2007 Season

Record: 22-10 (16-6 ACC)

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Talisa Kellogg will be playing for one of the Senior National A2 teams at the World Congress Center this May. Photo courtesy Christopher Gooley.

2008 Signees

Ashley Beyer - 5'11" Outside Hitter - Bloomington, IL (Bloomington/Illini Elite) - A hard hitter with a fast approach, she can touch 10', allowing her to block well above the net. Also a superior back-row attacker who plays defense, making her a weapon on all six rotations... 2006 AAU All-American... Bloomington Pantagraph All-Area first team... All Big-12 conference first team... 2006 PrepVolleyball.com Top 50 junior recruit... Averaged 4.1 kills and 3.1 digs last season, leading Bloomington to a 33-4 record... Two-time state qualifier in the 100-meter hurdles in track... Ranked #70 on PrepVolleyball.com's 2008 Senior Aces list. Lisa Carlson - 5'7" Defensive Specialist - Atlanta, GA (Marist/A5) - Libero for the 2006 Georgia AAAA state volleyball champions.... Libero for the A5 Mizuno 18 Bob team which earned a National bid to the 2007 Junior Olympic Volleyball Championships... Participated in 2006 USA Volleyball high performance development camp... 2007 Georgia Senior All-Star... Member of Georgia's 2007 All-State team. Bailey Hunter - 6'1" Outside Hitter - Hendersonville, NC (Hendersonville/Piedmont Triad) - A sweet hitting outside, she's also a great jump server, terrific blocker, and passes well. According to PrepVolleyball.com, she's "the Hunter which makes defenses pray"... Led Hendersonville to 2005 and 2006 1-A state titles... 2005, 2006 state championship MVP... 2005, 2006 Western Highlands Conference Player of the Year... 2005, 2006 1-A MVP... 2006 PrepVolleyball.com Junior of the Year candidate and a Top 50 junior recruit... 2006, 2007 PrepVolleyball.com All-American... Had 35 kills and 20 digs in 2006 state championship match... 373 kills, 230 digs in 2006... Dynamic outside hitter chose Tech over Duke, Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Tennessee... 2006 PrepVolleyball.com High School All-American... Ranked at #72 on PrepVolleyball.com's 2008 Senior Aces list.

2009 Recruits

Jordan Kissman - 5'10" Setter - Aurora, CO (Eaglecrest/Front Range) - Setter/outside hitter for two-time Colorado 5A state champion Eaglecrest in 2006 and 2007... Member of 2007 Colorado 5A All-Tournament Team... Member of 2007 Centennial All-League Team... Member of 2006 and 2007 Colorado 5A All-State Team... Finalist in 2006 for PrepVolleyball.com's Sophomore of the Year award... Member of the 2006 PrepVolleyball.com "Soph 79" list. Monique Mead - 5'9" Right Side - Fairburn, GA (Landmark Christian/A5) - Member of the 2007 PrepVolleyball.com "Top 50 Recruits" list for the class of 2009... Outside/right side hitter for the 2008 A5 18 Bob team... Right side for the A5 16 Erica team that won the 16 American division at the 2007 Junior Olympic Championships... Named MVP of the 2007 16 American division of the 2007 Junior Olympic Championships... Member of Georgia's 2007 All-State team. Jordanne Scott - 6'0" Middle - Indianapolis, IN (Lawrence North/Team Indiana) - Member of the 2007 PrepVolleyball.com "Top 50 Recruits" list for the class of 2009... Plays for the 18-1 Torros team at Team Indiana... 2007 All-County Honorable Mention... One of the top blockers in Indiana in 2007, averaging 1.8 blocks per game.

Tech head coach Bond Shymansky signed a contract extension in April that will keep him on The Flats through the 2011 season. Tech has averaged over 25 wins per season during his six year tenure. Congratulations, Coach! See story.

The Jackets won the Sports Performance Collegiate Spring Tournament 19 April in Aurora, IL. Tech beat Marshall and Michigan State in pool play before knocking off Louisville, Kansas State and St. Louis in the championship bracket. A great end to the spring season! See story.

Bailey Hunter has signed her letter of intent to play for the Jackets this fall. I had the "pleasure" of watching her Piedmont Triangle team beat Grace's A5 18 Bob team in the 18 Open Gold Bracket back at the Big South. Bailey's a good one. See story.

I missed a coach: Jennifer Randall has been on the job at the University of Pennsylvania for nearly a year now. The Quakers were 17-9 (10-4 Ivy) in her first season on the staff. Abby Showers is now an assistant coach at Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, Alabama. The Gamecocks were 18-10 last season, 15-5 in the Ohio Valley Conference, losing to Tennessee State in the semi-finals of the OVC tournament. Showers makes for five recent Tech alumnae now coaching at the college level. She joins Jayme Gergen (Virginia Tech), Laura Kuhn (Florida State), Lauren Sauer (Kentucky) and Lynnette Moster (Georgetown) on the collegiate sideline. You can find Marisa Aston (A5), Nikki Kaminskas (A5), Jacqui Beebe (A5), Lindsey Gray (Tsunami) and Talisa Kellogg (Atlanta Boom) coaching around Atlanta in the club ranks.

Talisa Kellogg made the USA Volleyball Senior A2 National Team! She joins Tech associate head coach Ben Bodipo-Memba, who was named as one of two assistant coaches for the A2 teams. The 22 players who made the A2 program will be split into two 11-member teams who will then play at the USA Volleyball Adult Open Championships 24-31 May here in Atlanta at the Georgia World Congress Center. Kellogg is the only player from the Atlantic Coast Conference on the A2 teams. See story.

Lynnette Moster has moved from Albany to Georgetown, having been hired by the Hoyas as their new assistant coach. See story.

Laura Kuhn appears to be out of a job. The AP is reporting that Florida State head coach Todd Kress was fired 8 Apr. Further word on the Internet is that the entire staff was released. There are no coaches listed at the FSU website anymore.

Erin Birmingham is transferring to New Mexico State, where she will play for the Aggies this fall. Birmingham played in 44 games last fall for the Yellow Jackets, tallying 45 kills and 34 blocks. The loss of Birmingham leaves Tech with only one middle on the roster, rising senior Callie Miller. Rising junior Brittany Roderick played middle in high school and in club, but has played primarily on the right side for Tech. See story.

The spring schedule has been announced! The Jackets will play at Alabama on 29 Mar. On 5 Apr, they will host Florida. On 12 Apr, they will have their annual Spring Tournament with guests Winthrop, Georgia State and Jacksonville State. And then they'll finish the spring 19 Apr with a trip back to the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, IL (the Chicago area) for their spring college tournament. The Jackets will have five seniors this fall: Michelle Kandell, Talisa Kellogg, Callie Miller, Allie Niekamp, and Stephanie Robbins.

The rules they are a-changin' next season. The three biggest changes are that "games" are now known as "sets", sets 1 through 4 will be played to 25 instead of 30, and the number of substitutions are reduced to 12 from 15. Just like the change to rally scoring, this will wreak havoc with the record books as college volleyball now has three "eras": sideout scoring, rally scoring to 30 and rally scoring to 25.

The gossip mill ran on overtime from time-to-time these past few weeks, ranging from talk Tech head coach Bond Shymansky interviewed with the University of Iowa to he had an offer to he was gone. While Iowa is home for him and home always has a strong pull, Bond is staying with the Yellow Jackets. The team and, I'm sure, the fans are greatly relieved. This is all part of the business side of college athletics and happens from time-to-time, and you can't begrudge anyone trying to improve their lives. The good news for us is that Bond and his staff will continue to do a great job at Tech instead of somewhere else. Whew!

The ACC is finished for 2007 as Duke and Clemson both lost at home Saturday night in the NCAA Tournament. They lost to a pair of Pac-10 teams - California and UCLA, respectively.

Uli Stegemann and Talisa Kellogg made the 2007 All-ACC team. Kellogg was named to the first team and Stegemann to the second team. See story.

Grace got a press release from Mississippi State today. She joins two other excellent players looking to make their mark on college volleyball as well.

The Jackets were snubbed by the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row. Tech made a strong case for an at-large bid, but once again were denied. Only Duke and Clemson made the tournament from the ACC. Both Duke and Clemson are hosting. My biggest complaint: 15-14 Alabama got an at large bid, but 22-10 Tech did not.

The NCAA women's volleyball tournament selection show will be this Sunday (25 Nov) at 8:00pm ET on ESPNU. Clemson owns the ACC's automatic bid. Duke should be in as well. Tech is either in or on the bubble, depending on who you talk to. With an 8-2 record over their last 10 matches and having won 22, including wins over Arkansas and Duke, as well as taking Michigan to five at their gym, I think they are in. Virginia was also a possibility, but they faded down the stretch. In the end, I think the ACC gets three this year.

Talisa Kellogg had 25 kills and Michelle Kandell had 30 digs, but it wasn't enough as Tech lost to Maryland 30-23, 25-30, 19-30, 31-29, 9-15 Friday afternoon in College Park. With the 30 digs, Kandell now has 1003 career digs. Earning her first double-double since the home Virginia match at the end of September, Lindsey Gray added a double-double of 11 kills and 13 digs. The loss ends the Jackets' 7-match winning streak. The team will now await the NCAA selections Sunday night.

Uli Stegemann pounded out a career-high 28 kills, hitting .426 and picking up 13 digs, to help Tech hold off Boston College 30-20, 23-30, 30-28, 30-32, 16-14 Friday night in Chestnut Hill. The win keeps Tech's NCAA hopes alive and, with Duke's win tonight, assures Tech of third place in the ACC for 2008. Chrissy DeMichelis added 20 kills and Michelle Kandell led Tech with 25 digs.

Grace update: She's made all-state, all-area, all-county, and honorable mention nationally as a Senior Ace so far, and now she's made the "10 more names" list in Volleyball magazine's "The Who-Dozen". Prepared by John Tawa of PrepVolleyball.com, the list brings recognition to "names you may not have heard of, but could make an impact at the collegiate level."

Senior Uli Stegemann had 16 kills, hitting .441, as Tech defeated Florida State 27-30, 30-25, 30-20, 30-27 on Senior Night in Atlanta Saturday. Senior Nikki Kaminskas had 8 kills, hitting .467, to go along with 5 aces and 3 assisted blocks. Senior Lindsey Gray added 4 kills and 6 digs. The win, coupled with Virginia's loss at Boston College, solidifies Tech's hold on third place in the conference. The Jackets could still tie for second if Duke loses out and Tech wins out, but the Jackets can finish no lower than third.

Senior Nikki Kaminskas had a career-high 15 kills, hitting .700, to go with 8 blocks to lead Tech to a 30-15, 30-18, 28-30, 30-18 win over Miami in Atlanta Friday night. Chrissy DeMichelis led the team with 16 kills, hitting .216. Michelle Kandell had 15 digs and Uli Stegemann notched a double-double with 12 kills and 11 digs.

With their win over Florida State Friday night, Clemson clinched the 2007 ACC volleyball championship and the conference's bid to the NCAA Tournament. They'll be making their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1999. Congratulations, Tigers!

Grace signed with Mississippi State Wednesday.

High school update: Grace and Lisa Carlson were named to Georgia's 2007 All-State team Saturday. The announcement was made during the All-Star match. The Players of the Year in Georgia are Courtney Fletcher (Northview, AAAAA), Mary Chaudoin (Starr's Mill, AAAA), Terakka Walker (Columbus, AAA), and Betsy Smith (Wesleyan, AA/A).

Michelle Kandell had 16 digs, giving her 538 on the season and breaking Marisa Aston's single-season digs record, as Tech downed Wake Forest 30-23, 32-30, 30-18 Friday night in Atlanta. She is one of only five players to record 500 digs in a season. Chrissy DeMichelis led the offense with 17 kills, hitting .387. The win extended Wake's losing streak to 11 matches and Tech's winning streak to four.

Callie Miller had a career-high 20 kills to go with six blocks and Talisa Kellogg added 21 kills as Tech upset #14 Duke 30-23, 30-24, 27-30, 31-29 Thursday night in Atlanta. Michelle Kandell's 18 digs tied her with Marisa Aston for Tech's single-season digs record (522). Uli Stegemann banged out 17 kills to round out the Tech hitters in double figures. Allie Niekamp's 67 assists were more than the Duke team recorded. Tech beat Duke with great passing, allowing the Jackets to go behind the setter early and often to take advantage of Duke's weakness in blocking the right side. The win solidifies Tech's hold on third place and goes a long way toward helping Clemson win the ACC title this year.

Michelle Kandell had a career-high 32 digs to help Talisa Kellogg and Chrissy DeMichelis combine for 43 kills as Tech beat Virginia 15-30, 30-27, 26-30, 30-22, 15-6 Sunday afternoon in Charlottesville. Lindsey Gray's eight-point serving run in the fifth game gave Tech a 13-3 lead, helping them cruise to victory in the final set. The win gives Tech sole possession of third place in the conference and momentum heading into the big match with Duke.

Talisa Kellogg had 23 kills and Michelle Kandell had a 27 digs as Tech held on for a 30-27, 26-30, 32-30, 31-33, 15-13 win over Virginia Tech Friday night in Blacksburg. The win helps Tech keep pace with Virginia, which upset #24 Clemson, and setting up a match to break the third-place tie on Sunday.

Talisa Kellogg had a big night with 24 kills, hitting .353, but it wasn't enough as Clemson held on to beat Tech 22-30, 30-18, 30-20, 30-27 Tuesday night in Clemson, SC. Chrissy DeMichelis added 15 kills and Michelle Kandell led the back row with 23 digs. The loss ended Tech's longest winning streak this season at four matches.

High school update: Grace and Lisa Carlson have been named Senior All-Stars and have been invited to participate in the Georgia Senior All-Star match at Wesleyan on 10 Nov at 3:30pm. 17 of the 24 All Stars played for the A5 volleyball club in Atlanta last season.

Uli Stegemann had a double-double with 19 kills and 10 digs to lead Tech to a 30-24, 30-21, 20-30, 25-30, 17-15 win over North Carolina Saturday night in Atlanta. Uli was honored with her senior night a couple weeks early as her parents were in attendance for the final time on their two-week visit to Atlanta. She responded with a great night in all aspects of the game, keeping Tech's four-match winning streak alive. Chrissy DeMichelis did her part to help with 20 kills and Michelle Kandell led the back row with 24 digs.

High school update: South Forsyth's best-ever volleyball season ended in the second round of the state tournament with a 3-game loss to Kennesaw Mountain. The team finished with a 39-10 record, the most wins ever for South Forsyth in volleyball, eclipsing last year's 27-15 mark. Grace finishes her career with 543 kills, 1200 assists, 518 digs, 307 service aces and 150 blocks. Her 307 aces rank her at #10 on Georgia's career aces list and her 1.07 aces/game rank her at #3 on the aces/game list. Lisa Carlson's Marist team lost to Woodward Academy in the quarterfinals. Landmark Christian's season ended in the second round with a loss to Holy Innocents, but Monique Mead will be back next year for her senior season.

Talisa Kellogg had 14 kills and only one error as Tech breezed by NC State 30-27, 30-18, 30-19 Friday night in Atlanta. Nearly everyone played, with Erin Birmingham getting a start in the middle. The win gave Tech their longest winning streak of the season with their third consecutive win.

High school update: Grace's South Forsyth team qualified for the state tournament Saturday. They will face Camden County at 9:00am at Roswell High School on 27 Oct. Lisa Carlson's Marist squad will play Northgate 27 Oct at 4:30pm at Woodward Academy. Landmark Christian, home of Monique Mead, will face Temple at 9:00am 27 Oct at Savannah Christian. Marist and Woodstock will host the Final Fours on 3 Nov.

Talisa Kellogg had 19 kills, hitting .500, and Callie Miller added 11 as Tech beat Boston College 30-21, 33-31, 30-28 Saturday night in Atlanta to cap off Homecoming 2007 at Tech. Michelle Kandell led the defense with 15 digs.

The Jackets reached down for 74 digs to help raise over $6000 on Dig For The Cure night at the O'Keefe Gym as Tech beat Maryland 30-21, 22-30, 30-24, 28-30, 15-10 Friday night. Michelle Kandell, Allie Niekamp, and Jordan McCullers each tallied 17 digs and Uli Stegemann added 9. The 17 digs were career-highs for Niekamp and McCullers. Chrissy DeMichelis led the offense with a career-high 22 kills, hitting .211.

Talisa Kellogg had 19 kills, hitting .372, and Chrissy DeMichelis added 18 kills as Tech beat Wake Forest 30-19, 30-27, 28-30, 30-18 Saturday night in Winston-Salem. Tech had four players with double-digit kills and four other players with double-digit digs. Nikki Kaminskas had 12 kills, hitting .556, to go with 7 blocks, while Callie Miller finished with 10 kills. Michelle Kandell led the back row with 23 digs - her 9th 20+ dig effort this season. Lindsey Gray and Uli Stegemann each had 13 digs and Jordan McCullers reached down for 11. The Tech defense held Wake to a .171 hitting percentage while Allie Niekamp directed an offense that hit .270 for the night. Tech returns home to face Clemson and their 11-match winning streak on Tuesday night.

Tech won the first two games and had a 7-5 lead in the fifth game, but #13 Duke rebounded for a 28-30, 31-33, 30-25, 30-22, 15-12 win Friday night in Durham. Chrissy DeMichelis and Uli Stegemann had 17 kills each to lead the Tech offense. Stegemann ended up with a double-double, adding 14 digs. Talisa Kellogg added 13 kills and Callie Miller banged out 11 kills to round out the hitters in double-figures. Michelle Kandell led the back row with 23 digs while Jordan McCullers added a career-high 15 digs.

Chrissy DeMichelis took advantage of a lineup change to bang out 16 kills and four blocks to lead the Jackets to a 30-24, 24-30, 30-27, 30-19 win over Miami in Coral Gables Sunday afternoon. Uli Stegemann added 13 kills, hitting .207, with 10 digs. Allie Niekamp also had a double-double with 36 assists and 10 digs. Michelle Kandell led the defense with 17 digs.

The Jackets lost at Florida State 21-30, 30-32, 30-20, 24-30 Friday night. Callie Miller had 12 kills and hit .550 while Talisa Kellogg led the team with 13 kills.

Talisa Kellogg had 18 kills and Uli Stegemann added 11 as Tech bounced back from their loss Friday to beat Virginia Tech 30-25, 16-30, 30-28, 31-29 Saturday night in Atlanta. Michelle Kandell led the defense with 14 digs. Lindsey Gray just missed extending her double-double streak to five matches with 9 kills and 10 digs.

The Jackets won the first two games, but Virginia came back to win the next three as Tech fell to the Cavaliers 30-16, 30-22, 25-30, 30-32, 12-15 Friday night in Atlanta. Tech was in control of the first two games, but Virginia's adjustments, particularly switching from a 6-2 to a 5-1 with freshman setter Kelly Irvin allowed their offense to get back in sync. Callie Miller and Uli Stegemann led Tech with 15 kills each. Talisa Kellogg had 14 kills while Lindsey Gray picked up her fourth double-double in a row with 10 kills and 16 digs. Nikki Kaminskas led at the net with 10 blocks. Michelle Kandell tied her career-high with 28 digs. Brittany Roderick had a career night with 9 kills, hitting .316, along with 3 assists, 4 digs and 5 blocks. Allie Niekamp returned to action for the first time in a month, posting a double-double with 30 assists and 13 digs and Mash Tippins also rang up a double-double with 25 assists and 12 digs.

PrepVolleyball.com announced their 2008 Senior Aces. Ashley Beyer clocked in at #70 and Bailey Hunter landed at #72. Seven players from Georgia are on the various lists (1-100, 101-250, 250-300), six of them play for the A5 Volleyball Club in Atlanta. Betsy Smith (Florida) of Wesleyan was #26. Starr's Mill setter Mary Chaudoin (Indiana) was listed at #61. Northview middle Courtney Fletcher (Michigan) was #75. Both McIntosh middles, Elyse Chubb (College of Charleston) and Leigh Moyer (Alabama) made the 101-250 list. Grace (Mississippi State) got listed along with Northview libero Kari Bardis (Arizona) on the 250-300 list. All but Chubb (who plays for Tsunami) played at A5 last season and could end up on the same team at A5 next spring. If you live anywhere near Atlanta and can play volleyball at an elite level as a high school player, you need to be playing at A5.

Uli Stegemann had 19 kills, breaking the 1000-kill mark for her career, and Nikki Kaminskas had 10 kills, hitting .714, as Tech won a hard fought 30-20, 31-29, 33-35, 30-26 over North Carolina in Chapel Hill Friday night. Mash Tippins doled out a career-high 65 assists, leading the Tech offense to a season-high 77 kills. Michelle Kandell anchored the back row with 24 digs and Lindsey Gray picked up another double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs.

Virginia beat FSU 3-1 Thursday night behind a school-record 23 team blocks (2 solo, 42 assisted). Katie Oakes had a double-double of 12 kills and 14 block assists. Setter Marlow Bruneau had 10 block assists to go with her 21 assists (Virginia runs a two-setter system in which Bruneau is the front-row setter).

Three players had double-doubles, Nikki Kaminskas had a career-high 11 block assists, and Michelle Kandell had a career-high 28 digs, but #10 Michigan held on for a 17-30, 30-24, 30-32, 30-25, 15-12 defeat of the Jackets Saturday night in Ann Arbor. Lindsey Gray's 20 kills and 17 digs were her second double-double of the year. Talisa Kellogg had 19 kills and 12 digs for her third double-double of 2007, and Uli Stegemann notched her first with 15 kills and 16 digs. We battled hard in one of our best team performances of this young season - stunning the host Wolverines in the first game and were tied at 11 in the fifth - but Michigan was able to pull out the home victory.

Uli Stegemann (12 kills, .400 hit) and Talisa Kellogg (12 kills, .132 hit) provided the offense while Lindsey Gray (15 digs) and Michelle Kandell (21 digs) provided the defense as Tech rolled past Utah Valley State 30-28, 30-24, 30-21 in Ann Arbor Friday night. Callie Miller rolled box cars with 6 kills and 6 block assists.

Callie Miller had 9 kills, hitting .818, and Lindsey Gray added 8 as Tech breezed past Temple 30-14, 30-16, 30-22 Friday afternoon in Ann Arbor, MI. Brittany Roderick played two games and picked up 6 kills, while Stephanie Robbins collected 7 digs in her two games. Temple had previously taken Virginia and Maryland to four games in playing tough matches against ACC opponents.

Talisa Kellogg had 20 kills, surpassing the 1000-kill mark for her career (1004 by my count), and Chrissy DeMichelis added 16, but it wasn't enough as Tech fell to Kentucky 33-31, 29-31, 26-30, 22-30 Saturday night in Atlanta. Kellogg was also named to the all-tournament team.

Talisa Kellogg had 13 kills and Michelle Kandell had 11 digs, but Tech lost to Arizona 27-30, 13-30, 15-30 Saturday morning in Atlanta. The Wildcat block was too big, tallying 16 team blocks, and their hitters too strong, finishing with a .400 hitting percentage, for the Jackets to overcome.

Chrissy DeMichelis had a career-high 20 kills and Michelle Kandell reached out for a career-high 24 digs as the Jackets beat Georgia 29-31, 30-24, 30-28, 30-26 Friday night in Atlanta. It was the ninth win for Tech in their last 10 matches against the Bulldogs since the 1998 season.

Talisa Kellogg had 14 kills, hitting .500, and Callie Miller added 10 kills (.625 hit) to lead Tech over Western Carolina 30-18, 30-17, 30-16 Friday morning in Atlanta. The match was also Mash Tippins first start, as she replaced the ailing Allie Niekamp. Tippins finished with 42 assists, getting the Jackets into a good rhythm offensively. Michelle Kandel led the defense with 9 digs.

Tech won the first game but lost the next three as they lost to West Coast Conference power Pepperdine 30-23, 16-30, 16-30, 26-30 Saturday afternoon in Fayetteville, AR. Tech finished the Arkansas Invitational at 2-1. Talisa Kellogg led the team with 13 kills and Lindsey Gray added 10. Setter Allie Niekamp picked up her first double-double with 33 assists and 10 digs.

The Jackets came away with two great wins Friday at the Arkansas Invitiational. Talisa Kellogg had 17 kills and Michelle Kandell had a career-high 17 digs as Tech beat Pittsburgh 30-28, 26-30, 30-24, 30-27 in the first match. Tech returned to Barnhill Arena for the nightcap, beating host Arkansas 30-21, 30-23, 21-30, 30-25 to go 2-0 on the day and the season. Lindsey Gray notched her first double-double of 2007 with 13 kills and 11 digs. Kellogg also picked up a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs. Kandell rang up another career-high with 23 digs.

Pittsburgh is expected to finish fourth in the Big East behind Notre Dame, Louisville and St. John's, according to the Big East preseason coaches' poll. Senior Diana Andreyko and sophomore Meagan Dooley made the All-Big East Preseason Team. Arkansas was picked third in the SEC West by the conference's coaches. Alabama and LSU are expected to top the division. The Razorbacks lost both outsides and both middles to graduation last year, so they have the most to replace of the teams Tech will face this weekend. Pepperdine finished at the top of the West Coast Conference's preseason poll. The Waves' head coach Nina Matthies is starting her 25th season with Pepperdine this weekend.

The Jackets received 3 votes in the pre-season AVCA coaches' poll. Duke, which came in ranked #18, is the only other ACC school mentioned in the poll. Early Tech opponents Pepperdine, Arizona, Kentucky and Michigan also received votes.

Fan Photo Day was Saturday, 18 Aug at the O'Keefe Gym. It included an intra-squad scrimmage and an opportunity for the kids to get autographs. See story.

My thanks to the North Metro Georgia Tech Club folks for mentioning Grace's verbal commitment to Mississippi State during the news portion of the Lunch Bunch yesterday. The North Metro club has been a strong supporter of volleyball on WREK. If you are a Tech alum in Atlanta's north metro area, this group deserves your active participation and support.

Ben Bodipo-Memba has been promoted to Associate Head Coach -- a well-deserved promotion. Congratulations, Coach Ben! See story.

The coaches have voted and the Jackets picked up two first place votes to finish second in the ACC's preseason poll. Tech landed behind Duke, last year's conference winner, who, like Tech, returns most of their 2006 squad. Lindsey Gray and Uli Stegemann made the preseason All-ACC team. The preseason rankings:

#	Team	Pts	2006 Finish
1	Duke (10)	142	29-4 1st
2	Georgia Tech (2)	123	20-12 5th
3	Virginia	116	23-8 2nd
4	Clemson	113	20-10 3rd
5	Florida State	95	19-12 4th
6	North Carolina	72	11-20 10th
7	Virginia Tech	68	17-14 6th
8	Wake Forest	68	14-17 7th
9	Maryland	51	13-18 11th
10	Miami	45	12-19 9th
11	Boston College	32	12-19 8th
12	NC State	14	2-29 12th

Preseason All-ACC
Player	Team
Jeannette Abbott	Clemson
Briana Berry	Florida State
Jade Brown	Maryland
Carrie DeMange	Duke
Didem Ege	Clemson
Beth Gillming	Maryland
Lindsey Gray	Georgia Tech
Ali Hausefeld	Duke
Danielle Hepburn	Clemson
Sarah Kirkwood	Virginia
Ciara Michel	Miami
Rachael Moss	Duke
Natalie Mullikin	Wake Forest
Katie Oaks	Virginia
Taylor Parrish	Virginia Tech
Jenny Shull	Duke
Uli Stegemann	Georgia Tech
Makini Thompson	Florida State

The 2007 season is getting closer! Practice starts today (8 Aug) with two-a-days until 18 Aug, which is Volleyball Fan Photo Day. Warm-ups will start at 10am with a scrimmage from 11-noon, See story.

The results from JOs in Minneapolis: A5 18 Bob finished 9th in the 18 National division, winning the Silver Bracket. Lisa Carlson had 21 digs in one of the matches, a big number for a club volleyball match (best of 3 to 25), especially since none of the games went past "regulation". Mash Tippins had 39 assists in the same match as we played a team that did not commit errors and made us earn every point. The Illini Elite finished 19th in the 18 National division, losing in the opening round of the Bronze Bracket. Piedmont Triad finished fifth in the 17 National division, losing in the opening round of the Gold Bracket. Minnesota Select finished third in the 16 American division, losing in the semifinals of the Gold Bracket. Tia Gaffen made the 16 American All-Tournament team. Here are links to the full results for teams of interest:

A5 18 Bob (Mash Tippins, Lisa Carlson, Grace)

Illini Elite 18 Cardinal (Ashley Beyer)

Piedmont Triad 17 (Bailey Hunter)

Minnesota Select 16-1 (Tia Gaffen)

Tech has officially released their 2007 schedule. I've updated my version. The schedule is also available in ICal and RSS formats as well as a public Google Calendar. The non-conference schedule features trips to Arkansas and Michigan as well as visits from Kentucky, Georgia and Arizona. Sadly, no room for Georgia State this year.

Here are some results from the AAU Volleyball Championships in Orlando, where several Tech recruits are playing: A5 Mizuno 18 Bob, home of Mash Tippins, Lisa Carlson and Grace, finished 2-1 on the first day, 2-1 on the second day, and 2-2 on the third day, but lost in the first round of the 18 Open Championship Bracket to finish tied for 5th out of 34 teams. Ashley Beyer's Illini Elite 18 Cardinal went 3-0, then 1-2, then 2-1, then lost to OVA in the first round of the 18 Open Classic Bracket to finish tied for 13th out of 34 teams. Bailey Hunter's Piedmont Triad finished 3-0, then 1-2, then 3-0, then lost in the semi-finals of the 17 Open Classic Bracket to finish tied for 11th out of 35 teams.

If y'all will indulge some personal news, my daughter Grace committed verbally to play volleyball at Mississippi State starting in the fall of 2008. There are a lot of people at Tech who have helped Grace along in her volleyball development either by instruction (and medical attention :-) at camp or by inspiration from their play. Grace can compete for the setting job as a freshman at State and will have a great career in Starkeville. My thanks to all in the Georgia Tech family who've been a part of her journey!

Now that the team has been home for a couple weeks, head coach Bond Shymansky reflects on the team's trip to Europe.

Uli Stegemann wraps up the trip as she and her teammates visit her home in postcard #7.

Erin Birmingham reports on the trip to Berlin in postcard #6.

Callie Miller and Michelle Kandell team up for postcard #5.

The DeMichelis sisters, Laura and Chrissy bring you postcard #4.

Jordan McCullers and Brittany Roderick are next with postcard #3.

The second postcard from Germany has arrived. This time, it's Talisa Kellogg reporting.

Check the schedule page for new links that provide schedule information for your calendar program (like Outlook) or an RSS feed of the schedule, so you can stay up-to-date on schedule changes as they happen over the summer. Thanks to faithful reader Adam C. for the suggestion!

PrepVolleyball.com has ranked the 2007 recruiting classes and Tech's class was listed in the "Highest Honorable Mention" part of the list. For the rest of the ACC, Miami's class was ranked the highest at 26. Boston College came in at 28 (they'll have six freshman in 2007). Virginia and Wake Forest were listed with Tech under "Highest Honorable Mention." Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina and Virginia Tech earned a "High Honorable Mention" rating. NC State, which will have nine (yes, nine) new players, earned "Honorable Mention."

Congratulations to the Georgia Tech tennis team on winning the Jackets' first ever NCAA team championship in any sport! See story. This is what our local "newspaper" had to say about it alongside the UGA men's tennis team winning the men's championship.

Schedule details are starting to leak out from our 2007 opponents. I've posted what I have so far (click the 2007 schedule link on the left). We open the season on the road in Fayetteville, AK 24 Aug against Pittsburgh, then Arkansas, and then on the 25th against Pepperdine. Arizona, Kentucky and Western Carolina, who will be in town the weekend of 7-8 Sep (when Samford visits to play football) for what should be a great volleyball weekend. Home football weekend opponents include Virginia and Virginia Tech (when Clemson comes to town 29 Sep), Maryland and Boston College (when Army visits 20 Oct), and finally Miami and Florida State (when we play North Carolina on 17 Nov). More details as they become available.

The team arrived safely in Germany and Lindsey Gray has the story from Frankfurt and Heidelburg.

Uli Stegemann finally gets a home trip: The Georgia Tech volleyball team is in Europe until 1 June, touring Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic while playing various teams. Here is their playing schedule:

5:00pm 19 May - vs. German Junior National Team at Heidelberg

3:00pm 20 May - vs. German Junior National Team at Heidelberg

7:00pm 22 May - vs. Salzburg Division II at Salzburg

7:00pm 23 May - vs. Munich (Lohhof) Division II at Munich

7:00pm 26 May - vs. Chemnitz Kangaroos Division II at Chemnitz

5:00pm 29 May - vs. German Youth National Team at Berlin

5:00pm 30 May - vs. German Youth National Team at Berlin

See story.

Tech is loading up on defensive specialists from the Atlanta area. Lisa Carlson, libero for Marist High School (the 2006 Georgia AAAA state champions), will roam the back row on The Flats starting in 2008. She also plays libero for the A5 Mizuno 18 Bob team for which Mash and Grace also play.

The Jackets got an early start on recruiting the 2009 class when they got a verbal commitment from Tia Gaffen, a 6'2" middle from Wayzata, MN (a suburb of Minneapolis). She plays for the Minnesota Select 16-1 club team, which will compete in the American division at JOs this July.

Mash Tippins' (and Grace's) A5 18 Bob team won the SRVA 18 Power regional championship this past weekend, earning a National bid to the USAV Championships this summer in Minneapolis. The team will start play on 3 July and finish 6 July. Ashley Beyer's Illini Elite 18 Cardinal team placed second in the Great Lakes regional championship, earning an American bid. Bailey Hunter's Piedmont Triad 17 National team won the Club Division of the Colorado Crossroads Qualifier back in March to earn a National bid.

Lauren Sauer has a new job as an assistant coach at the University of Kentucky after playing volleyball overseas last season. I'm sure she'll be hitting the recruiting trail this summer. See story.

It's been a long time coming: Tech announced the signing of Mary Ashley Tippins to a letter of intent to play volleyball at Tech starting this fall. See story.

It's official now -- Tech has hired Jennifer Carey as an assistant coach, replacing Sally Polhamus, who left to take over the program at Winthrop. Carey comes to Tech after spending the last two seasons as the Director of Volleyball Operations at Texas A&M. A setter and right-side hitter at the University of Hawaii (1999-2003), she ranks fourth on Hawaii's all time assist list (3540) and was named to the All-WAC team three times. She played professionally in Germany in 2004 before returning home to Newport Beach, CA to coach with the Saddleback Valley Volleyball Club, where she formerly played. She was named to the Texas A&M staff in July 2005. See story.

Mash Tippins and Jordan McCullers have been named AVCA High School All-Americans. See story.

The Palladium-Item of Richmond, IN, reports that Lynnette Moster will be inducted into Union County High School's hall of fame Friday (16 Feb) night. She'll then move on to Albany, NY to take her new post as an assistant coach with the Great Danes of Albany. She hopes to be a head coach at the college level someday. Congratulations and good luck, Lynette!

Jordan McCullers, Mary Ashley Tippins and Bailey Hunter have been named 2006 High School All-Americans by PrepVolleyball.com.

Mary Ashley Tippins has been named a finalist for PrepVolleyball.com's Andi Collins Award, given each year to the top senior setter. She made Volleyball magazine's high school All-American second team. She is also the Gatorade Player of the Year in Georgia for 2006 and ranked #74 on PrepVolleyball.com's Senior Aces list.

Georgia Tech assistant coach Sally Polhamus has been named the head coach at Winthrop University, taking over for Joel McCartney, who left earlier this month to take over the program at the University of Georgia. She'll start in Rock Hill on 22 Jan. Congratulations, Sally! We'll miss you in Atlanta, but we all know you'll do a great job for the Eagles. See story.

Jordan McCullers graduated from high school in December and is now a student at Tech. She bleeds White and Gold as she is the daughter of former Georgia Tech women's basketball player Paula McKenzie McCullers. She will work out with the team this spring. Welcome, Jordan! See story.

Bailey Hunter is a national junior-of-the-year candidate and listed as a Top 50 junior recruit at PrepVolleyball.com. Ashley Beyer is also a Top 50 recruit.

Make that two commitments now for the 2008 class. Bailey Hunter, a 6'1" outside hitter from Hendersonville, North Carolina, made a verbal commitment to Tech just after Thanksgiving. She grew up following the career of former North Carolina hitter Molly Piles, but chose Tech over several other top volleyball programs. She plays for the same club that produced former Tech player Nicole Pierce. Hunter on Tech: ÒThe team chemistry is the best chemistry IÕd seen from any college I watched, and I visited a lot of schools,Ó Welcome, Bailey! See story.

The Jackets have their first verbal commitment for the 2008 season. Ashley Beyer, a 5'11" outside hitter from Bloomington, Illinois, made a verbal commitment to Tech this past week. She's a hard worker in addition to being a very good hitter and passer. She will likely set her high school's career digs record next season as a senior. Welcome, Ashley! See story.

Uli Stegemann has been named to the AVCA All-Region team for the East Region. 11 of the 12 players on the East Region team come from the ACC. See story.

Mary Ashley Tippins has been named the Northside and Dekalb/Rockdale Player of the Year by the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Northside and Dekalb/Rockdale editions, respectively. She was also named to the All-Northside and All-Dekalb/Rockdale first teams. Grace made the All-Northside second team. See story.

Jordan McCullers has been named the Cobb Player of the Year by the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Cobb edition. She was also named to the All-Cobb first team. See story.

San Diego beat Duke in 5 Saturday in Knoxville, ending the 2006 volleyball season for the ACC. See story.

Duke beat Tennessee in four Friday night in Knoxville to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. They will face San Diego Saturday afternoon at 5 in Knoxville. It was the first time Tennessee has ever lost an NCAA Tournament match at home. See story.

Uli Stegemann and Lindsey Gray were named to All-ACC teams for 2006. Uli made the first team -- her third All-ACC honor. Lindsey made the second team -- her first All-ACC honor. See story.

The ACC received only one bid to the NCAA Tournament -- conference champion Duke. The Blue Devils are in the Gainesville Region and will start the tournament in Knoxville, TN along with Tennessee, Jacksonville State and #16 seed San Diego. The matches will start at 5:00pm 1 Dec and then the two winners will play at 5:00pm 2 Dec, all played in the Stokely Athletics Center. Saturday's winner moves on to Gainesville, FL the next weekend.

Abby Showers had 13 digs on her Senior Night, but the Jackets fell to Virginia in three Saturday night in Atlanta in the final match of the 2006 season. Talisa Kellogg had 15 kills and Lindsey Gray finished with 12 kills and 10 digs for her 17th double-double of the year. See story.

Talisa Kellogg had a season-high 23 kills, hitting .435, and Lindsey Gray notched her 16th double-double, her fifth in a row, with 15 kills and 14 digs, but it wasn't enough as Virginia Tech snapped the Jackets' nine-match winning streak with a 34-32, 22-30, 30-25, 30-19 win in Atlanta Friday night. It was Georgia Tech's first loss since a five-game defeat at Virginia back on 21 Oct. The Jackets will try to avenge that loss Saturday night as they celebrate Abby Showers' senior night. Tech will finish either tied for fourth with Florida State or in fifth place. See story.

Lindsey Gray is the ACC Player of the Week for the week of 20 Nov 2006. It's the first time in her career that Gray has been the ACC Player of the Week and the fifth time this season that a Yellow Jacket has won the honor. See story.

Grace update: She won her team's MVP award for the 2006 season and made the All-County team for Forsyth County, Georgia.

How we get to third place: First, we must win both matches this weekend against Virginia Tech and Virginia to finish at 14-8 in the ACC (22-10 overall). We then need Florida State to lose to either Wake Forest or Duke this week, which will drop FSU to 9 losses, putting them behind us into fifth place. And then we need Virginia Tech and Virginia to beat Clemson to drop them to 9 losses, putting the Tigers into a tie for fourth with FSU. One loss by the Tigers would put us in a tie for third with them. Should we make third place, then the NCAA discussions will heat up since the Jackets will have an 11-match winning streak going, and how you finish can be a significant factor to the selection committee. Clemson can still finish in a tie for second with Virginia if the Tigers win out and they beat Virginia along with us, so we all still have a lot to play for with three ACC teams battling for what may be only one or two spots in the Big Dance.

Lindsey Gray recorded her 15th double-double (and fourth in a row) with 16 kills and 20 digs to lead Tech to a 30-21, 26-30, 30-15, 26-30, 15-8 victory over Maryland Saturday night in Atlanta. The win is the ninth straight for the Yellow Jackets and moved Tech into a tie for fourth place with Florida State with two matches remaining. If the Jackets wins out, they could finish in third place and get strong consideration for the NCAA Volleyball Tournament -- an amazing comeback after losing their first six ACC matches. Abby Showers led the defense with 22 digs. Talisa Kellogg had 14 kills, Callie Miller had 13 (hitting .500), and Uli Stegemann had 12 (with 9 digs) to round out the Yellow Jackets with double-figure kills. Nikki Kaminskas led the blocking with six. Maryland dropped to 1-10 on the road in the ACC this season. See story.

Lindsey Gray had 21 kills and Abby Showers reached 1000 career digs as Tech beat Boston College 33-35, 30-27, 30-17, 30-25 Friday night in Atlanta to extend their winning streak to eight matches. Talisa Kellogg added 18 kills and Uli Stegemann 10. Gray also had 13 digs for her 14th double-double. See story.

Lindsey Gray set another career-high with 27 digs and led the offense with 18 kills as Tech won it's seventh match in a row, beating Clemson 28-30, 30-26, 24-30, 31-29, 15-9 Tuesday night in Atlanta. Uli Stegemann had 17 kills and 18 digs for her fourth double-double of the season, while Chrissy DeMichelis returned to the floor for a career-high 17 kills, hitting .265. Allie Niekamp handed out a career-high 64 assists, and Abby Showers and Michelle Kandell added 18 digs and 10 digs, respectively. See story.

High school update: It was announced Saturday that Jordan McCullers is the class AAAAA Player of the Year and Mary Ashley Tippins is the class AAAA Player of the Year.

Club update: Grace made the 18-Bob team at A5 this year and will be a club teammate of Mary Ashley Tippins, playing for Bob Westbrook.

Lindsey Gray had a career-high 25 kills and a career-high 20 digs to lead the Jackets to a come-from-behind 24-30, 20-30, 30-13, 30-20, 15-12 victory over North Carolina in Chapel Hill Sunday afternoon. The Jackets were big on defense with Abby Showers posting a career-high 28 digs and Uli Stegemann added a career-high 23 digs as five players finished with double-digit digs and the team finished with a season-high 104 digs. Tech closes its ACC road schedule with a 5-6 record. Four of the losses came during the opening six-match losing streak. See story.

Lindsey Gray had 16 kills and hit .351 while Abby Showers had 12 digs to lead the Jackets to a 30-23, 30-21, 30-27 victory over North Carolina State Friday night in Raleigh. Callie Miller added 9 kills. Uli Stegemann and Talisa Kellogg each had 8 kills. Michelle Kandell, Gray and Stegemann each had 9 digs. Allie Niekamp dished out 38 assists to go with 5 kills and 7 digs. Tech has now won five in a row and eight of their last 10 to even the ACC record at 8-8. See story.

Uli Stegemann is the ACC Player of the Week for the week of 6 Nov, along with Wake Forest's Jessica Furlong. Uli had a season-high 19 kills at Miami to go with a career-high six assists and then added 10 kills, hitting .444, in the win at Florida State. See story.

Callie Miller, Talisa Kellogg, and Lindsey Gray each had 13 kills to lead a balanced Tech attack over Florida State 27-30, 30-26, 30-25, 30-26 Sunday afternoon in Tallahassee. Gray notched her 11th double-double with 10 digs to go with the 13 kills, her fourth in a row. The win extends Tech's winning streak to four matches and the Jackets are now 7-2 since opening ACC play at 0-6. See story.

High school update: The state championships in Georgia are over. In the combined class A/AA, Wesleyan defeated Lovett 25-12, 25-18, 25-14 to take the title. In AAA, Blessed Trinity came back to beat Westminster 20-25, 23-25, 27-25, 25-11, 15-13 in a bit of an upset. In AAAA, Mary Ashley Tippins' Marist team defeated Starr's Mill 31-29, 25-11, 25-21. And in AAAAA, Jordan McCullers' Harrison squad defeated Lassiter 22-25, 26-24, 26-24, 25-13. Congratulations to the champions and all the teams that participated!

Talisa Kellogg had 20 kills and Uli Stegemann added 19, hitting .424, as Tech beat Miami in five Friday afternoon in Coral Gables. Lindsey Gray recorded her 10th double-double with 16 kills and 10 digs while ACC Plaoyer of the Week Callie Miller finished with 11 kills, four blocks and an assist. Tech now has a three-match winning streak going, their longest in conference play this year, and have won six of their last eight. See story.

High school update: Tonight's semifinals in AAAAA will be played at Marietta High School. Lassiter faces Pope at 5:00pm and Harrison meets Etowah at 7:00pm. In AAAA at Marist, it's Woodward Academy vs. Starr's Mill at 5:00pm and Marist vs. Dutchtown at 7:00pm. In AAA at Marist, it's Blessed Trinity vs. Sandy Creek at 5:00pm and Westminster vs. Columbus at 7:00pm. In A/AA at Lovett, it's Walker vs. Lovett at 5:00pm and Wesleyan vs. Decatur at 7:00pm.

Callie Miller has been named the ACC Player of the Week for 30 Oct. She tied a career-high with 18 kills over Duke last Friday, hitting .412 with six blocks. For the weekend, she hit .345 and averaged 3.00 kills per game and 1.11 blocks per game. See story.

Lindsey Gray had career-high 21 kills, along with 15 digs, and Talisa Kellogg added 19, hitting .326, to lead the Jackets to a 30-25, 30-27, 25-30, 30-25 victory over Wake Forest in Atlanta Saturday night. The win by Tech extends Wake's losing streak to four matches and gives Tech it's second home weekend sweep in a row. Abby Showers had 13 digs and Allie Niekamp notched her third double-double in a row with 54 assists and 12 digs. Gray and Niekamp now have 9 double-doubles each on the season. See story.

High school update: Jordan McCullers' Harrison team beat Peachtree Ridge, Houston County and then Northview Saturday to earn a spot in the AAAAA Final Four Thurdsay night. Mary Ashley Tippins' Marist squad cruised to the AAAA Final Four, beating Sequoyah to get there. Grace's South Forsyth team lost to Pope in the first round, but Pope then went on to earn a spot in the AAAAA Final Four. The Final Fours for Georgia this year: In AAAAA - Lassiter, Pope, Harrison and Etowah. In AAAA - Marist, Woodward, Dutchtown and Starr's Mill. In AAA - Sandy Creek, Westminster, Columbus and Blessed Trinity. In the combined AA and A classification - Walker, Decatur, Wesleyan and Lovett. The AAAA and AA/A semifinals are at Marist Thursday night. The AAA and AAAAA semifinals are at Lovett Thursday night. The finals for all classifications are at Marietta High School on Saturday, 4 Nov.

Callie Miller tied a career-high with 18 kills and Abby Showers had a career-high 26 digs to lead the Jackets to a stunning, come-from-behind 23-30, 30-27, 15-30, 30-28, 24-22 win over #25 Duke Friday night in Atlanta. The win ended Duke's 19-match ACC winning streak and ruined Duke first national ranking in 12 years. Duke was up 14-3 in game four, but the Jackets chipped away at the lead, finally tying the Blue Devils at 27 before kills by Miller and Gray forced game five. Tech had match-point at 14-12, but then Duke scored three straight points to take a 15-14 lead and the teams battled back and forth before Miller ended the match with her 18th kill. Tech had 5 match points in game five and Duke had 6 in a game with 19 ties and 19 lead changes. Three other Jackets finished with double-digit kills: Talisa Kellogg and Uli Stegeman had 14 each, while Lindsey Gray added 10, including 5 in game five, plus 16 digs for her 8th double-double of the year. Allie Niekamp also recorded her eighth double-double with 59 assists and 13 digs. Michelle Kandell was big in the back row with 14 digs. Tech finished with 80 total digs, raising several thousand dollars for the Susan G. Komen Foundation. See story.

Duke is now ranked #25 in the AVCA coaches' poll. Duke was last in the poll back in 1994. Their highest rank ever is #17 and they hit that mark the week of 1 Nov 1994. We need a full gym Friday night to help us beat the Blue Devils. Be sure to make Tech volleyball part of your homecoming weekend plans.

Schedule note: Saturday's match against Wake Forest will now start at 8:00pm instead of 7:00pm due to the football start time of 3:30pm. Be sure to head over to O'Keefe after the game for this key ACC volleyball match.

High school update: Mary Ashley Tippins' Marist team won their area tournament without losing a single game. They play Alexander 10:30am Saturday in the sectionals at McIntosh. Harrison High School, home of Jordan McCullers, won their area tournament and faces Peachtree Ridge 9:00am Saturday at Parkview. Grace's South Forsyth squad faces Pope (Katie Mohs' alma mater), who won their tournament by upsetting #1 Lassiter, Saturday at noon at Parkview.

Tech fought hard all night, but fell short at Virginia in five Saturday night. Talisa Kellogg had 14 kills while Uli Stegemann added 12 and Callie Miller 11. Abby Showers had a season-high 21 digs as four Tech players recorded double-digit digs, including Allie Niekamp who had a career-high 17 digs to go with her 47 assists. Nikki Kaminskas had 8 blocks on the night. See story.

A total team effort from the Jackets Friday night in Blacksburg led to a 30-26, 30-20, 30-26 victory over Virginia Tech. Callie Miller, Uli Stegemann and Talisa Kellogg each had 10 kills. Abby Showers led the defense with 18 digs, Michelle Kandell added 11, and Stegemann had 10. Nikki Kaminskas was big at the net with 5 blocks. Allie Niekamp had 35 assists plus 5 kills and 7 digs. It's the first road win for Tech this season. See story.

Talisa Kellogg had 17 kills and Lindsey Gray added 16, but it wasn't enough as Clemson downed Tech in three Tuesday night in Clemson. The Jackets played Clemson fairly close all night long, but gave up scoring runs in each game that they couldn't overcome, especially when Clemson started blocking better after the first game. Defensively, Abby Showers had 18 digs and Michelle Kandel 14. See story.

High school update: Grace's team qualified for the state sectionals Saturday night. It's South Forsyth's first trip to the state tournament in class AAAAA. Her team will face #1 Lassiter on 28 Oct. Jordan McCullers' Harrison squad is current ranked #3 in class AAAAA. Their area tournament starts this Thursday at North Cobb High School. Mary Ashley Tippens' Marist team is ranked #1 in class AAAA. Their area tournament continues at St. Pius on Tuesday and Thursday.

Callie Miller's 10 kills led a balanced offense as the Jackets swept NC State 30-20, 30-22, 30-18 Saturday night in Atlanta. Everyone played and everyone contributed as Tech beat the Wolfpack for the 13th time in a row. Tech is now 27-2 against NC State since Tech first beat NC State back in 1991. See story.

Talisa Kellogg had 15 kills, hitting .355, and Lindsey Gray had 13 kills and 18 digs to lead Tech past North Carolina 30-15, 30-27, 30-28. The win ends Tech's six-game losing streak -- their worst ACC start since 1990 -- and continues the Tar Heels' woes as they are facing their worst season since 1997. Allie Niekamp notched a double-double with 43 assists and 11 digs. Both Niekamp and Gray have double-doubles in each of Tech's last three matches. North Carolina senior Amy Beaver, of Powder Springs, GA, recorded 11 kills and a block in her final match at the O'Keefe Gym. See story.

At the Duke match on 27 Oct, the volleyball team is participating in "Dig for the Cure" along with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation to raise money for that organization's support of breast cancer research. Pledges can be given at this weekend's matches. You can pledge a certain amount per dig we record against Duke or you can make a flat donation. I'm pledging $1 per dig and I urge everyone who visits this site regularly to join me. For those of you into the numbers, Tech is averaging right about 14 digs per game, so the "Doller Per Dig" pledge will run you about $50 to $80, depending on the length of the match (we had 72 digs at Duke earlier this year). My sister is a breast cancer survivor and both a supporter and a beneficiary of the Komen Foundation's work. See story.

The struggle continues as Tech dropped a four-game match to Boston College 26-30, 21-30, 30-26, 25-30 in Chestnut Hill Sunday afternoon. The Jackets are on a six-match losing streak, all in ACC matches, falling to 8-8 on the season. Talisa Kellogg led the way with 15 kills. Lindsey Gray, Uli Stegemann and Allie Niekamp all recorded double-doubles. See story.

The only thing that came easy for Tech at Maryland Friday night was the 30-16 win in game one. After that, the Terrapins came back to win three of the next four to take a five-game win over the Jackets. Atlantan Jade Brown led Maryland with 23 kills. For Tech, Talisa Kellogg had 21 kills, while Allie Niekamp had her third double-double and Lindsey Gray her fifth. The loss extends Tech's losing streak to five matches. Tech will try to right the ship Sunday afternoon at Boston College. See story.

With a four-game loss to Miami (30-27, 21-30, 27-30, 28-30) Saturday night in Atlanta, the Jackets are 0-4 to start ACC play for the first time since 1990. Tech had players putting up some good individual numbers: Talisa Kellogg had 18 kills and Uli Stegemann added 17. Abby Showers tied a career-high with 20 digs. Callie Miller had 10 blocks. Nikki Kaminskas came off the bench to record 8 blocks in two games. But it wasn't enough of a team effort to finish the see-saw battles of games three and four, both of which were tied late. The team will work to right things on the road at Maryland and Boston College next weekend. See story.

Uli Stegemann had 18 kills and Talisa Kellogg added 15 as the Jackets fell short against Florida State 23-30, 30-32, 30-15, 30-27, 9-15 Friday night in Atlanta. After coming back from losing the first two games to send the match to a fifth game, Tech took an early 7-4 lead, but gave up an 11-2 run to the Seminoles, who are off to their best start since 2000. Michelle Kandell led the defense with a career-high 15 digs and Erin Birmingham had a career-high 9 blocks. See story.

Callie Miller rebounded from a tough match Friday night with 14 kills, hitting .476, while Talisa Kellogg added 12 kills and Uli Stegemann 10, but the Blue Devils were too much for the Jackets, beating Tech in four Saturday night in Durham. Carrie DeMange led the Duke charge with 23 kills and 15 digs. See story.

Talisa Kellogg had 12 kills and hit .407, but the offense never found a sustained rhythm and too many errors doomed Tech to a three-game loss to Wake Forest in both team's ACC opener Friday night in Winston-Salem. See story.

Talisa Kellogg is the ACC Player of the Week, the second such honor for Tech this season. She is also a Georgia Tech Student-Athlete of the Week, along with Reggie Ball and cross country runner David Herren. See story.

Talisa Kellogg had 11 kills, hitting .400, to take weekend MVP honors and lead the Jackets to a 30-21, 31-29, 30-23 victory over Sam Houston State in Saturday's nightcap. Uli Stegemann led the team with 12 kills, hitting .571, and added 6 digs to make the All-Tournament team. Abby Showers had 17 digs to lead the defense and All-Tournament honoree Lindsey Gray reached down for 10. See story.

Nikki Kaminskas banged out 12 kills, hitting .611, to lead Tech to a 30-20, 30-24, 30-28 win over Stetson in the first match of a Saturday double-header in Atlanta. Talisa Kellogg etched her name in the NCAA record books with a perfect 10-for-10 performance, the first 1.000 hit percentage performance for the Jackets since Alexandra Preiss went 11-for-11 against Virginia on 4 Oct 2003. Lindsey Gray added 9 kills and 5 digs, while Abby Showers led the back row with 8 digs. See story.

Lindsey Gray had 11 kills and hit .529 as Georgia Tech defeated South Florida 30-25, 30-21, 30-17 Friday night in Atlanta. Talisa Kellogg added 9 kills and Chrissy DeMichelis 5 as the Jackets' outside hitters racked up 25 of Tech's 51 kills against the overmatched Bulls. Everyone played, including freshman Brittany Roderick who had two kills in two attempts and is now four-for-four (1.000) on the season. See story.

Grace update: Grace was named the Forsyth County Athlete of the Week this week for her play last week in wins over Forsyth County's other two high schools, Forsyth Central and North Forsyth. South is 15-5 on the season.

Recruits update: Mary Ashley Tippins' Marist squad is 21-2 so far. They were upset by Northview back at the end of August, but have recovered nicely. They are up in Brentwood, TN this weekend trying to avenge their only other loss, which was to the Brentwood School, a Tennessee volleyball powerhouse. Jordan McCullers' Harrison Hoyas are 12-3 after a win last night at Lovett's Block Party.

Talisa Kellogg had a season-high 20 kills and Lindsey Gray notched her fourth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 14 digs, but it wasn't enough as Kentucky outlasted Georgia Tech 30-28, 21-30, 38-36, 30-27 Saturday afternoon in Lexington, KY. Allie Niekamp was two digs from her second triple-double of the season. The loss ended Tech's five-match winning streak.

Same song, second verse: four players with double-figure kills and Tech defeats Toledo in four, 30-21, 30-24, 27-30, 30-24 in Lexington, KY this evening. Uli Stegemann led the way with 14 kills, hitting .429. Callie Miller added 12 kills, hitting .321, while Lindsey Gray and Erin Birmingham each had 10. There were numbers for everyone in this match: 20 digs for Abby Showers, a double-double for Gray with 11 digs to go with her 10 kills, a double-double for Allie Niekamp with 51 assists and 13 digs, 12 digs for Michelle Kandell. The team hit .289 and tallied 18 team blocks. See story.

Four players reached double-figure kills as a balanced Georgia Tech attack defeated Villanova 31-29, 30-23, 16-30, 30-26 in Lexington, KY this morning. Talisa Kellogg led the way with 14 kills, while Lindsey Gray added 12 kills, Uli Stegemann had 11, hitting .346, and Callie Miller finished with 10, hitting .400. Abby Showers led the defense with 16 digs. Allie Niekamp dealt 43 assists and added 6 kills and 8 digs. Erin Birmingham led the blocking with 5 (1 solo, 4 assisted). See story.

Programming alert: Due to an emergency at the day job, I will be unable to go to Kentucky to broadcast this weekend's volleyball matches. I apologize to everyone awaiting these broadcasts and to the team for not getting their deserving effort on the air this weekend.

The schedule has changed for the home matches on Sat 16 Sep. Instead of playing at 12:00pm and 7:00pm, Tech will now play a doubleheader against Stetson and Sam Houston State starting at 6:00pm with the second match starting at 8:30pm. This will allow fans to stay after the home football game against Troy and see the matches.

Allie Niekamp was named the ACC Player of the Week for 4 Sep. She recorded the third triple-double in Tech history Friday morning and led her team to a 3-1 opening weekend. She was also named a Georgia Tech Student-Athlete of the week along with some guy named Calvin Johnson. See story.

Freshman outside hitter Chrissy DeMichelis and Uli Stegeman each had 16 kills and Lindsey Gray added 15 as Tech upset Northern Iowa 24-30, 30-27, 30-22, 17-30, 15-8 to win the weekend invitational with a 3-1 record. The team came together in this match and learned how win. Allie Niekamp was named the weekend MVP while Abby Showers (18 digs) and Stegemann earned All-Tournament honors. See story.

Talisa Kellogg had 16 kills and hit .500 to lead Georgia Tech past Georgia State 30-28, 30-27, 30-20 Saturday morning in Atlanta. The Jackets started slow, but got stronger as the match went on -- battling back from a six-point deficit in the second game and then steamrolling State in the third. See story.

Callie Miller and Uli Stegemann pounded out 16 kills each and Lindsey Gray notched her third double-double in a row as Tech beat Georgia 30-19, 30-15, 26-30, 25-30, 15-10 in Atlanta Friday night. Tech evened its season at 1-1 and avenged last season's loss to the Bulldogs before a record crowd in the O'Keefe Gym. See story.

Allie Niekamp recorded her first career triple-double (10 kills, 44 assists, 10 digs), but it wasn't enough as Tech fell to Mississippi State 27-30, 25-30, 30-27, 25-30 in their opening match Friday afternoon in Atlanta. Niekamp's triple-double was the first for Tech since Kele Eveland's on 12 Dec 2003 against California in the NCAA Tournament and only the third in Georgia Tech history. Lindsey Gray added 14 kills and 10 digs to record her second double-double in a row (dating back to the final match of 2005). See story.

Mary Ashley "Mash" Tippins' Marist team is 14-1 after their "champions" playdate this past weekend. Their only loss was to the Brentwood School of Brentwood, TN in three games. Jordan McCullers' Harrison squad is 6-0, with a three-game win over Westminster 24 Aug. They have a big playdate coming up on 31 Aug at Marist that includes Northview. Grace's team is 5-4 after their first three playdates. She tallied 14 services aces in the team's win over South Cobb.

The pre-season coaches poll is out. No ACC teams made the Top 25, but a few did receive votes. Duke is listed at #32 with 22 votes. Maryland got 7 votes at #36. Virginia picked up 3 votes at #43. Tech tied for #44 with 2 votes (along with five other teams). The top five nationally are Nebraska, Penn State, Washington, Stanford and Florida.

Fan Day was a big success as a nice crowd was treated to a 15-point scrimmage that included special guest setter Kele Eveland and the debut of Erin Birmingham, Chrissy DeMichelis and Brittany Roderick. Callie Miller did not play due to illness and Laura DeMichelis looked mostly recovered after tearing an ACL back in the spring. Overall, while I still worry about our defense, I liked what I saw and can't wait for the season opener.

Nine players made the 2006 ACC Honor Roll. The 50-year ACC tradition honors all players who earned a 3.0 GPA or better for the year. Lindsey Laband made the Roll for the third time. Katie Mohs made it for the second time. The first-time honorees were Jennifer Randall, Abby Showers, Uli Stegemann, Nikki Kaminskas, Callie Miller, Allie Niekamp, and Stephanie Robbins. See story.

The ACC volleyball coaches are predicting the Jackets will finish third this season in volleyball behind Duke and Virginia. Tech received one first place vote, Duke eight and Virginia three. The rundown (with first place votes in parentheses):

1. Duke (9)
2. Virginia (3)
3. Georgia Tech (1)
4. North Carolina
5. Maryland
6. Florida State
7. Miami
8. Clemson
9. Wake Forest
10. Virginia Tech
11. Boston College
12. NC State

Talisa Kellogg and Uli Stegemann made the preseason All-ACC team. See story.

Here is the top question I've had lately: Why the heck has it taken so long to update the site? Well, I've had a busy, busy spring and summer. I got a promotion at the day job and my workload increased, taking more time. Plus, my daughter had a full volleyball schedule with A5, coached by the amazing Suzanne Fitzgerald of Walton High School, and ended up selected to the USA Volleyball National A2 Team. Her team won the bronze medal in the International Junior division at the High Performance Championships. Needless to say, I'm a proud dad. Thanks to coaches Mark Britner and Louella Lovely, along with Lee Maes for their hard work and having Grace on the court for match point of the Bronze Medal match. Also, thanks to Debbie Green-Vargas and Brian Gimmillaro at the Long Beach setting camp and even bigger thanks to Bob Westbrook and Phil Bush at A5 for organizing the trip out west for the A5 setters.

The schedule is out and Tech plays a good one this year. It starts at lunch time Friday 1 Sep with a 12:30pm match vs. Mississippi State and includes matches against Georgia, Georgia State and Northern Iowa, all leading up to the big football game against Notre Dame. The team travels to Kentucky the second week for three matches and then hosts South Florida, Stetson and Sam Houston State before the 22-match round-robin ACC schedule starts.

Melissa Jenkins is no longer Tech's SID for volleyball. She has moved on to another stage of her life -- she's getting married soon -- and has moved to North Carolina. She was key to the success of this website and the radio broadcasts and will be missed. Thanks for the great job you did and all the support you gave the team and its fans!

Former Tech All-American Lynnette Moster trained with the US National Team this past summer. She was the second Tech player invited to train with the national team, the other being Kele Eveland. Although eventually released from the team, she gained valuable playing experience. See story.

PrepVolleyball.com named Tech's 2006 recruiting class of Erin Birmingham, Chrissy DeMichelis and Brittany Roderick as the 21st best in the nation. The 2005 class was ranked 8th, giving Tech two top 25 recruiting classes the past two years. See story.

Erin Birmingham was named to Volleyball magazine's Fab 50 list. The 6'0" middle from Riverside, MO, was the Gatorade Player of the Year in Missouri after her senior season in high school She is the 7th Fab 50 recruit signed during Bond Shymansky's tenure as head coach. See story.

Other sites:
Georgia Tech Baseball: A Fan's Guide
Georgia Tech Women's Basketball: A Fan's Guide
Georgia Tech Hockey
The Hive

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