Sept. 27, 2011
Zona/ASU Notes 
Friday, Sept. 30
7 p.m. - No. 4 Cal (13-2, 3-2 Pac-12) vs. Arizona (10-3, 2-2 Pac-12)
Haas Pavilion - Berkeley
Series Record vs. the Wildcats: 18-35
Last Meeting: W, 3-1 (11/26/10)
Coverage: GameTracker, Twitter, Free Video
Promotions:
•Youth Free - all youth grades 12 and below receive free admission on the night of the match
•Cal Faculty and Staff Night -All Cal faculty and staff will receive 4 complimentary tickets to the match by showing their Cal 1 Card at the ticket booth on the night of the match
•Post-Match Autographs
Saturday, Oct. 1
7 p.m. - No. 4 Cal (13-2, 3-2 Pac-12) vs. Arizona State (4-9, 0-4 Pac-12)
Haas Pavilion - Berkeley
Series Record vs. the Sun Devils: 26-28
Last Meeting: L, 3-2 (11/24/11)
Coverage: GameTracker, Twitter, Free Video
Promotions: Post-Match Autographs
BERKELEY - The No. 4 California volleyball team returns home to the friendly confines of Haas Pavilion to host the desert schools. Friday, Sept. 30 will see the Golden Bears (13-2, 3-2 in the Pac-12) face off against Arizona (10-3, 2-2 Pac-12) at 7 p.m. The Bears swept the Wildcats last season. Things conclude Oct. 1 against the Sun Devils of Arizona State (4-9, 0-4) at 7 p.m. In the last meeting with ASU, the Sun Devils emerged victoriously with a 3-2 win at Haas Pavilion.
Last Week With the Bears
Cal had a little trouble on the road in its last outing - dropping a 3-0 decision to then-No. 12 USC on Sept. 23 and a 3-1 loss to then-No. 7 UCLA on Sept. 24. Shannon Hawari notched 12 kills to set a new 2011 high, surpassing her previous best of 10 (vs. Stanford). Her 25 attacks were a career high, knocking off the 23 she took against the Cardinal. The 14.0 points she tallied tied her season best. Christina Higgins accumulated 7.0 points with six kills and two blocks. Against UCLA, Erin Freeman notched a season-high of 11 digs. The Bruins could not escape Hawari in set one, when she hit .571 with five kills.
Tarah Murrey Gets First Double-Doubles of the Year
Though the Bears dropped the two matches in Los Angeles last weekend, it was not for a lack of effort from senior Tarah Murrey, who notched double-doubles in each of the matches - her first of the year. Against USC, Murrey laid down 14 kills to pace the Bears in addition to her 15 digs for her first double-double of the year. Versus UCLA, Murrey set a 2011 high in attacks at 62. The El Cerrito, Calif., native made a squad-best 19 digs, blowing by her previous season best of 16. With her 19 digs and 18 kills versus UCLA, Murrey tallied her second double-double of the year.
Christina Higgins Feels at Home in SoCal
Freshman outside hitter Christina Higgins returned to her native Los Angeles for the first time since starting at Cal, and put on a show for her friends and family in attendance. Overall, she notched 15 kills, averaging 2.50 per set and hitting .243 (6e, 37att). She also made four blocks and one dig. Against USC - playing as close to her hometown of Inglewood, Calif., as she will all year - accumulated 7.0 points with six kills and two blocks. Versus UCLA, Higgins tallied nine kills, which is a new career high, besting her previous best of eight, which she achieved versus East Carolina.
Digging in With Rich Feller
Each Monday, Facebook fans of Cal Volleyball are invited to watch a video segment entitled "Digging in With Rich Feller." In the video, Cal head coach Rich Feller gives fans insight into the last week of play and upcoming games. Everyone is invited to ask questions of Coach Feller on Facebook and Twitter that he will answer in the video.
Golden Bear Superlatives
In each of the four weeks that the Bears were ranked best in the nation, their number of first-place votes grew with each passing week from 31 (Aug. 29) to 48 (Sept. 5) to 51 (Sept. 12) to last week's 58. The 13-0 start to the 2011 season matched the two best starts in program history - last year's team went 15-0 before losing a match and the best start in the annals came in 2003, when the Bears started 16-0
Rewriting the Record Books
•Shannon Hawari's 12 kills and 25 attacks were career highs in both categories
•The 62 attacks that Tarah Murrey went up for against the Bruins were a season high, nine more than her previous best
•Murrey led the Bears at UCLA with 19 digs, which were a new 2011 best
•Lillian Schonewise doubled her career high for digs with two versus UCLA
•Also reaching double-digit kills was Erin Freeman, whose 11 set a season high, besting her previous high of nine
•Kat Brown notched 17 attacks UCLA, which was three more than the last high
•Lindsey Parrott tallied her first-ever block and 0.5 point when she went up for a double stuff with Shannon Hawari
•Marlee Davis tied her season and career high with nine digs at UCLA (9/24)
•With nine kills, Christina Higgins notched a personal best, one-upping her previous total of eight
The Cal Leader Board
Kills: Tarah Murrey - 180 (4.09/set)
Attacking Percentage: Kat Brown - .422
Sets: Elly Barrett - 535 (11.38/set)
Service Aces: Tarah Murrey - 12 (0.27/set)
Blocks: Kat Brown - 50 (1.28/set)
Digs: Robin Rostratter - 235 (5.00/set)
Cal vs. the Pac-12
Hitting: 0.290 (Second)
Opponent Hitting: .120 (Second)
Assists per Set: 12.85 (Third)
Blocks per Set: 2.85 (Fourth)
Kills per Set: 13.98 (Third)
Service Aces per Set: 1.11 (Sixth)
Digs per Set: 16.06 (Second)
Bears in the Pac-12
Hitting: Kat Brown - .422 (First), Shannon Hawari - .372 (Fifth), Correy Johnson - .358 (Seventh)
Assists per Set: Elly Barrett - 11.38 (Third)
Blocks per Set: Kat Brown - 1.28 (Fifth), Shannon Hawari - 1.24 (Seventh)
Kills per Set: Tarah Murrey - 4.09 (Sixth)
Digs per Set: Robin Rostratter - 5.00 (Second)
Points per Set: Tarah Murrey - 4.73 (Sixth)
Tarah Murrey Moves Up on Career Lists
After starting the 2011 season in eighth place on the career record list for kills with 1239, Tarah Murrey now holds fifth place with 1419 total kills. Over the weekend against USC and UCLA, she passed Mia Jerkov, who had occupied fifth with 1390 kills. Her next obstacle is outside hitter Angie Pressey, who sits in fourth place with 1725 kills. Also, already this season, Murrey has moved from 10th place on the total attack list (3085) to sixth with 3588 attacks. She recently displaced sixth-place holder Jessica Dinaberg, who held the post with 3546 total attacks. Her next barrier to advancement, Alicia Perry, holds steady in fifth with 3729 attacks.
Scouting Arizona
•The Wildcats boast a 10-3 overall record and are 2-2 in conference play, with their only losses coming to then-ranked opponents - No. 10 Hawaii on Aug. 28, No. 16 Oregon on Sep. 12, and No. 4 Washington on Sep. 23
•Freshman Madison Kingdon leads the team in kills with 168, and ranks eighth in the Pac-12 with 3.82 kills per set
•Liberos Candace Nicholson and Marketa Hanzlova have been the key defensive players and are averaging 3.42 and 3.09 digs per set, respectively
•Arizona won eight of its first nine matches before dropping two of the last four
•Freshman Chloe Mathis (8.2 assists per set) and junior Tori Moore (6.85 assists per set) have split setting duties for the Wildcats this season
•Senior Cursty Jackson leads the team in hitting percentage (.363) and blocks per set (1.09)
•Arizona bounced back from a sweep to then-No. 4 Washington last Friday to complete a sweep of its own against Washington State two days later
Last Year vs. Arizona
Last season, the Bears swept the Wildcats for the third time in program history. Their first meeting of the year was in Tuscon, Ariz., on Sept. 24, 2010, when Cal beat UA, 3-2. The match remained extremely close throughout with 44 ties and 16 lead changes, and saw the Wildcats win the first two sets before the Bears battled back to win the last three. Outside hitter Tarah Murrey led the team with a then-high 28 kills. She also added 11 digs to earn her fourth double-double of the season. Libero Robin Rostratter put up a then-career high 27 digs for the Bears, which she only recently bested with 29 against Stanford. The second meeting of the year occurred at Haas Pavilion on Nov. 26, 2010, with the Bears emerging victoriously, 3-1, in their last match of the regular season. Cal celebrated its two seniors Meagan Schmitt and Carli Lloyd - as well as its first-ever Pac-10 Championship. Middle hitter Shannon Hawari contributed to the victory with 10 kills, while Murrey once again led the Bears with 20 kills.
Scouting the Sun Devils
•Arizona State enters the weekend on a six-match losing streak and is winless on the road this season
•Sarah McGaffin is the team setter, notching 10.31 assists per set as compared to Barrett's 11.34
•Freshman Nora Tuioti-Mariner has been the Sun Devils' most complete player, contributing 2.06 kills per set, 2.25 digs per set, and 1.31 blocks per set during conference play
•Sophomore Ashley Kastl leads the Sun Devil attack with 3.33 kills per set and is coming off a game against Washington in which she had nearly half of her team's kills (14 of 29)
•The Sun Devils rank last in the Pac-12 in team hitting percentage
•Libero Stephanie Preach ranks sixth in the Pac-12 with 4.22 digs per set
•Junior middle blocker Erica Wilson had 31 kills and hit .328 during Arizona State's first three matches en route to being named ASU Sheraton Classic Tournament MVP
•Arizona State is 0-4 in conference play and has a 4-9 overall record
Cal and ASU - the 2010 Edition
The Bears and the Sun Devils split the two-match series last year. The first meeting was on Sept. 26 in Tempe, Ariz., where Cal swept the Sun Devils 3-0. Libero Robin Rostratter led the team with 13 digs, while middle hitter Kat Brown had 6 kills and led the Bears with 4 blocks. Outside hitter Adrienne Gehan contributed 11 kills and opposite hitter Correy Johnson added 9 kills. However, it was Murray that led the team with 20 kills. The second meeting was on Nov. 24, 2010 at Haas Pavilion. Once again, Murrey led the team with her eighth double-double of the season on 21 kills and a then-career high 22 digs. Brown led the Bears with 7 blocks and Adrienne Gehan put up a new career high 16 kills, while Rostratter came up with 26 digs for the second-consecutive match. But even with all of the remarkable performances put on by the Bears, the Sun Devils were able to pull out the victory in a very close 3-2 finish. This win broke ASU's 16-match losing streak to California.
Cal vs. the Nation
Hitting: .290 (Seventh)
Assists per Set: 12.85 (41st)
Blocks per Set: 2.85 (15th)
Kills per Set: 13.98 (33rd)
Service Aces per Set: 1.11 (NR)
Digs per Set: 16.06 (NR)
Bears in the Nation
Hitting: Kat Brown - Shannon Hawari - .372 (41st)
Assists per Set: Elly Barrett - 11.38 (18th)
Blocks per Set: Kat Brown - 1.28 (34th), Shannon Hawari - 1.24 (46th)
Kills per Set: Tarah Murrey - 4.09 (40th)
Digs per Set: Robin Rostratter - 5.00 (Tied for 44th)
Points per Set: Tarah Murrey - 4.73 (32nd)
Next Week on the Court
The Bears take to the friendly skies in their next weekend outing - flying north to Oregon. On Oct. 7, the Bears will face off against the Ducks of Oregon in Eugene at 7 p.m. In their first Sunday match of the season, Cal plays Oregon State on Oct. 9 at 1 p.m. before returning home.
Barrett's Bear Bites - a New Blog
This season, junior setter Elly Barrett will be writing a blog for CalBears.com entitled Barrett's Bear Bites. In this first entry, Elly takes fans through last week and gives a preview of this week in L.A. Look for Elly's blog every other week on CalBears.com.
Next Time at Haas Pavilion
Cal closes out its first round of conference play by hosting the Washington schools. On Oct. 14, the Huskies of Washington make their way to Berkeley for a 7 p.m. match at Haas Pavilion. Washington State faces off against the Bears at Oct. 15, also at 7 p.m.
Bears Merit First-Ever No. 1 National Ranking
After sweeping its competition in the first week of play in six straight sets, Cal moved from third in the nation to first, according to the AVCA poll released Aug. 29. This marked the first time the Golden Bears have ever been the preeminent team in the country. Cal received 31 first-place votes, almost more than triple the amount Penn State garnered (11). USC moved down a notch as well, from second to third with five first-place votes. Texas earned nine first-place votes but stayed steady in fourth place. Last year, Cal earned its then-highest ranking of third on Oct. 25, only to best that later in the season as the No. 2 team in the country. Prior to the 2010 season, Cal's previous highest ranking was No. 4 on several occasions.
Season Starts With Brooms Out
In their very first outing of the 2011 campaign, the Bears swept their first three opponents in six straight sets. Opening up against UC Riverside on Aug. 26, Cal did not let the Highlanders score above 17 in any set en route to the official season beginner. In that match, Adrienne Gehan tallied a match-high 10 kills while Elly Barrett had 28 assists and Tarah Murray made 12 digs. A two-match day on Aug. 27 started with a 3-0 win over Fairfield. This time, Murrey led the Bears with 11 kills and Robin Rostratter made 18 digs. To close out the classic, the Bears faced off against FIU in what was their closest competition for the final from set one was a 25-23 victory, the smallest point differential of the weekend. The Bears are now 11-2 in season openers under head coach Rich Feller.
Jefferson Cup Champions Land on All-Tourney Team
At Virginia's tournament held over Labor Day weekend, three Bears merited placement on the all-tournament team with Adrienne Gehan leading the way as the MVP. In three matches of play, Gehan had a team-high 39 kills and hit .385. Also joining her on the all-tournament team were Tarah Murrey, who had 23 kills and 27 digs, and Correy Johnson, who hit .429 with 23 kills across the weekend. In the 3-0 win over Long Island on Sept. 2, Murrey paced the Bears with 10 kills (5e, 19att, .263) and 11 digs before posting seven digs and eight kills in set one alone versus UVa. Johnson averaged 2.88 kills per set in Charlottesville along with five blocks and four digs.
Cal's Classic Tournament Team
After going 3-0 at the Cal Molten Classic on Aug. 26 and 27, five Golden Bears were named to the all-tourney team. Correy Johnson was the MVP with Elly Barrett, Adrienne Gehan, Shannon Hawari and Tarah Murreyall skyrocketing to honors. Johnson led the Bears (with more than one attempt) with her .500 attacking percentage - hitting .500 or above in all three matches including a weekend-best .583 against Fairfield. Barrett averaged 10.33 sets per set with a grand total of 93 to go along with her 13 digs and nine blocks. Gehan and Murrey both put forth 25-kill performances while Hawari notched a team-high 13 blocks.
New Kids on the Block
Over the course of the season-starting weekend, the Bears had 12 different student-athletes seeing time on the court, including four freshmen. Marlee Davis, Christina Higgins, Lindsey Parrott and Lillian Schonewise all played in their first matches of their Cal careers during the Cal Molten Classic. Over the weekend, Higgins played in five matches, making seven kills (4e, 26ta, .115) with four block assists. In two sets of work, Schonewise contributed two kills in four attempts as well as one block assist. Marlee Davissaw time in six sets, setting two balls and making 11 digs. Lindsey Parrot played in one set, setting the ball twice.
Texas Two Step
For the ninth consecutive season, the Cal roster will feature at least two players from the great state of Texas. This time, the Bears have four players from the Lone Star State. Redshirt junior middle hitter Shannon Hawari (Plano) and junior setter Elly Barrett (Austin), along with sophomore outside hitters Adrienne Gehan (Dallas) and Lauren Loerch(Georgetown), represent the second-biggest state in the Union.
Season Tickets Still Available
Season and individual match tickets are still available for purchase. Purchasing season tickets offers fans a 50-percent discount per ticket over single-match tickets, and gives purchasers behind the scenes access with the team and coaches. Season-ticket holders receive invitations to exclusive season-ticket holder events, and opportunities to win team gear, ticket vouchers to bring friends to matches and more! For more information about season and individual match tickets, please click here.
Breaking Down the 2011 Bears
•Nine letterwinners return, six starters are back
•Six talented freshmen join the squad
•First-team All-American Tarah Murreyis the lone senior
•Also returning are junior libero Robin Rostratter (winner of the NCAA Elite 88 Volleyball Award for top GPA), sophomore outside hitter Adrienne Gehan (Pac-10 All-Freshman Team), junior middle hitter Shannon Hawari (American Volleyball Coaches' Association All-Region and All-Pac-10 honorable mention), junior middle/outside hitter Correy Johnson (AVCA All-America honorable mention, All-Pac-10 team) and junior middle hitter Kat Brown(Pac-10 All-Conference and All-Academic honorable mention)
•Pac-12 coaches predicted a second-place finish for the Bears
•Ranked third in the country by AVCA, the highest start ever
Murrey Eligible for Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Senior outside hitter Tarah Murrey'saccomplishments on and off the volleyball court merited her selection as one of the 30 candidates for the 2011 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be a Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition. In each of the two seasons that she's been eligible, Murrey has earned a Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention for having a GPA above 3.0 and being a starter. Additionally, Murrey has shown a real interest in giving back to the community, participating in multiple events put on by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. A starter from her days as a freshman, Murrey has been a key cog in the California volleyball machine with accomplishments too lengthy to list in just one paragraph.
Summer Lovin' Had Me a Blast
The summer break was not too slow for several of the Golden Bears. Senior outside hitter Tarah Murrey led the USA A2 Blue squad as it defeated USA A2 Red, 26-24, in the double final title match of the 2011 USA Volleyball Open National Championships Women's Open Division to complete a comeback through the consolation round on May 31 at the Dallas Convention Center. Murrey took home the tournament's Most Valuable Player as a member of the six-player all-tournament team. Her squad defeated junior middle hitter Correy Johnson'sA2 Red team in the title match.
Conference Coaches Forecast Second Place for Cal
The Pac-12 Conference coaches selected the Golden Bears to take second in the inaugural season of the Pac-12 in the preseason poll. That marked the second time that the Bears were slated to finish second, which first occurred in 2009, when they received one first-place vote. This year, the Bears got one first-place vote and 105 total points. USC took top honors with 11 first-place votes and 121 total points while Washington rounded out the medal stand in third with 97 points.
Preseason AVCA Poll Places Cal Third in the Country
After garnering their best end of season ranking in December, the Golden Bears followed that up with the highest preseason ranking in program history with the AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Preseason Poll heralding California as the third-best team in all of collegiate volleyball. Cal's previous highest preseason ranking was fifth, which the Bears achieved in 2008. For the fourth consecutive time, the coaches tabbed Penn State as the premier team in the country with USC taking second. Including USC and Cal, which received one-first place vote, five Pac-12 teams were on the preseason favorite list. Cal's ranking marked the 11th time in school history that the Bears were ranked to open a season and the ninth consecutive time since Rich Fellerbecame head coach in 1999. Cal has now achieved a top-10 preseason ranking four times.
Bears Merit AVCA Team Academic Award
As if excelling on the court was not good enough, the California volleyball team shines in the classroom as well. The Golden Bears earned the (AVCA) Team Academic Award for the 2010-11 season. Cal was one of 481 teams, spread across nine different divisions, to receive the accolade, which once again breaks the previous years' total of 450 and sets a new all-time high for this award. The award, which was initiated in the 1992-93 academic year, honors collegiate and high school volleyball teams that displayed excellence in the classroom during the school year. Teams must maintain at least a 3.30 cumulative team grade-point average on a 4.0 scale or a 4.10 cumulative team GPA on a 5.0 scale.
Bear Radio
Fans can tune in to KNEW 910 on their AM radio dials each Monday at 6 p.m. PT, for the second year of the Cal Coaches Corner radio show hosted by Todd McKim. The one-hour show will feature guest coaches and athletes from all of Cal's 29 intercollegiate athletics teams. Head coach Rich Fellerhad the honor of being on the first broadcast of the 2010-11 school year on Aug. 29, 2010.
Remembering the 2010 Season
•National runner-up and co-Pac-10 champs
•Made it to the national championship match for the first time in program history
•Rich Feller named AVCA and Pac-10 Coach of the Year
•Carli Lloyd was the AVCA National Player of the Year
•Carli Lloyd and Tarah Murreynamed AVCA first-team All-Americans - the first single-season pair of first-team AVCA All-Americans in Cal history
•Correy Johnson was an AVCA All-American honorable mention
•Senior setter Carli Lloyd, junior outside hitter Tarah Murrey, and sophomore opposite hitter Correy Johnsonbecame the first trio of Bears to earn all-conference honors in the same season
2010 Record-Breaking Bears
•Carli Lloyd ended the season in second on the school's all-time assists ladder with 5,697, a mark that is also good for sixth all-time in the Pac-10
•Tarah Murrey climbed into eighth at Cal for all-time career kills with 1,239, and 10th for attacks with 3,085
•Murrey produced the third highest single-season record for kills with 617 and had the second-highest output in a single season for attacks with 1,454
•Robin Rostratter had the third highest single-season record for digs with 495; the highest since Jillian Davishad 538 in 2005
•Kat Brown put on the highest individual blocking effort since 2007 with 151, which is the fourth most in a single season at Cal
•Shannon Hawari put up 131 blocks, which is sixth most in a single season
Join the Bears in the Social Media Realm
This season, fans of the prestigious California volleyball team can get even closer to the Golden Bears - through Facebook and Twitter. Social media brings the fans closer to the teams, alerting followers to breaking news, photos and insider information. The Cal Volleyball Facebook page will feature links to CalBears.com stories, polls, unique photos and more. Fans can comment on stories and have conversations with other fans. Cal Volleyball Twitter is the best place to find match results, links to stories as well as photos and other inside information. You can ask questions of the Cal Volleyball Twitter and communicate with others as well.
•Facebook users can "like" Cal volleyball here
•Twitter users can "follow" Cal volleyball here
The Paparazzi
Like any of the pictures on CalBears.com? They are available for purchase! GoldenBearSports.com, the official photographer of the Cal Athletics Department, has match photos available for purchase on their website at GoldenBearSports.com.
