of the 1:00p.m. match between top-seeded Georgia Southern and #8Chattanooga. The Semifinal match is scheduled for 4:30p.m. Saturday with the championship match set for 2:00p.m. Sunday.