The University of Mississippi Athletics
Lady Rebels Step Out Of Conference To Challenge Memphis
10/7/2002 | Volleyball
Oct. 7, 2002
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss women's volleyball team will step out of conference play on Tuesday to take on the Memphis Lady Tigers in a home match at 7 p.m. The match will close out a five game home stand for the Lady Rebels, the first home matches of the season for the squad.
The Lady Rebels (7-8, 1-3 SEC) are coming off the first conference win of the season, a 3-0 victory against Auburn, that snapped a three-game losing streak. In the win against Auburn, Ole Miss maintained its focus and energy to beat a scrappy Tiger team. Senior Cheryl Wilson led the squad with10 kills to one attack error on the night.
Leading the way for the Lady Rebels on the season is freshman Rachel Refenes, who has totaled 144 kills on the season, 116 of them in non-conference play. Sophomore Elena Garcia is hot on her heels with the attack, notching 137 kills, 94 of them coming out of the conference. Garcia also leads the team defensively, recording 132 digs on the season.
Setting the Lady Rebel offense is junior Jade Polonich, with 436 set assists on the season, 354 of them coming outside the SEC.
Ole Miss is 6-5 against non-conference foes in the 2002 season. This will be the first non-conference opponent the Lady Rebels have faced at home.
Memphis is led by a the trio of Brittany Barnett, Tiara Gilkey, and Heater Watts. Barnett, an outside hitter for the Tigers, is averaging 4.17 kills a game at this point in the season, ranking eighth in Conference USA. Gilkey, another outside hitter, ranks highly in C-USA with her attacks, tallying 12 kills to go with 10 digs in the last outing against Saint Louis. Watts serves as the team's setter, and notched 104 assists in the team's last two matches.
The two squads, who will face-off at 7 p.m. at the Gillom Sports Center on campus.
