Indiana University Athletics
Weekly Release #10
10/29/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Last Week
Fri., Oct. 25 vs. Iowa - W, 3-1 (28-30, 30-24, 30-24, 30-24)
Sat., Oct. 26 vs. Minnesota - L, 3-1 (19-30, 30-24, 18-30, 27-30)
Upcoming
Fri., Nov. 1 at Wisconsin - 7:00 p.m.
Sat., Nov.2 at Northwestern - 7:00 p.m.
Indiana Splits for the Weekend: On Friday, Oct. 25 IU extended its winning streak to four after defeating Big Ten foe Iowa, 3-1 (28-30, 30-24, 30-24, 30-24).
Katie Pollom (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) and Melissa Brewer (Bloomington, Ind./Bloomington North) slammed home 19 and 17 kills, respectively. Victoria Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) notched 63 assists and 13 digs.
Iowa was victorious in game one against the Hoosiers, but Indiana was able to fight back, capturing games two, three and four. In game two IU went on a 6-1 run to take a 13-6 lead. After a run by the Hawkeyes, IU went on a run of its own, taking a 25-19 advantage. The Hoosiers never looked back, winning the second game, 30-24, and evening the match at one game apiece.
Game three proved to be a back-and-fourth battle with Indiana and Iowa trading points. The Hoosiers finally broke loose, securing a three-point advantage, 26-23. IU continued to rally scoring the last four points of the game.
Game four turned into another back-and-fourth contest. A Pollom kill gave IU a 13-9 lead. IU continued to put the pressure on the Hawkeyes and went on to snag a four-point lead, 21-17. The Hawkeyes never got any closer than a three-point deficit. Pollom ended the match with a career-high tying 19th kill.
The Hoosiers winning streak ended on Saturday, Oct. 26, against No. 8 Minnesota, 3-1 (19-30, 30-24, 18-30, 27-30).
Pollom led the IU attack with 15 kills. Zimmerman collected 52 assists and a career-high 18 digs.
After Minnesota took game one, Indiana captured game two. IU took an early 7-5 advantage on a service ace by Brewer and never trailed again for the remainder of the game. A Christina Archibald (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West) kill ended game two.
Minnesota rebounded nicely and jumped to an early 11-3 advantage. The Golden Gophers continued to attack, increasing their lead to 15-5. The game ended on a service ace, 30-18, with Minnesota taking a 2-1 lead in the match.
IU's 5-0 lead in game four didn't last long, as Minnesota, evened the score at 8-8. Three consecutive kills by Archibald gave the Hoosiers a 16-12 lead. IU was unable to hold its advantage and Minnesota took its first lead of the game, 28-27, and never looked back, scoring the final two points of the match on back-to-back kills.
Attendance Record in the Books: A crowd of 1,022 at the University Gymnasium witnessed Indiana's 3-2 victory over No. 15 Wisconsin on Saturday, Oct. 12. The attendance figure tied the ninth-best mark in school history in matches played at the University Gym. It was also tied the fourth-highest University Gym attendance in a match not played against Purdue.
Brewer's Blasts...and a little Pollom too: Junior middle blocker Melissa Brewer (Bloomington, Ind./North) turned in one of the finest weekends of her career in matches vs. Northwestern and No. 15 Wisconsin over the weekend of Oct. 11-12. In two matches, the middle blocker recorded 43 kills on a total of 74 attempts with only seven errors for a hitting percentage of .486. She also recorded seven block assists. In Indiana upset win over the Badgers, she recorded a career-high 25 kills and six block assists. Junior Katie Pollom also recorded a career-high 19 kills against the Badgers.
A Look Ahead to Wisconsin and Northwestern: The 15th-ranked Wisconsin team made history with a win at ninth-ranked Penn State on Oct. 26. For the first time ever, the Badgers defeated the Nittany Lions 3-2 (23-30, 32-30, 21-30, 30-28, 15-10).
The Badgers had four players in double-figure kills to out-hit the Lions 84-80. Erin Byrd tied for match-high honors with 25 kills while Aubrey Meierotto came off the bench for a career-high 18. Jill Odenthal and Lori Rittenhouse had 10 kills apiece. Shields had a career-high 76 assists at setter.
Wisconsin played excellent back-court defense with five players in double-figure digs. Byrd had a career-high 24 digs while Lisa Zukowski, playing at libero, had a career-high 21 digs. Jill Maier played back row for the Badgers' right-side hitters and had a career-best 12 digs while Rittenhouse dug 11 and Morgan Shields 10.
After defeating No. 15 Wisconsin, the Wildcats dropped a 3-0 (23-30, 27-30, 21-30) decision at No. 9 Penn State.
Penn State dominated the match, recording 16 team blocks compared to four for NU. The Nittany Lions also outhit NU .284-to-.175. Erika Lange posted a match-high 12 kills for Northwestern.
Sarah Ballog added 11 kills for the Wildcats, while setter Drew Robertson tied a career-high with six kills to go along with 10 digs and 38 assists.
Ashley Pederson led Penn State with 10 kills. Robyn Goukas, who entered the night ranked second in the Big Ten in blocks behind Lange, tallied seven total blocks. PSU recorded a total of seven block solos and 18 block assists, compared to three and two for NU, respectively.
The Nittany Lions recorded 17 kills with only two errors on their way to hitting .395 in the Game 1 victory. Neither team hit exceptionally well in the second game, as Northwestern was able to hang tight, but was unable to pull out the victory. The Wildcats, who were hurt by 14 service errors in the match, committed 10 hitting errors in the third game as Penn State completed the sweep.
Indiana against Wisconsin and Northwestern: Wisconsin leads the series over the Hoosiers 30-18. This season IU upset the Badgers 3-2.
In series history, the Hoosiers lead the Wildcats 25-18, however this season Northwestern defeated the Hoosiers 3-2 at University Gymnasium.
Archibald Off to Torrid Start: One year after earning Big Ten all-freshman team honors, outside hitter Christina Archibald (Belleville, Ill./West) has quickly dismissed any notion that she may go through a sophomore slump. On September 23, Archibald was recognized as the Big Ten's Player-of-the-Week, becoming only the 11th Indiana volleyball player (on 15 previous occasions) to earn the honor. This fall, Archibald leads the Hoosiers in kills (387) and kills per game (4.40). She is second on the team in digs (2.34 per game), trailing only senior libero Hillary Toivonen (3.12).
Spreading the Wealth: Five Indiana volleyball players earned all-tournament team honors in 2002. At the Northern Illinois Invitational (8/30-31), Christina Archibald (Belleville, Ill./West) and sophomore Katie Pollom (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) earned all-tournament honors and junior middle blocker Melissa Brewer (Bloomington, Ind./North) was recognized as the tournament's Most Valuable Player. At the TIS/Taylor Imprinted Sportswear Classic (Sept. 6-7), Pollom and Archibald were named to the all-tournament team. At the Terrapin Invitational (Sept. 13-14), Archibald was named to the all-tournament team for the third consecutive week. She was joined on the team by senior libero Hillary Toivonen (Muncie, Ind./Burris). At the IU Credit Union Classic, junior Nikki Hill got into the mix, earning her first all-tournament recognition of the season, despite being one of the Hoosiers' most consistent players in 2002. She was joined on the all-tourney team by Archibald and Brewer.
Win Over 11th-Ranked Ohio State Marks Huge Day for Weismiller: Indiana's 3-1 upset victory over 11th-ranked Ohio State on September 25 marked head coach Katie Weismiller's 200th career coaching victory and her 150th at Indiana. Now in her tenth season at Indiana, Weismiller has led the volleyball program to unprecedented heights. After taking over a program that was 6-23 prior to her arrival, Weismiller led the Hoosiers to a .500 record in only her second season in Bloomington. In her third season, the Hoosiers finished with a 20-14 overall mark, including a 12-8 record in the Big Ten Conference, and earned the school's first-ever NCAA tournament bid. Indiana made back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances in 1998 and 1999, advancing to the second round of the tournament on both occasions. Prior to Indiana, Weismiller was the head coach at Saint Louis University (1989-90), prior to serving as an assistant at the University of Florida (1991-92).
Five Wins away from Milestone: Head coach Katie Weismiller (Texas-Arlington, '88) is only five victories shy of becoming Indiana's all-time winningest volleyball coach in terms of victories (Ann Lawver, 158 wins from 1975-82).
Two New Assistants Join IU Staff: Tenth-year head coach Katie Weismiller's staff underwent major changes this offseason as two new assistant coaches are strolling the IU sidelines for the first time. Cydryce Carter (Indiana '00) joins the Indiana staff after spending two seasons as an assistant at Southwest Texas State. As a standout player at Indiana under Weismiller, Carter finished her impressive career among Indiana's top 10 in digs, service aces, block assists, and total blocks. She twice earned Academic All-America honors.
Ryan Theis (Wisconsin-Milwaukee, '00) begins his first season at Indiana after spending the past two seasons as the top assistant and head recruiter for the women's volleyball program at Eastern Illinois University. He helped lead the Panthers to a 21-9 overall mark in 2001.
Brewer an Academic All-America Candidate: Junior Melissa Brewer (Bloomington, Ind./North), a first-team All-Big Ten Freshman Team selection in 2000, is a leading candidate to earn Academic All-America honors before her career reaches its conclusion. In 2001, the 6-foot-1 middle blocker recorded 340 kills and a .242 hitting percentage in 28 matches. She led the team with 110 blocks and finished second on the club with 212 digs. In the classroom, she earned Academic All-District V honors and was named to the Academic All-Big Ten Team. She also received the Balfour Award, which recognizes student-athletes who have brought honor and distinction to Indiana University. Brewer began the 2002 season where she left off, earning Most Valuable Player honors at the Northern Illinois Best Western Invitational (8/30-8/31). On the weekend, Brewer recorded a .415 hitting percentage, to go along with 46 kills in 10 games.
At the IU Credit Union Classic (9/20-21), Brewer was named to the all-tournament team. In a 3-1 victory over No. 30 Louisville, she recorded 14 kills and a .462 hitting percentage. She also led the Hoosiers in kills with 24 kills in an upset victory over 11th-ranked Ohio State (9/25).
Versus Northwestern and No. 15 Wisconsin (Oct. 11-12), Brewer turned in one of the finest weekends of her career. In two matches, the middle blocker recorded 43 kills on a total of 74 attempts with only seven errors for a hitting percentage of .486. She also recorded seven block assists. In Indiana upset win over the Badgers, she recorded a career-high 25 kills and six block assists.
With 85 block assists in 22 matches this fall, Brewer has now moved into fourth place on IU's career block assist list with 294.
Brewer has been making her mark in two other career categories, total blocks and kills. This season Brewer has collected 90 total blocks, giving her 326 in her three years. This ranks her at the No. 5 spot in IU volleyball history. Brewer has also cumulated 325 kills this season, second on the team, bringing her career total to 982. This places her eighth on the career kills list with 982.
Hill Receives National Recognition: Nikki Hill, a 5-foot-11 junior outside hitter from Muncie, Ind. (Central) received national recognition this past spring when she was named as a recipient of the Arthur Ashe, Jr., Sports Scholar Award, which is sponsored by Black Issues in Higher Education. The award is presented to student-athletes of color who have maintained a grade point average of 3.2 or higher and have demonstrated a record of service to the campus or community. Hill has played very well throughout the season and through 22 matches is averaging 2.90 kills, 2.19 digs, and 0.39 blocks per game. She was named to the all-tournament team at the IU Credit Union Classic.
Pollom Selected as Captain: Junior/sophomore Katie Pollom, a 6-foot-3 middle blocker from Indianapolis, Ind. (Cathedral High School) is serving as Indiana's team captain in 2002. What makes this rare is that Pollom, another potential Academic All-America candidate as her career continues, saw the first action of her career last fall, appearing in 71 games over the course of 23 matches, and is only a sophomore in eligibility, despite having junior academic status. In 2001, Pollom finished second on the team with 68 total blocks and finished fifth on the team with 129 kills. In 2002, she was named to the all-tournament team at the NIU Best Western Invitational. In a 3-0 victory over IUPUI, Pollom recorded a hitting percentage of .875. Pollom was again recognized the next week as she was named to the all-tournament team at Indiana's TIS/Taylor Imprinted Sportswear Invitational. Through 22 matches, she is second on the team with a .303 hitting percentage and is third with a 3.43 kills per game average. She tied her career-high 19 kills in a 3-1 victory over Iowa on 10/25/02.
The Libero Position - Tailor Made for Toivonen: Collegiate volleyball has undergone a major rules change in 2002 with the institution of the libero. The libero is a designated back-row player, intended to be used as a ball-control specialist. The libero is allowed to replace any player in the back row without counting as a substitution. There is no limit to the number of libero replacements a team is allowed. The pronunciation is "LEE-bah-ro." The color of the libero's uniform must contrast from the color of her teammates' uniforms. The libero's shorts must be the same as her teammates'. The style and trip of the designated libero's uniform may differ from her teammates'. The referees will ultimately decide if the contrast is sufficient. Head coach Katie Weismiller strongly believes that the position will benefit senior Hillary Toivonen more than anyone else on the Hoosier roster.
"Playing the libero position will only highlight her best assets, which are passing and defense. She'll also provide great leadership."
As a junior in 2001, Toivonen played in all 28 matches and in 103 of 106 possible games in 2001. An excellent defender, she recorded a team-high 235 digs, joining Melissa Brewer (212) and Christina Archibald (203) as the only other Hoosiers to record 200-or-more. She was third on the team with 194 kills and also recorded five double-doubles.
This fall, Toivonen was named to the all-tournament team at the Terrapin Invitational (Sept. 13-14). She recorded the 1,000th dig of her career in a 3-2 victory over Butler (9/21/02). Through 22 matches, she leads the Hoosiers with 3.12 digs per game.
Toivonen Records 1,000th Career Dig: With 43 digs at the IU Credit Union Classic (Sept. 20-21), senior libero Hillary Toivonen (Muncie, Ind./Burris) moved from seventh to third place in career digs. In doing so, she also recorded her 1,000th career dig in a match vs. Butler. With 16 digs against Iowa (10-25-02), she moved into second place on the career list is as follows:
1. Jen Magelssen (1995-98) 1,331
2. Hillary Toivonen (1999-present) 1,148
3. Cydryce Carter (1996-99) 1,128
4. Lynn Crawley (1991-94) 1,063
5. Julie Goedde (1986-89) 1,013
6. Kristina Sanderson (1996-99) 1,003
7. Nancy Mason (1988-91) 980
8. Joy Jordan (1987-90) 899
9. Stacie Murr (1992-95) 898
10. Michelle McElroy (1991-95) 882
The Two Freshmen: Indiana's roster will feature two freshmen in 2002 -- 6-foot-1 middle blocker Mandy Eberle (Sussex, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) and 6-foot-1 outside hitter Ashley White (St. Charles, Ill./East). Eberle helped lead her high school team to a No. 2 state ranking as a senior, while White led her team to a No. 7 national ranking and a state title.
Zimmerman Handling Setting Duties: Sophomore Victoria Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) is the lone setter on Indiana's roster in 2002 and, thus, will handle those duties throughout the season.
"Victoria comes in with an attitude that I love," said head coach Katie Weismiller. "She wants it so badly and she wants to work hard. We've had players in the past who are gamers, and she is truly one of those. Her setting locations are some of the best that we've ever had in the program."
In 2001, Zimmerman appeared in 23 games over the course of 12 matches. In this year's season opening tournament at Northern Illinois, Zimmerman recorded 135 assists (13.5 apg), four service aces, and recorded a .250 hitting percentage. She also played very well at the Indiana TIS/Taylor Imprinted Sportswear Classic (Sept. 6-7) as she recorded 138 assists in a total of 11 games (12.5 assists per game). In the 3-2 victory over Purdue on Oct. 19, Zimmerman recorded a career high in assists with 73. As of October, Zimmerman ranked seventh nationally in assists with 13.56 per game.
Zimmerman Hits 1,000 Assists: Although she recorded only seven assists as a freshman one year ago, setter Victoria Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) has already recorded 1207 assists. After notching 60 assists in the Illinois match, she has surpassed the 1,000 mark for her career and in that same game reached 1,000 assists for the season. Zimmerman is only the eighth Indiana volleyball player to record 1,000 career assists.
Heimann Fills a Need: Indiana received an unexpected boost in late August when Beth Heimann (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont) returned to the program after a one-year hiatus. A defensive specialist, Heimann played for the Hoosiers as a true freshman but did not participate last year. The return of Heimann was a pleasant surprise for head coach Katie Weismiller, who believes the addition of an experienced defensive specialist should immediately improve her team.
"We are very excited to get her back on the court and back in our program," said Weismiller. "She is a great passer and a great defensive player. Now, she's been off a year. There are plenty of reps and conditioning that has to be done."
Heimann, whose sister Erin lettered in volleyball for the Hoosiers from 1996-99, appeared in 25 matches in 2001 and is excited to be back on the floor after a year's absence.
"I just missed playing volleyball," said Heimann, who is currently the roommate of sophomore Katie Pollom and junior Melissa Brewer, and lives next door to junior Monique Pritz and sophomore Christina Archibald. "I live with three of the girls so I am kind of in the middle of it. The opportunity came up so I decided to give it a chance again."
At the Terrapin Invitational (Sept. 13-14), Heimann recorded 26 digs and one service ace in three matches. She played very well at the IU Credit Union Classic as she recorded 34 digs and one service ace in three matches.
Archibald Named to 2001 Big Ten All-Freshman Team: For the third time in as many years, an IU freshman was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team. Following in the footsteps of Laurie Gardner (1999) and Melissa Brewer (2000), Belleville, Ill., product Christina Archibald was named to the 2001 Big Ten All-Freshman Team after turning in a stellar season that saw her set the freshman record for kills with 364. The members of the Big Ten All-Freshman Team are as follows:
2001 Big Ten All-Freshman Team
Christina Archibald - Indiana
Jennifer Gandolph - Michigan
Stacey Gordon - Ohio State (Freshman-of-the-Year)
Jill Odenthal - Wisconsin
Drew Robertson - Northwestern
Kim Schram - Michigan State
Nine Hoosiers Earn Academic All-Big Ten Honors: In 2001, nine Indiana volleyball players were eligible for Academic All-Conference honors, and all nine delivered by being recognized as such. Indiana's 2001 Academic All-Big Ten honorees are as follows (returning players in bold): Melissa Brewer (Sophomore/Biology), Laurie Gardner (Senior/Marketing), Nicole Hill (Sophomore/Marketing), Crecia Keithley (Senior/Psychology), Anna Makowski (Sophomore/Environmental Science), Katie Pollom (Sophomore/Biology), Monique Pritz (Sophomore/Exercise Science), Meghan Stout (Senior/Exercise Science), Hillary Toivonen (Junior/Health Administration).
Two-Sport Athlete: Sophomore Christina Archibald (Belleville, Ill./West) participated on the IU Track and Field team during the spring of 2002 and finished in a fourth-place tie at the Big Ten Championships with a leap of 5'7 3/4", tying her for the best finish in the event by a freshman. She boasts a career high jump of 5'10". A physically imposing outside hitter, Archibald immediately worked her way into the starting lineup as a true freshman in 2001 as she started all 28 matches on her way to earning Freshman All-Big Ten accolades. She played in 99 out of a possible 106 games and led the Hoosiers in kills (364), attacks (964), and service aces (29). Her total of 364 kills was the most every by an IU freshman. She finished third on the team in digs with 203. In the 2002 season opening tournament at Northern Illinois, recorded a career-high tying 23 kills vs. NIU.
At the TIS/Taylor Imprinted Sportswear Classic in Bloomington, Archibald was named to the all-tournament team. She followed up that performance by being named to the All-Tournament Team at the Terrapin Invitational in College Park, Md. (Sept. 13-14). In a 3-2 win over Loyola Marymount, Archibald recorded career-highs in kills (29) and digs (18). She was named MVP of the IU Credit Union Classic and earned Big Ten Player-of-the-Week honors.
