Profiles

Chris Allen

Middle Blocker
Junior
6-5, 180, Basking Ridge, N.J. (Bridgewater-Raritan)

2008:  Played in 21-of-33 matches and made 14 starts…compiled a .403 attack percentage…collected a career-high 14 kills and hit .636 in the Feb. 8 D’Youville match and equaled that against Eastern Mennonite on Feb. 9 while hitting .812…set a Carthage match record with 10 service aces against Hunter on Jan. 26

2007:  Played in 27-of-33 matches and made 15 starts…compiled a .225 attack percentage (11th in the MIVA Coleman Division)…collected season-high 10 kills and hit. 571 in the Feb. 24 St. Ambrose match…averaged 1.02 blocks per game (3rd in the MIVA Coleman Division)…set a Carthage match record with nine blocks (2 solo, 7 assisted) in four games against St. Ambrose on Feb. 24.

High School:   Named first-team all-state, New Jersey “player of the year” and All-Central New Jersey both his junior and senior seasons…second-team all-state and second-team All-Central New Jersey as a sophomore…third-team All-Central New Jersey his freshman year…his junior-year team went 26-3 and won a state championship, while his senior-year squad went 17-10 and finished second in the state…coached by Corey Romanak…lettered on the basketball team his sophomore and junior years…honor student…played for the Warren 6-Pack Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Undecided on major…born Dec. 19, 1987. 

Eric Ball

Outside Hitter
Junior
6-5, 165, Naperville, Ill. (North)

2008:  Appeared in two matches.

2007:  Played in 14 matches and made nine starts…collected a season-high 11 kills and hit .333 in the Jan. 12 UC-Santa Cruz match.

High School:  Named Chicago Sun-Times second-team all-state and Chicago Tribune honorable mention all-state his senior year, as well as first-team All-DuPage Valley Conference, Daily Herald all-area and Naperville Sun all-area…honorable mention all-conference his junior year on a 23-14 team that won a regional title…his sophomore-year team went 26-11 and also won a regional championship…coached by Roger Strausberger…two-year member of the basketball team…DuPage Valley Conference all-academic and honor student…played for the Sports Performance Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Exercise and sport science major…born Nov. 18, 1987.

Tyler Berry

Libero
Sophomore
St. Louis, Mo. (Kirkwood), 170, 6-3

2008:  Played in 31-of-33 matches and with a team-leading 2.57 digs-per-game average.

High School:  Named second-team All-Suburban West Conference his junior year on a 17-12 team that finished fifth in the state…his sophomore-year squad went 18-8 and also finished fifth in the state…coached by Doug Jones…played soccer both his junior and senior years and basketball as a junior…National Honor Society member and honor student.

Personal:  Business administration major…born Nov. 6, 1988.

David Bower

Outside Hitter
Junior
6-0, 165, Lombard, Ill. (Willowbrook)

2008:  Played in 14-of-33 matches and made five starts…collected a career-high 14 kills against Cardinal Stritch on Feb. 20.

2007:  Played in 27 of 33 matches and made two starts…compiled a .400 attack percentage…collected a season-high nine kills  and hit .615 in the March 11 Mount Ida match.

High School:  Named All-West Suburban League Gold both his sophomore and junior years…Daily Herald all-area as a junior and set a school season record for kills…named Daily Herald honorable mention all-area his sophomore year…coached by Diane Vegter…played for the Sports Performance Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Double major in marketing and business administration…born Oct. 21, 1987. 

Elvin Bower

Middle Blocker/Right Side
Sophomore
6-3, 195, Las Vegas, Nev. (Shadow Ridge)

2008:  Played in 16-of-33 matches.

High School:  Named second-team all-conference his senior year on a 22-2 state-championship team…first-team all-conference and the league’s “best offensive player” as a junior on a 22-4 squad…coached by Christian Augustine…three-year member of the football team.

Personal:  Exercise and sport science major…born Oct. 14, 1988.

Joe Dougherty

Setter
Senior
6-3, 205, New Lenox, Ill. (Lincoln-Way Central)

2008:  Played in 21-of-33 matches and made one start…averaged 5.89 assists per game.

2007:  Played in 15 matches…averaged 6.17 assists per game.

2006:  Played in 12-of-25 matches and made two starts…averaged 6.13 assists per game.

High School:  Named Daily Herald “top-50 Illinois High School players” his senior year...his junior-year team won a regional championship...coached by Joanne Holverson...member of both the basketball and golf teams his freshman and sophomore years...National Honor Society member and honor student…played for the Sports Performance Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Biology major...named 2006 MIVA All-Academic…born Feb. 22, 1987.

Matt Figiel

Setter
Junior
5-11, 160, Franklin Park, Ill. (East Leyden)

2008:  Played in all 33 matches and made 32 starts…set a Carthage season record by averaging 11.20 assists per game (ranked 16th in NCAA Division III)…set a Carthage match records with 46 assists in three games against Eastern Mennonite on Feb.9, 61 assists in four games versus Endicott on March 15 and 72 assists in five games against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Jan. 26.

2007:  Did not appear in a varsity match.

High School:  Named All-West Suburban League Gold three-straight years…named Pioneer Press all-area his junior year…coached by Dave Sebald…member of the golf team his freshman and sophomore years…honor student…played for the SOVA Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Undecided on major…born Nov. 15, 1987.

Jamie Forssander

Libero
Sophomore
6-1, 160, Palatine, Ill. (Arlington Heights-St. Viator)

2008:  Played in 17-of-33 matches.

High School:  Named All-East Suburban Catholic Conference and honorable mention all-area his sophomore year…coached by Charlie Curtin…member of the football team his freshman year…honor student.

Personal:  Business administration major…born March 5, 1989.

Kyle Klaver

Outside Hitter
Sophomore
190, 6-3, Frankfort, Ill. (Lincoln-Way East)

2008:  Played in 24-of-33 matches.

High School:  Named Chicago Tribune first-team all-state his senior year, as well as Chicago Sun-Times second-team all-area and All-Southwest Suburban Conference…set a school record his senior year with 20 kills in a match…his junior and senior-year teams won both conference and sectional championships, his sophomore through senior teams won regional titles, and his senior-year squad finished fourth in the Illinois High School Association state championship…honor student.

Personal:  Undecided on major…born Sept. 23, 1988.

Brett Neylan

Outside Hitter
Junior
6-5, 190, Morgan Hill, Calif. (Mountain View-St. Francis)

2008:  Played in 20-of-33 matches and made five starts…compiled a .233 attack percentage…collected a career-high 11 kills and hit .733 in the March 16 Medaille match.

2007:  Played in six varsity matches.

High School:  Named first-team All-West Catholic Athletic League his senior year, as well as second-team California Interscholastic Federation All-Central Coast Section and San Jose Mercury-News second-team all-area…second-team all-conference, honorable mention all-sectional and honorable mention all-area as a junior…coached by Michael Rubin…member of the football team his freshman and sophomore years…played for the Bay to Bay Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Double major in business administration and marketing…born Oct. 11, 1987.

Tom O'Connell Jr.

Middle Blocker
Sophomore
6-6, 165, Chicago, Ill. (Brother Rice)

2008:  Played in 22-of-33 matches and made 10 starts…compiled a .327 attack percentage and averaged 0.67 blocks per game…collected a season-high 11 kills against Quincy on Feb. 16…team leader in service aces with a 0.33 per game mark.

High School:  His senior-year team won a Chicago Catholic League title and qualified for the Illinois High School Association state championship…his junior-year team also qualified for the state championship…coached by Paul Ickes…four-year honor student.

Personal:  Communication major…born June 10, 1989.

Andy Patton

Outside Hitter
Junior
6-2, 180, Wauwatosa, Wis. (East)

2008:  Played in 31-of-33 matches and made 25 starts…compiled a .234 attack percentage…named to the all-tournament team at the Jan. 26-27 Stevens Institute of Technology Tournament…collected 10 or more kills in 13 matches, including a career-high 20 kills against St. Ambrose on March 29…hit .529 (10-1-17) against Missouri Valley on March 29.

2007:  Played in 11 matches…compiled a .480 attack percentage.

High School:  Named first-team all-state and first-team Greater Metro Conference his senior year…second-team all-state and first-team all-conference as a junior…his freshman-year team qualified for the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association state championship…his sophomore, junior and senior-year teams all runner-ups at the sectional…coached by John Simon…National Honor Society member and honor student…played for the North Shore Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Biology major…named to the spring 2007 Carthage athletic director’s honor roll…born April 11, 1988.

Allan Russo

Outside Hitter
Graduated Senior
6-2, 185, Bridgeview, Ill. (Oak Lawn)

2008:  Named All-Midwest-III Conference with a 2.54 kills-per-game average and 2.16 digs per game…started all 33 matches…collected 10 or more kills in 14 matches, including a career-high 20 kills against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Jan. 26.

2007:  Played in all 33 matches and made 32 starts…averaged 2.20 kills per game (10th in the MIVA Coleman Division) collected 10 or more kills on 10 occasions, including a career-high 14 kills against St. Ambrose on both Feb. 24 and March 24…compiled a 0.34 service aces average (4th in the MIVA Coleman Division).

2006:  Played in 23-of-25 matches and made 23 starts.

2005:  Only player on the team to appear in all 26 matches and made a team-leading 20 starts…compiled a .220 attack percentage and second on the team in digs (1.37 per game)…collected career highs of 13 kills against St. Ambrose on February 1 and Cardinal Stritch on March 31.

High School:  Named all-state, all-area and All-Southwest Inter-Conference Association both his junior and senior years...set a school career record for kills...played on two conference-championship teams and one regional-championship squad...coached by Dennis McNamara...three-year member of the football team and played baseball his freshman year...honor student…played for the Premier Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Criminal justice major...named 2005 and 2006 MIVA All-Academic…a two-semester member of the Carthage athletic director’s honor roll…born Dec. 20, 1985.

Juri Veldre

Outside Hitter
Senior
6-5, 220, West Allis, Wis. (Central)

2008:  Named All-Midwest-III Conference and league MVP with a .211 attack percentage, a team-leading 3.09 kills-per-game average and a 0.70 blocks-per-game mark…started all 33 matches…collected 10 or more kills in 18 matches, including a career-high 23 kills in the March 28 Clarke contest…set Carthage season records for kills (355) and total attempts (900)…collected seven block assists against Vassar on Jan. 19.

2007:  Played in 28-of-33 matches and made 20 starts…compiled a .226 attack percentage (10th in the MIVA Coleman Division) and averaged 2.46 kills per game (7th in the MIVA Coleman Division)…collected a career-high 15 kills against Clarke on March 21 and Juniata on April 14.

2006:  Played in four matches and made two starts.

High School:  Named second-team All-Greater Metro Conference both his junior and senior years…coached by Pete Remoren…four-year member of the track and field team and won a league title his senior year in the 55-meter high hurdles…played basketball one year…played for the North Shore Milwaukee Volleyball Club.

Personal:  Undecided on major…named 2006 MIVA All-Academic…named to the fall 2005 Carthage dean’s list…born June 4, 1987.

Tim Walker

Middle Blocker
Sophomore
Milwaukee, Wis. (Marquette University High School), 170, 6-3

2008:  Named AVCA second-team All-America and All-Midwest-III Conference with a team-leading .422 attack percentage (tied for fifth in NCAA Division III), 2.69 kills per game and a team-high 1.07 blocks per game (ranked 17th nationally)…played in 32-of-33 matches and made 32 starts…collected 10 or more kills in 12 matches, including a season-high 20 kills in the Jan. 26 Massachusetts Institute of Technology match…set a Carthage match record against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Jan. 26 by hitting .667 in 27 attempts…set Carthage season records for block assists (98) and total blocks (123)…tied a match record with nine total blocks against Vassar College on Jan. 19 and matched that versus Hunter on Jan. 26.

High School:  Named Wisconsin Boys Volleyball Coaches Association all-state and All-Greater Metro Conference his senior year…both his sophomore and senior-year teams won Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association state championships, and his junior-year squad won a sectional title…coached by Larry Sorenson…member of the track and field team his freshman year…honor student.

Personal:  Undecided on major…born June 11, 1989.

Matt Wallace

Outside Hitter
Sophomore
Plainfield, Ill. (Naperville-Nequa Valley), 6-2, 170

2008:  Played in 21-of-33 matches and made two starts…collected a season-high 13 kills against Vassar on Feb. 9.

High School:  Named Chicago Tribune second-team all-state his senior year, as well as first-team all-area by both the Chicago Sun-Times and the Daily Herald and All-Upstate Eight Conference…his senior-year team finished third in the Illinois High School Association state championship…set a school career record for kills…coached by Tim Piatek.

Personal:  Exercise and sport science major…born April 5, 1989.