Volleyball set to Open 2009 Slate at Active Ankle Challenge
8/27/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Aug. 27, 2009
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The volleyball team kicks off its 2009 season at the Active Ankle Challenge in St. Louis, Mo. beginning Friday, August 28. The Crimson Tide will take on No. 20 Saint Louis at 7:00 p.m. (CST) to close out the first night of play. On Saturday, Alabama faces off with defending back-to-back national champion, and No. 1 ranked, Penn State at 1:00 p.m. (CST) before playing Miami (Ohio) at 5:00 p.m. (CST).
"This is a great opening weekend for Alabama," said head coach Judy Green. "We are excited to get the opportunity to play these ranked teams early in the season. Let's throw the ball up and see what happens. The only way we are going to get to know what our team is made of is to play someone else."
Alabama and Saint Louis have met four times previously with the series tied at 2-2. The programs first met in 1977 with the Tide winning by a score of 2-0. The last match between Alabama and Saint Louis was in 1996 where the Billikens came out on top 3-1. Saint Louis returns five starters in addition to its libero from a team that went 29-5 last season and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
In Saturday's first match-up, Alabama takes on two-time defending NCAA champion Penn State. The Tide has only met the Nittany Lions one other time in program history which resulted in a 3-0 loss for Alabama during the 1996 season. Penn State finished 2008 with an unblemished record of 38-0 en route to the NCAA title. It returns five starters from last season's squad.
In the final contest of the tournament, Alabama faces off against Miami (Ohio) marking the fifth meeting between the two. The series dates back to the 1980 season with the RedHawks winning all four matches. The programs met last in 1998 at the Amerihost Classic. Miami (Ohio) finished last season 21-12 after falling in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The RedHawks return five starters from their 2008 lineup.
Live statistics will be available for all matches and can be found by clicking here.
The Tide's home opener is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 1 against Alabama A&M. First serve goes off at 7:00 p.m. in the CAVE. Season tickets are still available for $30 and can be purchased by clicking here or by calling the Alabama Ticket Office at 1-877-TIDETIX (843-3849). Single match tickets are available 90 minutes prior to the start of the match at the door. The cost is $3 for adults and free for students and youth ages 18 and under.
