DURHAM, N.H. - The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team ended its spring season hosting a five-team tournament on Saturday afternoon at Lundholm Gym. The Wildcats won four of five games on the day with wins against Boston College (30-28), Maine (30-25), Rhode Island (30-24) and the UNH alumni (30-22) and a loss to Harvard (30-27). UNH played each team for one game to 30 points in rally scoring format.

~Williams named 2004 MVP, Walker named Captain for 2005~

DURHAM, N.H. - Senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif.) of the University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was named Most Valuable Player for the 2004 season at the annual team awards banquet in the Oak Room at Huddleston Hall on Saturday night.

~UNH to play defending national champion Stanford at Lundholm Gym~

DURHAM, N.H. - University of New Hampshire head volleyball coach Jill Hirschinger announced the 2005 volleyball schedule for the upcoming season on Thursday afternoon.

DURHAM, N.H. - The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team will host its annual spring tournament on Saturday, April 23 at Lundholm Gymnasium in conjunction with the annual team awards banquet. The team banquet will be held at 6 p.m. on Saturday in the Oak Room at Huddleston Hall. The Wildcat Class of 2004 will be honored for their achievements over the past four seasons and team captains will be announced for the upcoming 2005 season.

The University of New Hampshire announces a special volleyball tournament that will take place on Sunday, May 1 at 1:00 pm at Lundholm Gymnasium.

KINGSTON, R.I. - The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team opened its 2005 spring schedule Saturday afternoon at the URI Tournament in Kingston, Rhode Island. The Wildcats won four of seven games on the day with wins against Rhode Island (30-22), Bryant (31-29), Connecticut (30-26) and the URI alumni (30-28) and losses to Boston College (27-30), Fairfield (23-30) and Northeastern (23-30). UNH played each team for one game to 30 points in rally scoring format.

DURHAM, N.H. - University of New Hampshire head volleyball coach Jill Hirschinger has announced the hiring of Stacy Barnett as assistant coach of the UNH women's volleyball program.

DURHAM, N.H. — Senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif) of the University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team toured Europe with Bring It USA, a professional indoor volleyball team.

DURHAM, N.H. — University of New Hampshire head volleyball coach Jill Hirschinger announced on Thursday afternoon the signing of setter Lucia Bridova (Bratislava, Slovakia) to a national letter of intent.

DURHAM, N.H. — Freshman outside hitter Emmy Blouin (St. Albert, Alberta) of the University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was named Rookie of the Week as announced by the America East conference on Monday afternoon.

DURHAM, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by University at Albany, 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at Lundholm Gymnasium in the final match of the regular season. The games scores were 27-30, 30-18, 27-30 and 26-30.

DURHAM, N.H. - The UNH Wildcats outplayed the Binghamton Bearcats throughout the evening, sweeping the visitors, 30-15, 30-20, and 30-27, Friday night at Lundholm Gymnasium.

DURHAM, N.H. — University of New Hampshire head volleyball coach Jill Hirschinger announced on Wednesday afternoon the signing of outside hitter Caitlin Dowd (Portsmouth, N.H.) to a national letter of intent.

WEST HARTFORD, CT (Nov. 6) - The University of Hartford volleyball team overcame a 2-0 deficit but fell 3-2 in five games to New Hampshire at Reich Family Pavilion on Saturday afternoon.

Larissa Adomat and Kira Batura recorded double-digit kills as the Northeastern volleyball team swept visiting New Hampshire 3-0 (30-21, 30-26, 36-34) Friday night at Solomon Court. The Huskies improve to 18-9 overall and 9-2 in the America East as head coach Ken Nichols picked up his 100th win at the helm of the Huskies.

BALTIMORE, Md. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team won its third conference match of the season with a 3-1 win over University of Maryland-Baltimore County on Saturday afternoon at RAC Arena. The game scores were 30-20, 25-30, 31-29 and 30-27.

STONY BROOK, N.Y. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by Stony Brook University, 3-0, on Friday night at the Stony Brook Sports Complex. The games scores were 23-30, 19-30 and 18-30.

DURHAM, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by the University of Maine, 3-1, on Tuesday night at Lundholm Gymnasium. The games scores were 27-30, 27-30, 30-22 and 20-30.

DURHAM, N.H. — The New Hampshire Wildcats put up a valiant effort, but could not contain the offense of the Northeastern Huskies, as the visitors swept the home team, 30-20, 30-21, and 30-25, Saturday afternoon at Lundholm Gymnasium.

DURHAM, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team defeated the University of Hartford, 3-0, on Friday night at Lundholm Gymnasium. The game scores were 30-27, 30-21 and 30-27.

Albany, N.Y. - Shelby Goldman and Ashley Hunter each recorded 14 kills to lead UAlbany to a 3-0 victory over New Hampshire in America East Conference women's volleyball action on Sunday, Oct. 17 at University Gymnasium. The Great Danes registered scores of 30-20, 30-27 and 30-23 to remain the conference's only unbeaten team at 5-0.

~Williams becomes all-time school dig leader with 1,243 in her career~

VESTAL, N.Y. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team won its first conference match of the season with a 3-1 win over Binghamton University on Saturday afternoon at West Gym. The game scores were 30-25, 26-30, 30-19 and 30-27.

DURHAM, N.H. - After dropping the first game of the match, the Stony Brook Seawolves came back to win the next three games to defeat the UNH Wildcats, 3-1 (29-31, 30-18, 30-26, 30-28) Saturday night at Lundholm Gymnasium.

DURHAM, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by Maryland-Baltimore County, 3-2, on Friday night at Lundholm Gymnasium. The game scores were 32-30, 26-30, 18-30, 30-24 and 11-15.

The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team lost to the University of Maine in the America East opener on Tuesday night at Memorial Gym. The game scores were 19-30, 30-27, 26-30, 30-21 and 13-15.

DURHAM, N.H.- The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team will host its fifth annual "Pack the Arena Day" on Saturday, October 9th vs. conference rival Stony Brook University. Match time at Lundholm Gym is 7 p.m.

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team lost to Big East foe Boston College, 3-1 on Tuesday night at Power Gym. The game scores were 26-30, 30-28, 16-30 and 27-30.

FAIRFIELD, CONN. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team lost to St. Louis University, 3-0 in its final match of the Fairfield Invitational at Alumni Hall on Saturday night. The game scores were 23-30, 19-30 and 20-30.

FAIRFIELD, CONN. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by host Fairfield University, 3-1 on Friday night at Alumni Hall in the opening match for the Wildcats of the Fairfield Invitational. The game scores were 30-27, 28-30, 28-30 and 38-40.

DURHAM, N.H. — University of New Hampshire assistant volleyball coach Karolyn Kirby, a Brookline, Mass. native, will be honored on Tuesday, Sept. 28th during UNH's match against Boston College (7 p.m.) at Power Gym in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

HANOVER, N.H. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team defeated intrastate rival Dartmouth College, 3-0 on Tuesday night at Leede Arena. The game scores were 30-21, 31-29 and 30-28.

The Wildcats upped their record to 4-7 on the season, while Dartmouth fell to 1-7 with the loss.

Junior co-captain Erin Walker (Fulton, N.Y.) led the Wildcats offense with a match-high 16 points, 12 kills and she also chipped in with 12 digs on defense. Junior middle hitter Karen Harrington (Windham, N.H.) recorded seven kills, while sophomore setter Katie Weidner (Warrenville, Ill.) tallied 30 assists, 11 digs and four aces running the 'Cat attack.

Senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif.) posted a match-high 16 digs in another solid effort on defense. Freshman outside hitter Emmy Blouin (St. Albert, Alb.) added five kills and an impressive .400 hitting percentage.

The Wildcat volleyball team returns to action on Friday, Sept. 24th at the Fairield Invitational to play the host Stags at 7 p.m.

KINGSTON, R.I. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team lost to Rutgers University, 3-0 in the its final match of the Rhode Island Invitational at Keaney Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. The game scores were 22-30, 31-33 and 23-30.

KINGSTON, R.I. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by host Rhode Island, 3-1 on Friday night at Keaney Gymnasium in their second match on the opening day of the Rhode Island Invitational. The game scores were 18-30, 16-30, 34-32 and 25-30.

With the two losses, UNH drops to 3-6 on the year.

In the Rhode Island match, UNH sophomore outside hitter Sarah Rehn (Oceanside, Calif.) led the 'Cat attack with a team-high 13 kills and 15 digs on the night. Freshman outside hitter Emmy Blouin (St. Albert, Alb.) chipped in with seven kills and nine digs and junior outside hitter Erin Walker (Fulton, N.Y.) notched eight kills and seven digs. Sophomore setter Katie Weidner (Warrenville, Ill.) recorded 37 assists and eight digs quarterbacking the 'Cat attack. Senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif.) posted 10 digs in the loss with another double-digit dig performance.

In UNH's first match of the day, the 'Cats were defeated by Harvard, 3-1. The game scores were 23-30, 22-30, 30-20 and 20-30.

The 'Cat attack was led by Walker, who posted a match-high 16 kills, while Blouin recorded nine kills, which was second best on the Wildcat' roster, to go along with nine digs and a .350 hitting percentage. Williams turned in another strong performance with 11 digs, while Weidner posted 49 helpers assisting UNH's offense. Weidner also chipped in with seven digs and Williams tallied a career-high seven service aces in the loss to the Crimson.

UNH volleyball continues play in the final day of the Rhode Island Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 18 against Rutgers University at 11 a.m. to conclude the tournament.

DURHAM, N.H. — University of New Hampshire assistant volleyball coach Karolyn Kirby, a Brookline, Mass. native, will be honored by the Boston Red Sox for her recent election to the Volleyball Hall of Fame at Wednesday night's game vs. the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at 7:05 at Fenway Park in Boston.

Kirby will be recognized with a plaque for her outstanding achievements in the sport of volleyball during the pre-game ceremonies on the field.

She won a gold medal in beach volleyball at the 1992 Olympic games in Barcelona, Spain, and played 10 seasons (1989-1998) in the WPVA/AVP. From 1985 to 1987, Kirby played indoor volleyball for Team USA as the starting setter and captained the team in 1987.

Kirby was deemed the "Best Player in the World" by the FIVB for three straight years (1992-1994) and was named Most Valuable Player of the WPVA four times. Kirby retired from professional volleyball in 1998, leaving the game as the all-time winningest player with 64 tournament wins. She was also recently named a "Top Ten Player of the Century" by USA Volleyball. Kirby also earned WPVA "Best Setter" honors in six of her 10 years on the tour.

She most recently coached the Bulgarian National Beach Team for three years (2000-2002) and helped them to a ranking of ninth in the world. In the 2000 Summer Olympic games in Sydney, Australia, Kirby guided the team to a 17th place finish. Kirby also earned a gold medal on the U.S. indoor volleyball team at the 1994 Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Kirby played three seasons (1979-1981) at Utah State and was a two-time All-American (1980 and 1981). Kirby finished her collegiate playing career at the University of Kentucky in 1983 as she was named an All-American for her efforts and was a finalist for the prestigious Honda Broderick Award, which is awarded to the most outstanding female collegiate volleyball player in the country. In 1983 while at Kentucky, Kirby was named to the SEC All-Tournament Team and was deemed Most Valuable Player of the SEC Tournament. Kirby also served as a student assistant coach in 1984 at the University of Florida.

Kirby, who was born in Boston, Mass., is a 1979 graduate of Brookline (Mass.) High School, where she was a four-year varsity player as well as a two-year captain. She was the "Boston Globe" high school Player of the Year in 1979 and led the team to a state championship that same season.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team lost to host Syracuse University in the championship match of the Big Orange Volleyball Invitational, 3-1 on Saturday night at Manley Field House. The game scores were 30-28, 30-27, 25-30 and 30-22.

With the split, the Wildcats fall to 3-4 on the season, while Syracuse improves to a perfect 8-0 on the year.

In the Syracuse match, junior middle hitter Karen Harrington (Windham, N.H.) posted a team-high nine kills and added four blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Sarah Rehn (Oceanside, Calif.) registered eight kills, while senior co-captain Natasha Otte (Plymouth, N.H.) tallied seven kills, seven digs and three blocks.

Sophomore setter Katie Weidner (Warrenville, Ill.) racked up 42 helpers and a match-high 14 digs in the loss. Freshman outside hitter Emmy Blouin (St. Albert, Alberta) chipped in with seven kills and seven digs. Senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif.) recorded nine digs and five service aces in the loss to the Orange.

In the early match, the Wildcats knocked off Manhattan College in their second match of the tournament, 3-0. The game scores were 30-26, 31-29, 30-24.

Junior co-captain Erin Walker (Fulton, N.Y.) led UNH with a match-high 13 kills to go along with a .524 hitting percentage. Rehn tallied 10 kills, which was second best on the 'Cats' roster and she added 13 digs in the win over the Jaspers.

Otte turned in another solid performance with nine kills, eight digs and four total blocks.

Williams notched her fifth double-digit dig effort of the season with a match-high 16 digs, while Weidner amassed 40 assists and 10 digs running the Wildcat attack.

UNH volleyball returns to action on Friday, Sept. 17th at the Rhode Island Tournament, the Wildcats face Harvard University at 2 p.m. and host Rhode Island at 7 p.m.

~Williams becomes UNH's sixth member of the 1,000 dig club~

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team defeated Siena College in three straight games on Friday, Sept. 10 in the opening match of the Big Orange Volleyball Tournament hosted by Syracuse University at Manley Field House. The game scores were 30-17, 30-25 and 30-28.

With the win the Wildcats improve to 2-3 on the season, while Siena drops to 2-2 with the loss.

Senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif.) amassed her 1,000 career dig in the match and she became the sixth member of the Wildcat 1,000 dig club with eight digs vs. Siena

UNH received notable performances from freshmen outside hitters Toni Barnas (Cary, Ill.) and Emmy Blouin (St. Albert, Alberta) who recorded career-highs of eight kills apiece. Blouin also notched nine digs and sophomore setter Katie Weidner (Warrenville, ill.) quarterbacked the Wildcats offense with 24 assists on the night.

Freshman middle blocker Jessica Compton (Woodridge, Ill.) made her collegiate debut posting two kills and three blocks.

Granite State natives Karen Harrington (Windham, N.H.) and Natasha Otte (Plymouth, N.H.) registered seven and six kills respectively in the win for the 'Cats.

UNH returns to action in the final day of the Big Orange Volleyball Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 11 with matches at 2 p.m. vs. Manhattan and 5 p.m. against host Syracuse.

STORRS, Conn.- The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by the University of Connecticut, 3-0 on Tuesday night at Gampel Pavilion. The game scores were 30-25, 30-19, 30-18.

~UNH's Weidner named to All-Tournament Team~

DURHAM, N.H.- The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was defeated by Arizona State, 3-1, in the final match of the Ocean National Bank Invitational on Saturday night at UNH's Lundholm Gymnasium. The game scores were 30-22, 22-30, 30-21 and 30-23.

UNH placed third in the tournament with a 1-2 record on the weekend while Arizona State earned second place with its 2-1 record. The University of Toledo captured the championship posting a 3-0 record while Florida International went 0-3 in the tourney to fall to 0-4 overall.

UNH captured a 3-1 win in its first match of the day against 2003 Ocean National Bank Invitational champion Florida International. The game scores were 30-28, 22-30, 30-27 and 30-25.

The Wildcats' attack was led by Sarah Rehn (Oceanside, Calif.) in only her third match as a Wildcat as she registered a match-high 16 kills, 16.5 points and also chipped in with 12 digs.

Junior outside hitter Erin Walker (Fulton, N.Y.) posted 12 kills and seven digs in the win, while senior libero Jen Williams (Mountain View, Calif.) totaled a match-high 21 digs. Sophomore setter Katie Weidner (Warrenville, Ill.) quarterbacked the Wildcats' offense with eight kills, 38 assists and 18 digs in a solid effort for the Wildcats. Weidner was UNH's lone selection to the Ocean National Bank All-Tournament Team.

In the nightcap, New Hampshire's offense was led by Rehn and senior co-captain Natasha Otte (Plymouth, N.H.) who amassed 13 kills apiece. Rehn also chipped in with 12 digs, while Williams posted another good showing on defense with a team-high 20 digs. Weidner tallied 39 assists, five kills and eight digs in the loss to the Sun Devils.

Williams notched 53 digs over the weekend in three matches and needs only 17 digs to become the sixth Wildcat in school history to post 1,000 career digs.

Toledo's Kelsey Culver was named the tournament's MVP. Her teammates Corrie Magnus and Rachel Mohler were named to the All-Tournament team. Florida International's freshman middle blocker Heather Huber was also an All-Tournament selection. Arizona State freshman Colette Meek and outside hitter Nicole Morton were named to the team from the Sun Devils.

UNH returns to action on Tuesday, September 7 at University of Connecticut. The Wildcats' next home game is Friday, October 8 vs. Maryland Baltimore-County. Match time is 7 p.m. at Lundholm Gym. The match will be broadcast live on the radio by the UNH Sports Network.

HOLYOKE, Mass. - — Four international greats of volleyball will be honored here in the birthplace of the sport on Friday, Oct. 15. Karolyn Kirby of the United States, Seiji Oko of Japan, Josef Musil of the Czech Republic and Mireya Luis of Cuba will be inducted to the Volleyball Hall of Fame in an afternoon ceremony.

The Hall's 19th enshrinement will take place at 2 p.m. at the Hall of Fame at 444 Dwight St. in Heritage State Park, immediately following a noon luncheon at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House. Tickets for the luncheon are $25. Admission to the ceremony is free of charge. Seating for both events is limited.

The Volleyball Hall of Fame Reception and Dinner will be held at the Holyoke Holiday Inn and Holidome beginning at 6 p.m., Oct. 15. Short videos highlighting the inductees' careers in volleyball will be shown. Dinner tickets prices are $55 per person or $500 per table of 10.

Spalding and American Athletic, Inc., divisions of Russell Corp., will serve as Title/Tournament Sponsors for the Induction Celebration.

Kirby played 10 seasons (1989-1998) in the Women's Professional Volleyball Association (WPVA)/Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP). She was deemed the "Best Player in the World" by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) for three straight years (1992-1994) and was named Most Valuable Player of the WPVA four times. Kirby also earned WPVA "Best Setter" honors in six of her 10 years on the tour. She won a Gold Medal in the Beach Volleyball Exhibition at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. Kirby played three seasons (1979-1981) at Utah State and was a two-time All-American (1980 and 1981). Kirby finished her collegiate playing career at the University of Kentucky in 1983. She was named an All-American for her efforts. She was named to the SEC All-Tournament Team and was deemed Most Valuable Player in 1983. Kirby is a 1979 graduate of Brookline (Mass.) High School, where she was a four-year varsity player as well as a two-year captain. She was the "Boston Globe High School Player of the Year" in 1979 when she led her team to a state championship.

Kirby retired from professional beach volleyball in 1998, leaving the game as the all-time winningest player. She was also recently named a "Top Ten Player of the Century" by USA Volleyball. Currently, she is assistant coach of the University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team.

Other events planned for the weekend include a coaches clinic with top coaches from around the world and an officials clinic slated for Saturday, Oct. 16 at Holyoke Community College. The Induction Celebration continues with the 16-team Women's Collegiate Volleyball Hall of Fame Induction Tournament at Smith, Mount Holyoke, Springfield and Amherst Colleges on Friday night, Oct. 22 and Saturday Oct. 23. Admission is free.

For more information on how to obtain tickets or to sponsor Induction Celebration events, contact the Volleyball Hall of Fame at (413) 536-0926, by e-mail at info@volleyhall.org or by visiting the website at www.volleyhall.org.

The Induction Celebration is sponsored in part by Spalding, AAI, PeoplesBank, The Holyoke Holiday Inn and The Holyoke Medical Center.

~Wildcats to open season on Friday, Sept. 3rd vs. Toledo~

BOSTON- The University of New Hampshire women's volleyball team was picked first in the America East conference preseason coaches' poll, which was released on Wednesday, Aug. 18th by the conference office.

The University of New Hampshire women’s volleyball team will look to become the second team in the 13-year history of America East to three-peat as conference champions.