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Volleyball impresses with two home
conference wins
By Mark Brockett
The UIS women’s volleyball team
knew they had the talent and the focus to win against American
Midwest Conference foes Harris Stowe State College and Missouri
Baptist University. They just didn’t know that it would be made
to look so easy, as the Prairie Stars won convincingly going
three and out in both matches.
 Harris
Stowe was the first casualty as they were defeated 30-20, 30-13,
and 30-28 on Tuesday night. It was a contest that provided
coach Joe Fisher the chance to let his team work on new
situations and positions.
“They (Harris Stowe) are one of
the weaker teams in our conference and we wanted to try and work
on some things, basically moving some people around to create
more depth,” said Fisher. “We came into this match with goals
that we wanted to achieve and that’s something that kept us
focused.”
Maria Ray spearheaded the team’s
attack with 8 kills in only 13 attempts and served up three
aces. Ray, a junior, displayed the same confidence that Fisher
has in his team. “We work really well together when we all are
on the same page,” said Ray, “There is definitely a lot of
talent on this team and we just need to keep showing it on the
court.”
Missouri Baptist, who was
ranked 7th in the current NAIA Region V poll, made
plenty of forced errors, which proved to be costly in their
31-29, 30-18, and 30-21 loss. Those mistakes came at the hands
of an aggressive defense and a strong attack by the UIS middle
hitters Gretchen Conlin, who led the way with 11 kills, and
Audra Roach, who had 10.
“This was a big win for us,”
said Fisher. “I just told the girls to keep playing aggressively
and we did all the things we needed to do to win tonight. Our
serve receive was the key to it all.”
Freshman outside hitter Lauren
Sanders demonstrated the serve receive success that Fisher
mentioned. “Our communication was great tonight which is really
important,” said Sanders, who had 7 kills as well. “We were
hitting on all cylinders which made it fun to play and probably
fun to watch too.”
The team is now 3-1 in the
American Midwest Conference play, which places them in the
upper-tier of the conference standings as they head into the
heart of the schedule.
The Great Divide
By Jason Stuebe
 I’ve
got a bit of a conundrum for you this week -- a riddle, if you
will: what do Rodney Dangerfield, UPI, and tennis have in
common?
They get no respect! (OK, bad
joke, I promise no more).
It’s been happening slowly, but
support of tennis nationwide has been on the decline including
in our very own backyard.
UIS women’s coach Dom Giacomini
thinks it’s a shame. “It’s sad that people look at tennis as a
stepchild,” he said. Just listening to him made me feel the
same way in a matter of minutes – me, of all people, who for the
longest time never really grasped tennis until very recently
when I started attending matches.
Some choose to not support it
because it’s not that exciting to watch, or because it’s just
not a revenue-generating sport. To one of those ends I say, go
to a match and just watch our players pour their hearts and
souls onto that court and see for yourself how exciting it can
be. The issue of money, though, is a bit more complicated.
The shrewd, fiscally-minded
administrator side of me understands that it doesn’t bring in
boatloads of money, and therefore might not be where you want to
put a lot of your resources. But the sentimentally sappy,
“Field of Dreams” side begs the question of why should revenue
be so important when there is such great talent out there to
promote - if not for any other reason than pureness of sport.
 Here
at UIS, the great divide is the almighty dollar. The money just
isn’t there, which is made painfully obvious by the utter
disrepair of our “home” courts on the east end of campus.
The people who have the power to
make a change know the conditions of the courts, they just don’t
have the money (upwards of a quarter-million dollars) to do
anything about it.
As a result, the women and men
have been forced to play at Washington Park through the
generosity of men’s coach Manny Velasco. The facilities there
blow ours out of the water. The 12 courts there compared to our
four here gives the Stars the opportunity to host tournaments –
as they will next spring for the NAIA Region V Tourney – and run
efficient matches.
There is, however, a flip side
to the coin. Because matches are held away from campus, the
student support isn’t there, transportation of athletes becomes
a liability, and staffing the events gets complicated. To sum
it all up, when compared to all the other sports around here, it
just isn’t fair.
Quite frankly, if we’re going to
have a sport, let’s fund it, let’s give it the support it needs
and deserves; like my daddy told me a million times (I don’t
listen occasionally), “any job worth doing, is a job worth doing
well.” As always, go Stars!
Prairie Star of
the Week
By Jason Stuebe
Sometimes,
though not always, there are honors that even surpass that of a
Prairie Star of the Week, and UIS senior Megan Leonard earned
one of them. Leonard was named the AMC and NAIA Region V Setter
of the Week and was even nominated for player of the week for
the entire nation…yeah that’s right, the United States of
America!
 Leonard’s
performances as of late have been nothing short of spectacular.
Leonard, a team captain, has helped boost the Stars out of a
slump, going 4-1 since September 14th. In the 18
games she has played during that span, Leonard has tallied 225
assists, averaging 12.5 per game. Megan has also racked up 31
digs, eight service aces, and seven kills.
“I
think it’s awesome,” said Leonard when talking about her
achievement, “I’m just thankful that we have such great hitters
that can kill the ball as well as they do.”
Leonard
and the team have picked it up at just the right time as the AMC
season is getting well underway. “We are cutting back on
unforced errors as a team,” she continued.
Megan,
an Effingham native who transferred from Lake Land College last
fall, is majoring in biology and is working towards a secondary
education minor.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, coach Joe Fisher is feeling pretty
special these days considering he has had the privilege to coach
all three of our Prairie Stars of the Week. “I’m lucky to have
that kind of talent on the teams,” said Fisher, “I guess I feel
honored as well.”
Congratulations Megan, the UIS Sports Writers and Broadcasters’
Association tips their hat in your direction!
You can
catch Megan and all the Prairie Stars talent, past and present,
on the court next Saturday, October 9th for the
annual Alumni match scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
Snapshots
Men’s
Soccer
UIS vs.
McKendree (Lebanon, IL)
The Prairie
Stars continued their upswing against the Bearcats of McKendree
last Tuesday afternoon, going 2-1. Michael Hutchinson put the
Stars on the board first, but McKendree came back with a goal of
their own in the 70th minute of play. Once again,
though, it was Todd Pierce to plant the ball between the irons
for the game-winning goal with 15 minutes left in the contest.
UIS vs.
William Woods (Fulton, MO)
The Stars
beat the bejeezus out of William Woods last Saturday, winning
4-1. Conference defenders best recognize Todd Pierce as he had
two goals on the night. The Stars are now 5-4 overall and 2-0
in the conference.
The Stars
return home tomorrow to take on the Owls of Williams Baptist
College. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m.
Petri out
for the season
Not all has
been wine and roses in the recent string of success. UIS lost
junior John Petri, one of its most physical players, to a broken
leg he suffered during the McKendree game. Everyone in Prairie
Star land wishes John a speedy recovery.
Women’s
Volleyball
UIS vs.
Hannibal LaGrange (Culver-Stockton Tourney)
In the
first day of play, UIS defeated Hannibal 3-0 going 30-20, 30-25,
30-26.
UIS vs.
Culver Stockton (Culver-Stockton Tourney)
The Stars
were unable to keep up on Saturday, however, falling to
Culver-Stockton 3-0 going 30-20, 30-19, 30-27.
UIS vs.
Graceland (Culver Stockton Tourney)
The Stars
also fell to Graceland 3-1 going 30-17, 27-30, 20-30, 28-30.
Crossen and
Roach injured
Big hitters
Audra Roach and Danielle Crossen injured their ankles in last
weekend’s tournament at Culver-Stockton. No word on their
status or the extent of their injuries as of deadline.
Men’s
Club Volleyball
Yup, it’s
official and it will be handled by Campus Rec Sports.
CAMPUS
RECREATIONAL SPORTS BRIEFS
Intramural
Sports
Entries are now
available from the Campus Recreational Sports Office for the
IM 7x7 Flag Football League, IM 6x6 Soccer League,
and IM 2x2 Outdoor Basketball Tournament. Entry forms
are due in the CRS Office by 11pm Wednesday, October 6 for all
three sports. (Note this is a revised date.) The Outdoor
Basketball Tournament will be held under the lights at 6:30pm on
Sunday, October 10 at the Rec Park Basketball Court. League
play begins the weekend of October 16 for flag football and
soccer at the Rec Park Field. For more specific details,
contact the CRS Office or check out the CRS website.
Fitness &
Instructional
Registrations
are now being accepted in the CRS Office for the following
classes:
Tennis Lessons
are being offered at the UIS Tennis Courts on Tuesdays and
Thursdays from 4-5pm beginning October 5. Deadline to sign up
is 11pm Monday, October 4. The tennis lessons will be taught by
Women’s Tennis team member Georgena Wulfers. UIS Students and
Rec Center Members with valid i-cards pay $5 for the 3-week six
lesson session. UIS Community Non-Rec Center Members must pay
the $15 non-member fee.
Toning &
Conditioning
classes will be held October 11-November 19 in the UIS Gym on
Mondays and Fridays from 12:10-12:50pm. Amy Giles will return
to teach the class. Deadline to sign up is 11pm Wednesday,
October 6. UIS Students and Rec Center Members with valid i-cards
pay $10 for the 6-week session. UIS Community Non-Rec Center
Members pay $30.
Fencing Lessons
will
once again be taught by Dr. Larry Livingston on Wednesdays in
the UIS Gym from 12:10-12:50pm beginning October 13. The
deadline to sign up is 11pm Wednesday, October 6. UIS Students
and Rec Center Members with valid i-cards pay $5 for the
6-lesson session. UIS Community Non-Rec Center Members pay $15.
Intramural 6x6
Sand Volleyball Results
Will Work For
Sets took the victory in volleyball intramurals over the weekend
defeating The Ramrods 30-19, 30-22. The Ramrods also had a
victory in a close match over the Cowboys 30-22, and 30-27.
Tikea forfeited both games on Saturday and Sunday giving a
victory to Will Work For Sets and the Cowboys. Will Work For
Sets stands in first place so far followed by The Ramrods, the
Cowboys, and then Tikea. The semi-finals for volleyball begin
this coming Saturday at 4pm with Will Work For Sets taking on
Tikea followed by The Ramrods meeting the Cowboys at 5pm. Games
are single elimination, good luck to all the teams!
Intramural
Sports 9x9 Softball Results
Softball came
out in all forfeits over the weekend. The Beanfield Ballers
stand in first place so far followed by Old School, U Is?,
Webb’s Team, and Foxglove. Semi-finals begin this Saturday for
softball at 1:30pm with the Beanfield Ballers hosting Webb’s
Team followed by Old School taking on U Is? at 2:30pm.
Sport Clubs
The Men’s
Club Volleyball team in practicing Mondays and Thursdays
from 7-9pm and Fridays from 5-7pm in the UIS Gym. Any male UIS
student interested in competing extramurally with other college
or USVBA men’s club volleyball teams is welcome to join. Male
students may be undergraduate or graduate; full time or part
time. If interested contact Club President Jim Brower at
jbrow16s@uis.edu.
The Frisbee
Enthusiasts Club practices every Thursday from 5:30-8pm and
Sunday from 3-6pm at the Sport Club Rec Field east of Kiwanis
Stadium. The club participates in Ultimate Frisbee as well as
Frolf (Frisbee Disc Golf). If interested contact Club President
Colin Cook at
ccook04s@uis.edu.
How Can I Learn About Campus Rec Sports News?
Send an Email
to RecSports@uis.edu too
be included in the 2004-2005 Campus Rec Sports News List to
receive personal up-to-date information about future events and
activities. Go to your UIS e-mail account and click on “Public
Folders>All Public Folders>UIS>Announcements” then click on
“Student or Campus” (depending on your status) to read the
e-mail announcements sent out by UIS RecSports. Check out the
website at
www.uis.edu/recsports/. Contact the Campus Recreational
Sports (CRS) Office located in the Fitness Center (SLB 118) or
call 206-6658. |
