Carthage College 2007 Women’s Volleyball Preview

GENERAL

Name of school	Carthage College
Location	Kenosha, Wis.
Founded	1847
Enrollment	2,180
Nickname	Lady Reds
School colors	Red, white and black
Home arena	Carthage Physical Education Center
Capacity	2,350
Affiliation	NCAA Division III
Conference	CCIW
President	F. Gregory Campbell
Athletics director	Robert R. Bonn
Assistant athletics director	Steve Marovich
Senior woman administrator	Leanne Ulmer
Athletics phone	262-551-5942

HISTORY

First year of women’s volleyball	1975
Overall all-time record	701-624-24
Years in NCAA/last	3/2006
Last post-season opponent, year	UW-Eau Claire, 2006
Result	L, 3-2
CCIW championships	1990, 1993, 2004, 2005 and 2006

SPORTS INFORMATION

Sports information director	Steve Marovich
SID e-mail	stevich@concentric.net
SID office phone	262-551-5740
SID home phone	262-551-5547
SID Fax	262-551-5926 or 815-371-2840 (Internet fax)
Athletics fax	262-551-5995
Hotline	262-551-5388
Athletics web site	http://www.carthage.edu/athletics
SID Mailing Address	2001 Alford Park Drive Kenosha, WI 53140

LOCAL MEDIA

Kenosha News

Dave Marran, sports editor

715 58th St./Kenosha, WI 53141

262-656-6290; 262-657-4946 (FAX)

sports@kenoshanews.com

Racine Journal-Times

Susan Shemanske, sports editor

212 4th St./Racine, WI 53403

262-631-1750; 262-631-1780 (FAX)

racine.sports@lee.net

COACHING STAFF

Head coach	Leanne Ulmer
Record at school (years)	162-57 (6)
Career record (years)	162-57 (6)
Women’s volleyball phone	262-551-6681
Best time to reach	8-11 a.m.
E-mail	lulmer@carthage.edu
Student assistant coaches	Rob Koehler, Tiffany Thorsell
Head athletics trainer	Laurie Jensen

TEAM INFORMATION

	Total	Home	Away	Neutral
2006 record	29-5	10-2	3-2	16-3
CCIW record	7-0	5-0	2-0	----

Conference finish	1st place
Final ranking last year	9th
Poll	AVCA
Starters returning/lost	5/2
Letterwinners returning/lost	9/6

2007 SCHEDULE

DATE	DAY	OPPONENT	TIME/RESULT	LOCATION
		Elmhurst Tournament
Aug. 31	Fri.	Wisconsin-Oshkosh St. Scholastica	6 p.m. 8 p.m.	Elmhurst, Ill. Elmhurst, Ill.
Sept. 1	Sat.	TBA TBA	10 a.m./Noon 2 p.m.	Elmhurst, Ill. Elmhurst, Ill.
		Mount St. Joseph Tournament
Sept. 7	Fri.	Transylvania Capital	3:30 p.m., EDT 7:30 p.m., EDT	Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati, Ohio
Sept. 8	Sat.	Lake Erie TBA	Noon, EDT 4 p.m., EDT	Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati, Ohio
		Wisconsin-La Crosse Tournament
Sept. 14	Fri.	Illinois Wesleyan St. Thomas (Minn.)	5:30 p.m. 7:30 p.m.	La Crosse, Wis. La Crosse, Wis.
Sept. 15	Sat.	Wisconsin-La Crosse Lakeland	10 a.m. Noon	La Crosse, Wis. La Crosse, Wis.
Sept. 18	Tue.	Lake Forest	7 p.m.	Kenosha, Wis.
		Wheaton (Ill.) Tournament
Sept. 21	Fri.	Lakeland University of Chicago	3 p.m. 7 p.m.	Wheaton, Ill. Wheaton, Ill.
Sept. 22	Sat.	Cornell Culver-Stockton	12:30 p.m. 2:30 p.m.	Wheaton, Ill. Wheaton, Ill.
Sept. 25	Tue.	*Illinois Wesleyan	7:30 p.m.	Kenosha, Wis.
Sept. 29	Sat.	*Millikin	2 p.m.	Kenosha, Wis.
Oct. 2	Tue.	*North Central	7:30 p.m.	Naperville, Ill.
Oct. 6	Sat.	*Wheaton (Ill.)	Noon	Kenosha, Wis.
Oct. 9	Tue	*North Park	7:30 p.m.	Chicago, Ill.
		Wisconsin-Oshkosh Tournament
Oct. 12	Fri.	Wisconsin-La Crosse Wisconsin-Whitewater	5 p.m. 7:15 p.m.	Oshkosh, Wis. Oshkosh, Wis.
Oct. 13	Sat.	Juniata TBA	10 a.m. 12:15 p.m.	Oshkosh, Wis. Oshkosh, Wis.
Oct. 16	Tue.	*Elmhurst	7:30 p.m.	Elmhurst, Ill.
Oct. 19	Fri.	*Augustana (Ill.)	7:30 p.m.	Rock Island, Ill.
		Wittenberg Tournament
Oct. 26	Fri.	Juniata University of Dallas	6 p.m., EDT 8 p.m., EDT	Springfield, Ohio Springfield, Ohio
Oct. 27	Tue.	Wittenberg Carnegie Mellon	11 a.m., EDT 2 p.m., EDT	Springfield, Ohio Springfield, Ohio
		CCIW Play-In Match
Oct. 30	Tue.	TBA	7 p.m.	TBA
		CCIW Tournament
Nov. 2	Fri.	TBA	TBA	TBA
Nov. 3	Sat.	TBA	TBA	TBA

*CCIW matches

Times listed are Central Time

Home matches in bold

PLAYER INFORMATION

R/L	Name	Pos.	Yr.	MP-MS	K	Pct.	Blocks	Assists	Honors
R	Jori Simmons	MB	Sr.	32-32	2.54	.339	1.14		AVCA All-America
R	Kelly Bauer	S/RS	Sr.	34-31	1.13	.256	0.64	10.39	AVCA all-region
R	Ashley Kuehl	OH	Sr.	33-32	3.68	.198	0.60		First-team All-CCIW
R	Sarah Carlino	OH	Jr.	29-27	2.17	.169	0.31
L	Tiffany Thorsell	MB	Grad.	34-33	2.22	.304	1.18

Leading Newcomers

Name	Pos.	Yr.	Honors
Alyssa Cejna	OH	Fr.	All-West Suburban League
Kate Flanagan	S	Fr.	All-Mid-Suburban League, Daily Herald all-area
Katie Jacobson	OH	Fr.	All-Fox Valley Conference
Emily Stein	RS	Fr.	Wisconsin State Journal all-area, All-Big 8 Conference
Rachel Swoboda	RS	Fr.	All-Olympian Conference, honorable mention all-state

CARTHAGE WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL NOTES

2006 Season Review

“What’s really been gratifying is that it’s been a process of getting to this point. We had to get the right kids here, and we’ve chipped away at things over the years.”

- Coach Leanne Ulmer

Only six years removed from back-to-back seasons where Carthage College women’s volleyball failed to win a single College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin match, the astounding progress continued in 2006. Coach Leanne Ulmer’s 2006 squad went 29-5 and won its third-straight CCIW title, including two-consecutive outright crowns, and the Lady Reds made their second-straight appearance at the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional Championship. En route, Carthage extended its regular-season CCIW winning streak to 23 matches, which broke a league record set by Elmhurst College from 1986 to 1988. Carthage won its last two 2003 conference matches and all seven in 2004, 2005 and 2006. The 2006 team finished the regular season ranked eighth in the American Volleyball Coaches Association/College Sports Television NCAA Division III poll, after being ranked as high as No. 6 earlier in the season. The No. 6 ranking was the highest-ever for a Carthage team.

“We were an older, more mature team in 2006,” pointed out coach Ulmer. “The junior class hasn’t lost a conference match since arriving here, and the seniors played with a real sense of urgency. I’m really proud of these girls for breaking the record, and I know they take pride in what they accomplished.”

The Lady Red earned the CCIW’s automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball Championship by winning the CCIW Women’s Volleyball Tournament with a 3-0 win over No. 26 Illinois Wesleyan University (24-12). The Lady Reds’ winning game scores over the Titans were 30-19, 30-27 and 31-29. Carthage swept Millikin University (23-14), 3-0, in a semifinal contest. The Lady Reds’ winning game scores over the Big Blue were 30-19, 30-21 and 30-24. Illinois Wesleyan swept Wheaton College (Ill., 19-12), 3-0, in the other semifinal match. Carthage swept North Park University (5-28), 3-0, in a CCIW play-in match. The Lady Reds’ winning game scores over the Vikings were 30-17, 30-13 and 30-13.

Carthage’s Tiffany Thorsell (graduated-senior, Oakdale, Minn./Tartan) was named the MVP of the CCIW Women’s Volleyball Tournament. Also named to the all-tournament team were teammates Kelly Bauer (Sr., Brookfield, Wis./Central) and Jori Simmons (Sr., Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East). “We were thrilled to win the CCIW tournament,” said Ulmer. “Our goal from the beginning was to win the conference championship and win the tournament. Mission accomplished, and the girls did an awesome job. What’s really been gratifying is that it’s been a process of getting to this point. We had to get the right kids here, and we’ve chipped away at things over the years.”

Carthage lost to No. 7 and third-seeded Wisconsin-Eau Claire (29-3), 3-2, in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional Championship at Wisconsin-Eau Claire’s McPhee Physical Education Center in Eau Claire, Wis. The Blugolds’ winning game scores over the sixth-seeded Lady Reds were 30-17, 26-30, 25-30, 30-26 and 17-15.

Wisconsin-Eau Claire never trailed in the first game. The Blugolds jumped out to an 11-5 lead. Following a Carthage time out, the Lady Reds pulled to within three, 11-8, but the Wisconsin-Eau Claire used a 12-4 run to open up a nine-point lead, 23-12, and the Blugolds went on to win by 13, 30-17. Carthage bounced right back in game two, taking an early 7-1 lead. The Lady Reds led by eight, 13-5, before Wisconsin-Eau Claire went on an 8-3 run to tie the contest, 16-16. Carthage used an 8-3 run of its own to back up by five, 24-19. The Lady Reds had 26-21 lead disappear into a 26-26 tie before running off the last four points for a 30-26 decision.

The Lady Reds fell behind early in the game three before taking a 14-10 lead. With the game tied at 9-9, Carthage lost the services of middle blocker Tiffany Thorsell with a toe injury. Thorsell did not return to the match. The Blugolds made it a one-point game, 16-15, and neither team led by more than that until Carthage inched away, 24-21. The Lady Reds led by as much as six, 28-22, and went on to win game three by a 30-25 margin. In game four, Carthage fell behind, 11-7, in the early going and fell behind by eight, 23-15. The Blugolds upped their lead to nine, 26-17. The Lady Reds cut the lead to three, 29-26, but Wisconsin-Eau Claire got the game point for a 30-26 decision in game four.

In the decisive game five, the Lady Reds jumped out to a 5-0 lead. Wisconsin-Eau Claire made it a one-point game on three occasions, the last time at 8-7, before Carthage used a 4-0 run to go up by five, 12-7. The Blugolds came right back with four points of their own to make it 12-11. Carthage led, 13-11, but Wisconsin-Eau Claire tied it 13-13. There was another tie at 14-14 and one at 15-15 before Wisconsin-Eau Claire finally won, 17-15.

“In the first game, we were a little flat, a little nervous and a little out of synch.” admitted Ulmer. “Wisconsin-Eau Claire came out strong, and we just didn’t play well at all. We responded very nicely in game two and did a nice job. We were pretty much in control of that game. Paige Pedrigi to a fabulous job of filling in for Tiffany Thorsell after Tiffany got hurt. In game four, our serve-receive didn’t go so well, and we weren’t as aggressive as we needed to be. We got a nice run going in game five, but it’s never easy at this point in the season. We had some opportunities to close things out, but we weren’t able to get the blocks or attacks we needed. It was a great match, hard-fought on both sides, and it was going to be a tough loss for somebody. It was exactly the kind of match you’d expect to get with two really good teams. We came up a little short, but I have nothing but good things to say about our kids. We did everything we needed to do at the end except win. There’s nothing to hang our heads about.”

Carthage was part of a seven-team regional field. The tournament opened with No. 9 and second-seeded the University of St. Thomas (Minn., 29-6) outlasting No. 10 and fourth-seeded Wisconsin-Oshkosh (32-5), 3-2, and No. 3 and second-seeded Concordia College (Moorhead, 25-1) defeating seventh-seeded Beloit College (21-9), 3-1. Top-seeded and No. 6 Wisconsin-Whitewater, with a bye in the quarterfinals, swept St. Thomas (Minn., 29-7), 3-0, in the semifinals, with Wisconsin-Eau Claire (30-3) outlasting Concordia (Moorhead, 25-2), 3-2, in the other semifinal match. Wisconsin-Whitewater (34-6) defeated Wisconsin-Eau Claire (30-4), 3-1, for the regional championship.

Carthage was ranked ninth in the final 2007 American Volleyball Coaches Association/College Sports Television NCAA Division III poll. Juniata College (41-1, 24 first-place votes) was ranked first, followed by Washington University (Mo., 38-2) second, Wisconsin-Whitewater (35-7) third, Wittenberg University (35-8) fourth, Trinity University (Texas, 32-7) fifth, Wisconsin-Eau Claire (30-4) sixth, Concordia College (Moorhead, 25-2) seventh, the University of LaVerne (27-3) eighth, Carthage (29-5) ninth and Emory University (28-11) ranked 10th

Middle blocker Jori Simmons (Sr., Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East, .373 attack percentage, 2.54 kills per game, 1.14 blocks per game) was named American Volleyball Coaches Association honorable mention All-America for the second-straight year, as well as AVCA first-team All-Midwest Regional, CCIW Women’s Volleyball Player of the Year and CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America®. Setter Kelly Bauer (Sr., Brookfield, Wis./Central, 10.39 assists per game, 0.52 service aces per game) was named honorable mention all-region and second-team All-CCIW. Middle blocker Tiffany Thorsell (graduated-senior, Oakdale, Minn./Tartan, .308 attack percentage, 2.22 kills per game, 1.18 blocks per game) and outside hitter Ashley Kuehl (Sr., McFarland, Wis., 3.68 kills per game) joined Simmons as first-team all-conference honorees. Simmons, Carthage’s first CCIW Women’s Volleyball Player of the Year since Beth Nienhuis in 1990, has been named first-team All-CCIW three-straight seasons. Thorsell was named second-team All-CCIW in 2004 and honorable mention all-conference in 2003. Bauer was named first-team all-conference in both 2004 and 2005.

Leanne Ulmer was named AVCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year for the first time and CCIW Women’s Volleyball Coach of the Year for the second time. She also received the conference award for the 2002 season, her second at Carthage. In only her sixth season as the Carthage coach, Ulmer is now second all-time at the school in career wins (162), and first in winning percentage (162-56, .743). “It was an amazing season.” said Ulmer, “and you never know when you might have a season like this. I knew we had a strong team, but the girls have brought it all together at the right times and in the big matches. It was a great team effort. We’re just sorry it had to end.”

2007 Season Preview

Carthage returns nine-of-15 letterwinners and five-of-seven starters from its 2006 CCIW-championship team. Leading the returnees are AVCA All-American and CCIW “Women’s Volleyball Player of the Year” Jori Simmons, AVCA All-Midwest Regional player Kelly Bauer and first-team All-CCIW honoree Ashley Kuehl (Sr., McFarland, Wis., team-leading 3.68 kills per game, .198 attack percentage). Also returning are Sarah Carlino (Jr., Kildeer, Ill./Lake Zurich, 2.17 kills per game, 0.53 service aces per game) and Katie Lundgren (So., Long Grove, Ill./Lincolnshire-Stevenson, starting libero in 2006, 4.26 digs per game).

Leading newcomers include outside hitter Alyssa Cejna (Fr., Lombard, Ill./Villa Park-Willowbrook, All-West Suburban League), setter Kate Flanagan (Fr., Wheeling, Ill., Daily Herald all-area), outside hitter Katie Jacobson (Fr., Woodstock, Ill., All-Fox Valley Conference), right-side hitter Emily Stein (Fr., Madison, Wis./East, Wisconsin State Journal all-area) and right-side hitter Rachel Swoboda (Fr., De Pere, Wis./Wrightstown, honorable mention all-state).

The Lady Reds play in six 2007 tournaments, including the Aug. 31-Sept. 1 Elmhurst College Tournament, the Sept. 7-8 College of Mount St. Joseph Tournament, the Sept. 14-15 Wisconsin-La Crosse Tournament, the Sept. 21-22 Wheaton College (Ill.) Tournament and the Oct. 12-13 Wisconsin-Oshkosh Tournament and the Oct. 26-27 Wittenberg University “Fall Classic.”

Carthage will take on defending-national champion and last year’s No. 1 team, Juniata College twice, the first time on Oct. 13 at the Wisconsin-Oshkosh Tournament and again on Oct. 26 at the Wittenberg tournament. The Lady Reds also face national-semifinalist and No. 3 Wisconsin-Whitewater on Oct. 12 at the Wisconsin-Oshkosh Tournament, No. 11 the University of St. Thomas (Minn.) on Sept. 14 at the Wisconsin-La Crosse Tournament, No. 14 Wisconsin-Oshkosh on Aug. 31 at the Elmhurst Tournament and No. 24 Capital University on Sept. 7 at the Mount St. Joseph Tournament.