NC State Wolfpack Volleyball. Wolfpack Earns First NCAA Bid Since Wolfpack Schedule

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1 NC State Wolfpack 2012 Volleyball Notes - Nov Wolfpack Schedule Date Opponent Time/Result August 24 vs. Jacksonville$ W, vs. Sacramento State$ W, 3-0 vs. College of Charleston$ W, vs. South Florida^ W, 3-1 September 1 vs. Kent State^ W, 3-0 vs. Virginia Commonwealth^ L, vs Western Carolina% W, vs. Campbell% W, 3-0 vs. Central Michigan% W, vs. UNC Wilmington W, vs. North Carolina W, vs. Ohio W, vs. Wake Forest W, vs. Duke W, vs. Georgia Tech W, vs. Clemson W, 3-1 October 5 at Miami L, at No. 14 Florida State L, at Virginia Tech W, at Virginia W, vs. Boston College W, vs. Maryland W, at Wake Forest (ESPN3) L, at Duke L, 3-2 November 2 vs. No. 11 Florida State (ESPN3) L, vs. No. 23Miami (ESPN3) L, at Clemson W, at Georgia Tech L, vs. Virginia W, vs. Virginia Tech W, at North Carolina L, vs. Texas A&M 5 p.m. Home matches in BOLD * ACC match $ Hampton Inn & Suites West Ashley Invitational (Charleston, S.C.) ^ NC State s Courtyard Midtown Invitational (Raleigh, N.C) % NC State s Courtyard Midtown Classic (Raleigh, N.C.) # NCAA Championships (Austin, Texas) Wolfpack Earns First NCAA Bid Since 1987 NC State (22-9, 12-8) vs. Texas A&M (24-5, 16-4) 5 p.m. (EST) Thursday Nov. 29, 2012 Gregory Gym Austin, Texas. Series record: Texas A&M leads, 3-0 Last meeting: Aggies won 3-1 in the 1990 Texas A&M Aggies Classic. NC State vs. Texas (23-4) Big 12 Champions 20th NCAA appearance Series record: Texas leads, 1-0 Last meeting:texas won, 3-0, in 2005 in the Ole Miss Magnolia Invitational in Oxford, Miss. NC State vs. Colgate (17-13) Patriot League Champions Third NCAA appearance Series record: None Last meeting: None Broadcast information: All matches will have live audio streamed for free on Sports.com. All Texas matches will be broadcast on ESPN s The Longhorn Network, available on select cable and satellite providers. NC State s 2012 Results Overall: 22-9; Home: 16-3; Away: 4-6; Neutral: 2-0. Atlantic Coast Conference: 12-8; Home 9-2; Away: 3-6. NC State 2012 Volleyball Roster No. Name Cl. Pos. Ht. Hometown 21 Laura Blab So. OH 6-2 Wimberley, Texas 4 Rachel Buckley So. OH 6-2 Carrollton, Texas 9 Morgan Cormier Fr. MB 6-0 Carlsbad, Calif. 15 Megan Cyr Sr. S 6-0 St. Andrews, Manitoba 6 Rachel Frick So. OPP 5-10 Charlotte, N.C. 3 Katie Ganny RS-Jr. S 5-8 Centennial, Colo. 10 Nikki Glass So. OH 5-10 Colorado Springs, Colo. 23 Dariyan Hopper So. OH 5-10 Minooka, Ill. 2 Alston Kearns So. L 5-7 Apex, N.C. 16 Kaitlyn LaMantia Fr. S 6-0 Chantilly, Va. 7 Brie Merriwether Jr. MB 5-11 Orlando, Fla. 25 Alexa Micek Sr. DS/L 5-8 Oxnard, Calif. 11 Courtney Reiman Fr. OH/MB 6-2 Omaha, Neb. 14 Meredith Richardson Jr. MB 6-3 Brentwood, Tenn. 12 Alex Taylor Fr. DS/L 5-8 Durham, N.C. 1 Hannah Thompson So. L 5-7 Henderson, N.C. 19 Alesha Wilson So. MB 6-0 Keller, Texas

2 RECORD-SETTING SEASON INCLUDED 12 ACC VICTORIES For the first time in 25 years, NC State s volleyball team is headed to the NCAA Championships. The Wolfpack (22-9 overall, 12-8 ACC) is one of four ACC teams to earn a berth in the 64-team field, along with champion Florida State, Miami and North Carolina. Third-year head coach Bryan Bunn s team will face Texas A&M on Thursday at 5 p.m. (EST) in Austin, Texas, in the school s first NCAA match ACC STANDINGS since the 1987 team lost 3-0 to Kentucky in the first round. That is the only Conference Overall previous NCAA appearance in school history. School W L Pct. W L Pct. Florida State Miami North Carolina NC State Clemson Georgia Tech Virginia Tech Maryland Duke Wake Forest Boston College Virginia NCAA Division I RPI (Nov. 19, 2012) Rank School 9. Florida State 19. North Carolina 21. Miami 42. NC State 57. Clemson 63. Georgia Tech 64. Virginia Tech 68. Duke 84. Maryland 136. Virginia 143. Boston College 156. Wake Forest The Aggies, competing in their first season of Southeastern Conference play, are 24-5 overall and 16-4 in the league, winning the Western Division and finishing second overall. I was confident that we had a shot, Bunn said, after his team watched the announcement on ESPNU at a Raleigh restaurant. These girls have always been greater than the sum of their parts. That s a testament to them and how hard they ve worked since they have been here. This is a cherry on top of the ice cream we have had all season. For Bunn, a successful coach at both North Florida and Texas Lutheran, the invitation was even earlier than he expected when he was hired to take over the program in This was one of our goals when we got here, to make it into the NCAA Tournament, said Bunn, who has guided the Pack to back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since It happened a little sooner than I thought it would. That s great. It s going to help our program in the long run. We had hoped to be at this point in year four or five. These kids have worked their butts off and it pays off when you work that hard. For senior co-captains Megan Cyr and Alexa Micek, earning an NCAA Championship berth is the pinnacle of their NC State careers and the culmination of a long journey they started when they followed Bunn to Raleigh three years ago. I definitely thought [making it to the NCAAs] would be possible, but I knew it would take a lot of hard work, said Cyr, a native of St. Andrews, Manitoba, who transferred to NC State from Colorado. It s always been a dream of mine to be in this position. I came from Canada to play NCAA volleyball, and I am thankful for this opportunity I ve had at NC State. There are really no words to describe how I feel today. Micek, a senior who transferred from Pierce College in Los Angeles, was overcome with emotion when the Wolfpack s name flashed on the television screen. When I first got here, this was not even in the realm of possibility, Micek said. To be standing here today, knowing we are going to the NCAAs, this is my wildest dream come true. I didn t even see our name when it was announced. I just heard everybody else scream and saw them NC State Volleyball Quick Facts UNIVERSITY INFORMATION Location Raleigh, N.C. Founded 1887 Enrollment 34,767 Chancellor W. Randolph Randy Woodson Colors Red and White Nickname Wolfpack Conference Atlantic Coast Conference Director of Athletics Deborah A. Yow TEAM INFORMATION 2011 record ACC record ACC finish T7th Letterwinners returning/lost 13/6 Newcomers AWARDS Margaret Salata, Sr., MB Dariyan Hopper, Fr., OH All-ACC ACC All-Freshman Coaching Staff Head coach Bryan Bunn (Texas-San Antonio, 88) Record/Years at NC State 34-31, 3rd season Career record Assistant coach Pete Hoyer (Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 85) Assistant coach Jen Christian (Texas, 08) Head Coach Bryan Bunn (Through 2011) Career Record th season Record at NC State rd season In just two seasons, Bunn has guided the Wolfpack to more wins (34) than the program had in the previous five seasons. In 2011, the Pack set the school and ACC record with six consecutive five-set matches and three additional school records, including most ACC victories (8), most ACC road victories (4) and consecutive wins (13). He has coached one All-ACC selection (Margaret Salata) and one ACC All-Fresman selection (Dariyan Hopper). NC State Media Relations Volleyball Contact:....Tim Peeler Office Phone:... (919) Fax:... (919) Cell Phone:... (919) tim_peeler@ncsu.edu Website:... GoPack.com

3 jumping up out of their chairs. The Wolfpack set a school record for ACC victories with 12, breaking the record of eight Bunn s team set last year. The total of 22 overall victories is the most for an NC State team since 1983, when Judy Martino guided the Pack to a record, which included a 1-1 mark in the now-defunct ACC Tournament. The 22 victories are the most regular-season wins for the program since 1982, when the Pack was in Pat Heilscher s final season. That included a 1-1 ACC Tournament mark. The NC State volleyball team, which concluded the regular season in fourth place in the 2012 ACC standings, not only matched the program s best league finish since 1988, it also posted the school s most overall wins since the 1983 team finished in Judy Martino s inaugural season. That total included a 1-1 record in the now-defunct ACC Tournament. LAST OUTING For the second consecutive match and the seventh time this season, NC State pushed an opponent to five sets, but was unable to finish off a comeback win the day before Thanksgiving, losing 3-2 to No. 23 North Carolina at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Wolfpack opened the match with a win in the first set, dropped the next two games and tied the match with a win in the fourth. The Tar Heels (25-5, 16-4) surged ahead for a 15-7 win in the decisive fifth set, scoring eight of the set s final nine points. We gave up too many points in a row during crucial times in the match, said third-year head coach Bryan Bunn. If you do that against a good team like Carolina, you can t battle back. The Pack s hitters also had a tough time against Carolina s taller front line. State hit only.071 in the match to the Tar Heels.204. Sophomore Dariyan Hopper was the only State hitter with double-digit kills, posting a team-high 13 kills and 10 errors on 53 attacks. Junior Brie Merriwether and sophomores Rachel Buckley and Alesha Wilson all had seven kills apiece for the Wolfpack. Sophomore Nikki Glass had a team-high 20 digs, while Wilson contributed seven 2012 All-ACC Team total blocks. Player Class Pos. Team Sandra Adeleye % Sr. MH Clemson Ali McCurdy # Jr. L Duke Christiana Gray # Sr. MB Duke Ashley Jr. MB Florida State Fatma Yildirim Sr. OH Florida State Sareea Freeman Sr. MB Florida State Monique Mead % Sr. RS Georgia Tech Ashleigh Crutcher So. OH Maryland Alex Johnson Jr. RS Miami Alexis Mourning So. MB Miami Emani Sims So. MB Miami Nrithya SundararamanSr. S Miami Ryan Shaffer Jr. L Miami Taylor Hollins Jr. OH Miami Megan Cyr Sr. S NC State Chaniel Nelson@ So. RS North Carolina Emily McGee # Sr. OH North Carolina Cara Baarendsee # Sr. OPP Virginia Tech 2012 ACC All-Freshman Team Player Year Pos. School Katty Workman Fr. OH Boston College Elizabeth Campbell Fr. RS Duke Emily Sklar Fr. OH Duke Chanell Clark-Bibbs Fr. MB Georgia Tech Paige Neuenfeldt Fr. MB North Carolina Natalie Bausback Fr. OH - Two-time selection # - Three-time selection % - Four-time selection Senior Megan Cyr, named to the 2012 All-ACC team earlier in the day, finished with 31 assists. ABOUT TEXAS A&M Texas A&M is making its 20th NCAA Tournament appearance since it began in 1981 and its fourth in the last five years. All-time, the Aggies are in the even, including a mark under the direction of veteran head coach Laurie Corbelli. A&M has twice advance to the regional finals, in both 1999 and Last year, the Aggies hosted a regional in College Station, Texas. Texas A&M finished second overall in its first season of competition in the Southeastern Conference and first in the Western Division. The Aggies are one of five SEC teams in the 64-team field, while the Wolfpack is one of four ACC teams, along with league champion Florida State, Miami and North Carolina. I feel like we are playing really, really good volleyball, Corbelli said of her team. We have a good rhythm on our offense. Our setters are distributing the ball beautifully. Overall with the experience that we have and the talent that we have, we are playing as well as we have played in a long time. YEar-BY-YEAR Year...Coach Record ACC ACC Trmt Kay Yow Kay Yow Nora Lynn Finch Pat Hielscher Pat Hielscher Pat Hielscher /2nd Pat Hielscher /2nd 4-1/2nd Pat Hielscher /2nd 1-1/3rd Judy Martino /1st 1-1/3rd Judy Martino /3rd 2-1/2nd Judy Martino /3rd 1-1/3rd Judy Martino /2nd 1-1/3rd Judy Martino /1st 2-0/1st* Judy Martino /1st 1-1/2nd Judy Martino /6th Judy Martino /4th 1-1/4th Judy Martino /T4th Judy Martino /8th Judy Martino /8th Kim Hall /7th Kim Hall /5th Kim Hall /8th 1-1/4th Kim Hall /8th 1-1/4th Kim Hall /9th Kim Hall /7th 1-1/4th Kim Hall /9th Mary Byrne /9th Mary Byrne /9th Mary Byrne /9th Mary Byrne /11th Mary Byrne /12th Charita J. Stubbs /12th Charita J. Stubbs /12th Charita J. Stubbs /10th Charita J. Stubbs /12th Bryan Bunn /11th Bryan Bunn /T7th Bryan Bunn /T4th - Totals:...38 Years * NCAA Tournament Apperance Coaching Records Kay Yow ( ) (.611) Nora Lynn Finch (1977) (.690) Pat Hielscher ( ) (.770) Judy Martino ( ) (.500) Kim Hall ( ) (.423) Mary Byrne ( ) (.213) Charita J. Stubbs ( ) (.165) Bryan Bunn (2010-pres.) (.589)

4 The Pack is 1-5 against ranked teams this season and 2-5 against NCAA Championship teams, with wins over No. 23 North Carolina and College of Charleston. They are going to be very, very tough, Corbelli said. I know the coaching staff, and I have seen their results. However, I don t know a lot about their talent, the individual athletes. I m hoping that the SEC has prepared us well for whatever we do happen to see. Bryan Bunn Year-by-Year Head Coaching Records (1994-present) The Aggies are quite familiar, on the other hand, with host Texas and Gregory Gym. For 20 years we have been playing over there, so there are no surprises, she said. We ll have a lot of Aggies there in our contingency, and a lot of families will be able to be there. And it s tournament time, so crazy things can happen, and you just have to go out and give it your best. We have no pressure. We ll just be prepared, and if we can get past the first round which is obviously our main focus, we ll look forward to being in Gregory against the Longhorns. TEX CONNEX NC State doesn t frequently match up against teams from Texas, but that doesn t mean the players and coaches are unfamiliar with the Lone Star State. Texas native Bryan Bunn, in his third season as NC State s head coach, is quite familiar with volleyball in his homestate. Bunn was born in San Antonio and went to both high school and college there. He graduated from Texas-San Antonio in 1988 with degrees in kinesiology and English and took his first coaching job as an assistant at Stephen F. Austin. He was named the head coach at NAIA school Texas Lutheran near San Antonio in 1994 and successfully guided the program for six seasons, posting a record, winning two conference titles and earning two bids to the NAIA tournament. After seven years at North Florida, during which he guided the volleyball program s transition from Division II to Division I status, Bunn returned to Texas as an associate head at Baylor, where he spent three seasons. The Bears were during his time their and made their first ever appearance in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. Both of NC State s assistant coaches have roots in and around Austin. Pete Hoyer, in his third season with the Pack, taught special education for seven years at three different Texas schools near Pflugerville, Texas, a suburb of Austin. He was also a coach of volleyball and track of the Hutto High School Hippos. He began his coaching career at Southwest Texas State in 1987 and earned a Master s degree from the school in physical education in Year School OverallConference 1994 Texas Lutheran# Texas Lutheran Texas Lutheran Texas Lutheran Texas Lutheran# Texas Lutheran none Total North Florida* North Florida* North Florida* North Florida* North Florida* North Florida North Florida Total NC State NC State NC State Total OVERALL # Heart of Texas Conference champions * Peach Belt Conference champions Assistant Jen Christian, in her first season with the Pack, came to Raleigh directly from Austin, where she had been part of the coaching staff at the Ali i Girls Volleyball Club. She was also an assistant at the St. Stephens Prep School and for the Austin Juniors Volleyball Club. Christian, who played 98 matches as an outside hitter for the Longhorns volleyball program, is a 2008 Texas graduate with a degree in health promotion and fitness. She owns the school record with eight service aces in a three-game match. For sophomore Laura Blab, going to the NCAA tournament also means going home. The lefthanded outside hitter grew up in Wimberley, an Austin suburb. The daughter of former Dallas Mavericks player and Indiana University standout basketball player Uwe Blab saw action earlier this season and as a freshman, but has been out since early September. I was so excited when we watched the selection show, not only because we were going to the NCAAs but also because I knew I would get to go home, Blab said. Former high school rivals and club teammates Rachel Buckley of Carrollton and and Alesha Wilson of Keller both hail from Dallas-Fort Worth, about five hours from Austin. Wilson has taken over a starting spot in the Wolfpack lineup this season, after seeing action in only three matches as a freshman. Buckley has been a big part of the Wolfpack attack in recent weeks. GANNY, CYR RETURN TO AUSTIN This will be junior setter Katie Ganny s second trip to Austin, Texas, for the NCAA Championships. The 2012 AWARDS Megan Cyr, Sr., S MVP, West Ashley Invitational MVP, Courtyard Midtown Invitational All-Tournament, Courtyard Midtown Classic ACC Player of the Week (Sept. 24) 2012 All-ACC selection Alexa Micek, Sr., DS All-Tournament, West Ashley Invitational Dariyan Hopper, So., OH ACC Co-Player of the Week (Nov. 19) All-Tournament, West Ashley Invitational Brie Merriwether, Jr., MB All-Tournament, Courtyard Midtown Classic Meredith Richardson, Jr., MB All-Tournament, Courtyard Midtown Invitational Nikki Glass, So., OH All-Tournament, Courtyard Midtown Invitational Morgan Cormier, Fr., OH ACC Freshman of the Week (Sept ) Alesha Wilson, So., MB ACC Player of the Week (Oct. 8-14)

5 native of Centennial, Colo., was a member of American University s team that qualified for the 2010 tournament and played against UCLA at Texas s Gregory Gym. Ganny, who sat out the entire 2010 season with an injury, did not play in the 3-0 loss. She transferred to NC State prior to the 2011 season. Senior Megan Cyr, who began her career at Colorado, played Texas A&M twice as a redshirt freshman, once in College Station and one at home in Boulder, Colo. She also played a match at Texas s Gregory Gym. BUNN S ACC PROGRESSION This is the 38th season of Wolfpack volleyball and its 32nd season of ACC play. In that time, the Pack has won a total of 100 conference matches. Nearly a quarter of those wins have come during the short coaching tenure of third-year head coach Bryan Bunn, who inherited a program that had won only 27 matches in the 16 years prior to his arrival, a period that spanned three different head coaches. In his three seasons, Bunn has changed the fortunes of the program he inherited, which from was in ACC play. He has not only guided the Wolfpack to impressive back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since , he has led the Pack to school-record ACC victory totals in each of the last two years, at least a fourth-place finish in this year s league standings and the program s first winning season in ACC play since the 1988 team was 6-0 against league competition. In his inaugural season of 2010, Bunn led the Pack to a 14-18, 4-16 mark in ACC play. Last year, the Pack was with an 8-12 mark in league play. Heading into Wednesday s regular-season final, the Pack is 22-8 overall and 12-7 in the ACC. His progression of four, eight and 12 league victories has given him a total of 24 ACC triumphs in his tenure with the Wolfpack, with a winning percentage of.407. That s more than double the winning percentage in the school s first 29 years of ACC play (.192). WINNING SEASONS Last year, the Wolfpack recorded its first overall winning season since 1996, a feat that was matched again earlier this season. Third-year coach Bryan Bunn now owns two of the 17 winning seasons in school history. Last weekend s win over Virginia guaranteed the Pack s first wnning season in ACC play since the 1988 team went 6-0 in league play to win its second consecutive regular-season title. That 6-0 season capped off a string of eight straight winning seasons in ACC play, dating back to the inaugural year of ACC volleyball in During that span, the Pack under coaches Pat Hielscher and Judy Martino never lost more than two ACC contests. Prior to Bunn s arrival, the Wolfpack was in ACC matches since 1988, its last winning season. That included a stretch from 2001 to 2007 in which the Pack was in league matches. So far in his three seasons of guiding NC State volleyball, Bunn has posted a conference record. He doubled his total of four ACC wins in his first season, to a school-record eight last season. He has added four more to that record this year. CYR EARNS ALL-ACC HONORS NC State senior setter Megan Cyr, who is third all-time in career assists and second in career hitting percentage, was named to the 18-member All-ACC volleyball team, the conference announced on Wednesday, prior to the Wolfpack s regular-season finale. Cyr, who leads the team in assists for the third consecutive season, has been a steady and versatile player for the record-setting Wolfpack, with 1,191 assists, 105 kills, 83 blocks, 278 digs and 19 service aces in her 118 sets. In her three seasons at NC State after transferring from Colorado, the native of St. Andrews, Manitoba, has never missed a play for the Wolfpack, which has set records for ACC wins in each of the last two seasons and posted back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since Wolfpack Records Career Records KILLS Laura Kimbrell ,969 Volire Tisdale ,598 Charece Williams ,530 DIGS Kelly Wood ,836 Jennifer Peterson ,767 Laura Kimbrell ,540 ASSISTS Nicole Peterson ,938 Melinda Dudley ,750 Megan Cyr 2010-pres. 3,617 TOTAL BLOCKS Pam Vehling Patty Lake Amy Lemerman SERVICE ACES Patty Lake Stephanie Taylor Johanna Fry HITTING PERCENTAGE Lori Zuersher Megan Cyr 2010-pres..356 Stefani Eddins Single-season Records KILLS Volire Tisdale Pam Sumner Laura Kimbrell DIGS Jennifer Peterson Kelly Wood Shelley Partridge ASSISTS Erin Vesey ,682 Nicole Peterson ,566 Nicole Peterson ,423 TOTAL BLOCKS Stefani Eddins Margaret Salata Stefani Eddins SERVICE ACES Johanna Fry Terre Welch Johanna Fry HITTING PERCENTAGE (MIN. 10 ATTEMPS) Sheryl Santos Megan Cyr Allison Davis GAMES PLAYED Erin Vesey Nicole Peterson Diane Ross She is the second straight Wolfpack player to earn All-ACC honors, following 2011 senior middle blocker Margaret Salata s selection, which was a first for the Wolfpack since 2005.

6 Florida State junior middle blocker Ashley Neff was selected as the 2012 Player of the Year and is also a member of the All-ACC squad. Duke junior libero Ali McCurdy has been named the Defensive Player of the Year and Miami s Nicole Lantagne Welch was named the Coach of the Year. North Carolina middle blocker Paige Neuenfeldt was chosen as the Freshman of the Year and headlines the six-person All-Freshman Team. The awards were decided based on a vote of the league s 12 head coaches. HOPPER S CAREER NIGHT Sophomore outside hitter Dariyan Hopper had the biggest night of her Wolfpack career against Virginia Tech on Nov. 17 when she posted a career-high 23 kills and a.375 hitting average. She also led the Pack with 10 kills in Friday night s 3-0 sweep of Virginia. A native of Shorewood, Ill., Hopper s previous career best was 21 kills during her freshman season against Virginia Tech, which seems to bring out the best in Hopper. In four career matches against the Hokies, she has averaged 19.3 kills and a.247 hitting average. Hopper also had 10 kills and hit.400 in the Pack s 3-0 sweep of Virginia on Friday night. Her play during the week earned her Co-ACC Player of the Week honors with Miami senior Nrithya Sundararaman. Hopper joins senior Megan Cyr and sophomore Alesha Wilson as Wolfpack players who have won ACC Player of the Week honors this season. Freshman Morgan Cormier also won ACC Freshman of the Week honors this season. WOLFPACK SIGNS SETTER MAGGIE SPEAKS Maggie Speaks, a 5-10 setter from Camden, S.C., has signed a national letter of intent to play volleyball at NC State, head coach Bryan Bunn announced on Monday. Speaks, a three-time region player of the year and three-time all-state selection, was named the South Carolina Coaches Association Women s Sport Player of the Year ACC Predicted Finish Team (1st place) Pts 2011 (ACC) Florida State (9) (18-2) North Carolina (3) (15-5) Clemson (12-8) Duke (15-5) Miami (16-4) Georgia Tech (8-12) Virginia Tech (11-9) NC State (8-12) Virginia (4-16) Maryland (4-16) Wake Forest (6-14) Boston College (3-17) Ranked as one of the top players in the state of South Carolina, Speaks finished her senior season with 344 kills, 41 service aces, 107 blocks, 141 digs and 245 assists while helping her team to a record and to the third round of the Class AAA state playoffs. Maggie adds good size and athletic ability to our setting position, Bunn said. She s a great blocker and will challenge for playing time immediately. Speaks -- who owns a 3.87 grade point average and is a member of the National Honor Society, Beta Club and Key Club -- intends to enroll at NC State in January, so she will be able to go through spring workouts with the Wolfpack. MERRIWETHER EARNS DISTRICT III ACADEMIC AWARD NC State junior middle blocker Brie Merriwether of Orlando, Fla., is one of four ACC players named to the 2012 Capital One Academic All-District III volleyball teams, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, recognizing her as one of the nation s top student-athletes for her combined performance athletically and in the classroom. The Academic All-District teams include the student-athletes divided among eight geographic districts across the United States and Canada from NCAA Division I, II and III schools. First-team Academic All-District honorees advance to the Capital One Academic All-America Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month. Merriwether has played in 94 of the Wolfpack s 105 sets this season and leads the team with 86 total blocks, is second on the team with 246 kills, second with 73 blocks and third with a.311 attack average. Match Records KILLS Laura Kimbrell Maryland 10/7/98 34 Lisa Kasper UNC Greensboro 9/24/91 34 Lisa Kasper Virginia 11/1/91 34 DIGS Jennifer Peterson Georgetown 9/16/94 48 Shelley Partridge Georgetown 9/16/94 40 Stephanie Taylor Virginia 11/22/85 36 ASSISTS Nicole Peterson Florida State 10/19/96 85 Erin Vesey North Carolina 10/12/99 84 Erin Vesey Duke 10/31/98 80 Crystal Shannon Georgia Tech 9/23/00 80 TOTAL BLOCKS Alison Kreager Liberty 9/10/99 14 Diane Ross Penn 10/22/83 14 Terre Welch Penn 10/22/83 14 Stefani Eddins Georgia Tech 11/11/05 12 Stefani Eddins North Carolina 10/5/04 12 Laura Kimbrell Wake Forest 10/3/97 12 Diane Ross George Mason 9/17/82 12 SERVICE ACES Johanna Fry South Carolina 9/12/86 9 Pam Vehling Hofstra 9/26/87 8 Terre Welch Clemson 0/28/83 8 HITTING PERCENTAGE (MATCH MIN. 5 ATTEMPTS) Melissa Rabe Georgia Tech 10/15/ Meredith Price Tennessee State 9/18/ Pam Sumner Duke 10/5/ ACC Match Records KILLS Laura Kimbrell Maryland 10/7/98 34 Lisa Kasper Virginia 11/1/91 34 Charece Williams Duke 11/5/99 33 DIGS Stephanie Taylor Virginia 11/22/85 36 Meredith Price North Carolina 10/31/00 34 Kelly Wood Virginia Tech 11/19/11 30 ASSISTS Nicole Peterson Florida State 10/19/96 85 Erin Vesey North Carolina 10/12/99 84 Erin Vesey Duke 10/31/98 80 Crystal Shannon Georgia Tech 9/23/00 80 TOTAL BLOCKS Stefani Eddins North Carolina 10/5/04 12 Laura Kimbrell Wake Forest 10/3/97 12 Kari DeClerk Maryland 11/2/91 11 SERVICE ACES Terre Welch Clemson 10/28/83 8 Patty Lake Maryland 10/30/87 7 HITTING PERCENTAGE (MATCH MIN. 5) Melissa Rabe Georgia Tech 10/15/ Pam Sumner Duke 10/5/ Erin Vesey Clemson 11/13/ Name School Yr. Hometown GPA Major Andrea Beck Wake Forest Sr. Winston-Salem, N.C Biology Ali McCurdy Duke Jr. Tampa, Fla Sociology

7 Brie Merriwether NC State Jr. Orlando, Fla Biological sciences Nrithya Sundararaman Miami Sr. Naperville, Ill N e u - robiology CYR HITS 1,000 ASSISTS FOR THIRD CON- SECUTIVE SEASON Senior Megan Cyr has never missed a point during her three-year NC State volleyball career and for the third consecutive season, she has recorded more than 1,000 assists for the Wolfpack. The native of St. Andrews, Manitoba, Canada, played one season at Colorado before transferring to NC State with the arrival of head coach Bryan Bunn. After posting 84 assists against Virginia and Virginia Tech last weekend and 31 against North Carolina on Wednesday, Cyr now has 1,191 on the season. As a sophomore, she had 1,133 assists. As a junior, she had 1,293 assists, which ranks as the seventh best single-season total in school history. She is only the second player in school history to record 1,000 assists in three consecutive seasons, joining Nicole Petersen, who had a schoolrecord 1,566 in 1996, 1,423 in 1997 and 1,363 in WILSON S INCREASING CONTRIBUTIONS Sophomore Alesha Wilson, a middle blocker from Keller, Texas, had a break-out game against Virginia Tech on Oct. 12, posting career highs with 19 kills and 11 total blocks. It was quite a performance for a player who had hit double-digit kills only once before in her career. Wilson s previous high was 13 kills in a 3-1 win over Clemson on Sept. 29, in just her second game as a starter. Wilson moved into the starting lineup the night before, in a 3-2 win over Georgia Tech. She has now started 14 consecutive games at middle blocker, and is fourth on the team in kills and tied for second in blocks. Wilson appeared in only three matches as a freshman, playing in five sets. She saw limited action in nine of the Wolfpack s first 14 matches this year before moving into the starting lineup. WILSON NAMED ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK NC State sophomore middle blocker Alesha Wilson and Boston College freshman outside hitter Katty Workman were named the Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Player and Freshman of the Week for Oct. 15. Wilson became the third Wolfpack player to win a weekly award this season, joining senior setter Megan Cyr and freshman outside hitter Morgan Cormier. Wilson earned the honor after posting career numbers in a pair of Wolfpack road wins, a 3-1 victory over Virginia Tech and a 3-1 victory over Virginia. On the weekend, she had 32 kills with only nine errors on 56 attacks for a.411 hitting percentage. She had three solo blocks and 17 assisted blocks. BEATING THE PROGNOSTICATORS In its first five league contests, NC State beat the teams picked to finish second (North Carolina), third (Clemson), fourth (Duke) and sixth (Georgia Tech) in the preseason poll of ACC coaches. It added a win over the team picked to finished seventh (Virginia Tech) on Oct. 12 The Wolfpack, following last season s successful 20-12, 8-12 campaign, was picked to finish eighth in the same poll. The Pack finished tied for seventh last season, its best showing in the league since The eight ACC wins and four ACC road wins both were school records. STREAK BREAKER When third-year coach Bryan Bunn was hired to lead the program in 2010, he inherited seven losing streaks of more than 10 matches to the school s 11 ACC foes. In a little over two-anda-half seasons, Bunn has ended six of them, including a 27-match losing streak to Clemson, a 25-match skid to Wake Forest and 21-match skeins to both Duke and Georgia Tech. On Oct. 12, the Pack ended a 15-match losing streak to Virginia Tech with a 3-1 victory in Blacksburg, Va. School Streak Ended Duke Wake Forest Clemson Georgia Tech Virginia Tech Miami WINS FOR BUNN NC State s 3-1 victory over Clemson on Sept. 29 was the 400th win of head coach Bryan Bunn s 16- year coaching career. In nearly three seasons with the Wolfpack, Bunn has posted a overall record, a winning percentage of.609, which ranks fourth among NC State s eight all-time coaches. Bunn began his coaching career by posting a record at NAIA Texas Lutheran from , winning two Heart of Texas championships. He moved to Division II North Florida in Jacksonville, Fla., where he compiled a mark from He won five consecutive Peach Belt Conference titles and was 69-1 against league opponents. In the final two years of his tenure at North Florida, the Ospreys moved from Division II to Division I, compiling records of and those two years START 2ND BEST IN SCHOOL HISTORY NC State won its first five contests of the 2012 season, which matched the program s best start since 1995, when the Pack won its first seven matches. Head coach Bryan Bunn also led the Wolfpack to a 5-0 start in 2010, his first year at the helm. More impressively, however, the Pack was 15-1 overall out of the gate this season, which rates as the second best start in school history. The best was in 1979, when the Pack opened the season Last year, the Pack began with a 13-1 mark, which matched the 1980 team for the second best start in school history. In 2010, Bunn s first season, the Pack opened with a 9-1 record. Here are top five starts in school history. Year Record MERRIWETHER S CAREER DAY Junior middle blocker Brie Merriwether had perhaps the best outing of her career when the Wolfpack beat Clemson, 3-1, on Sept. 29. Coming into the 2012 season, the junior from Orlando, Fla., had posted a career high of 14 kills in last year s thrilling five-set win over Wisconsin. She had seven more matches with double-digit kills in 2011, plus five more this season, including a new career high of 18 against both Western Carolina and North Carolina. Against the Tigers, however, Merriwether smashed her all-time best total, knocking down 26 kills with a.367 hitting average. She added four digs, three block assists and one service ace. CYR NAMED ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK NC State senior setter Megan Cyr and Boston College freshman outside hitter Katty Workman were named the Atlantic Coast Conference Volleyball Player and Freshman of the Week for the week of Sept Cyr, a native of St. Andrews, Manitoba, Canada, won the honor for the first time in her career after leading the Wolfpack on one of the most successful two-week periods in school history, winning eight matches in 15 days. The Pack capped off the successful run by beating Big Four and ACC foes Wake Forest and Duke at Reynolds Coliseum. Cyr, a preseason All-ACC selection, was particularly effective during the matches against the Demon Deacons and Blue Devils, hitting an outstanding.706 in the two matches. She also led the team in assists (67), had four solo blocks and eight total blocks. CORMIER NAMED ACC FRESHMAN OF WEEK Freshman outside hitter Morgan Cormier of Carlsbad, Calif., was named ACC Freshman of the Week for her contributions to the Wolfpack s 3-0

8 record the week of Sept Cormier tallied 24 kills and 14 blocks in the three matches, as the Wolfpack improved to 11-1 overall and 1-0 in the ACC following its wins over UNC Wilmington, North Carolina and Ohio. Last year, outside hitters Nikki Glass and Dariyan Hopper both earned two freshman of the week honors. When Glass earned her first weekly honor, she became the first Wolfpack player to win the weekly newcomer award, which was started for the 2010 season. MVP CYR For the second time this season and the third time in her career, senior setter Megan Cyr was named the most valuable player in an early-season tournament. Most recently, Cyr was named the MVP of NC State s Courtyard Midtown Invitational at Reynolds Coliseum, in which she had 94 assists, a.609 hitting average, three service aces, 22 digs and seven total blocks. She was also named MVP of the Comfort Inn & Suites West Ashley Invitational earlier this year after she posted 121 assists, eight kills, 17 digs, 12 total blocks and three service aces in the Wolfpack s 3-0 sweep of the tournament. Last year, Cyr was one of three Wolfpack players to earn MVP honors. Cyr won the award at NC State s Courtyard Midtown Invitational, while Brie Merriwether was MVP of the Courtyard Midtown Classic and Nikki Glass was MVP of the Hilton Garden Inn Mayfaire Classic in Wilmington, N.C. PLAY OF DAY, PLAY OF YEAR Sophomore libero Alston Kearns made what might be the play of the year on Sept. 11 when she chased down an errant pass, stuck out her foot and kicked the ball high into the air from the end zone to teammate Nikki Glass, who batted the ball backwards over the net from near the baseline. The Wolfpack won the point with a block at the net, to take the fourth set in a dramatic comeback against the Seahawks.The Pack had lost the first two sets and were down to match point, trailing in the third. Behind the serving of Glass, the Pack scored six straight points to win. third in the ACC with 46 total aces and 0.38 per set. As a team, the Wolfpack ranks third in the ACC with 1.30 aces per set. Glass, an outside hitter from Colorado Springs, Colo., had a career-high four in the Wolfpack s 3-2 loss to Virginia Commonwealth in the final match of the NC State Courtyard Midtown Invitational and had three against North Carolina in four sets and Ohio in three sets. CYR, MICEK NAMED CAPTAINS Seniors Megan Cyr and Alexa Micek have been named captains of the 2012 Wolfpack volleyball team. Cyr, a three-year starter who has played in every set since transferring to NC State from Colorado, has led the Pack in assists in each of the last two years and ranks in the top five for career assists and hitting average. Micek, a libero/defensive specialist from Oxnard, Calif., has been a regular contributor since transferring to NC State from Pierce College in California. TOURNAMENT TITLES Under third-year coach Bryan Bunn, the Wolfpack has won seven early-season tournament titles, two his first year, three last season and two this season. The Pack won the Western Carolina Tournament and the Hilton RTP Tournament in 2010; the Courtyard Midtown Classic, the Hilton Garden Inn Mayfaire Classic and the Courtyard Midtown Invitational in 2011; and the Comfort Inn and Suites West Ashley Invitational, the Courtyard Midtown Classic and the Courtyard Midtown Invitational in Under Bunn, the Pack is 30-4 overall in tournament matches and 14-1 in tournament matches played at Reynolds Coliseum. The foot s-up play helped change the momentum for the Wolfpack, which won the final two sets to take a 3-2 victory. It was the third time in the last two seasons that the Wolfpack had come back to win a match after losing the first two sets. It won similar victories against Wisconsin at home and at Georgia Tech last season. Kearns play was chosen as No. 8 on ESPN s Play of the Day for Tuesday, Sept. 11. SERVED WITH A GLASS Sophomore Nikki Glass, who led the team with 25 service aces as a freshman last year, topped that total in just 16 matches this season. She ranks

9 The Automated ScoreBook NC State Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 24, 2012) All matches RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL ALL GAMES CONFERENCE NON-CONFERENCE Attack Set Serve Dig Blocking ## Player sp k k/s e ta pct a a/s sa se sa/s re dig dig/s bs ba total blk/s be bhe points 1 Hannah Thompson Megan Cyr Brie Merriwether Alesha Wilson Meredith Richardson Dariyan Hopper Laura Blab Rachel Buckley Morgan Cormier Nikki Glass Katie Ganny Rachel Frick Alston Kearns Alexa Micek TEAM NC STATE Opponents Team Statistics ST OPP ATTACK Kills Errors Total Attacks Attack Pct Kills/Set SET Assists Assists/Set SERVE Aces Errors Aces/Set SERVE RECEPTIONS Errors Errors/Set DEFENSE Digs Digs/Set BLOCKING Block Solo Block Assist Total Blocks Blocks/Set Block Errors Ball handling errors ATTENDANCE Total Dates/Avg Per Date 19/597 10/926 Neutral site #/Avg 2/0 Current win streak 0 - Home win streak 2 - Date Opponent Score Score by set Att. Aug 24 vs JU W ,25-16, Aug 25 vs SAC W ,25-21, Aug 25 at Coll. of Charleston W ,20-25,25-21, Aug 31 USF W ,19-25,29-27, Sep 01 KENT W ,25-22, Sep 01 VCU L ,25-17,21-25,26-24, Sep 07 WESTERN CAROLINA W ,25-13, Sep 08 CAMPBELL W ,25-14, Sep 08 CENTRAL MICHIGAN W ,25-22,25-22, Sep 11 UNCW W ,22-25,26-24,25-16, *Sep 14 NORTH CAROLINA W ,25-16,21-25, Sep 16 OHIO W ,25-20, *Sep 19 WF W ,25-16, *Sep 21 DUKE W ,25-20,18-25, *Sep 28 GEORGIA TECH W ,12-25,17-25,25-15, *Sep 29 CLEMSON W ,25-21,25-21, *Oct 05 at Miami (FL) L ,17-25,25-20, *Oct 07 at #13 Florida State L ,23-25, *Oct 12 at Virginia Tech W ,19-25,25-23, *Oct 13 at UVA W ,25-19,25-23, *Oct 19 BOSTON COLLEGE W ,25-17, *Oct 20 MARYLAND W ,25-22, *Oct 26 at WF L ,22-25,19-25,25-17, *Oct 27 at Duke L ,22-25,25-16,25-27, *Nov 02 #11 FLORIDA STATE L ,16-25, *Nov 04 #23 MIAMI (FL) L ,25-22,21-25, *Nov 10 at Georgia Tech L ,20-25,25-21, *Nov 09 at Clemson W ,25-18, *Nov 16 VIRGINIA W ,25-16, *Nov 17 VIRGINIA TECH W ,17-25,25-16,25-13, **Nov 21 at #24 North Carolina L ,17-25,20-25,26-24, Record in 3-set matches: 11-2 Record in 4-set matches: 8-3 Record in 5-set matches: 3-4

10 The Automated ScoreBook NC State Category Leaders (as of Nov 24, 2012) All matches # ATTACK (by K) S K K/S E TA Pct 23 Dariyan Hopper Nikki Glass Brie Merriwether Alesha Wilson Meredith Richardson Rachel Buckley Megan Cyr Morgan Cormier Laura Blab Hannah Thompson Rachel Frick Alston Kearns Alexa Micek # SET (by A) S A A/S TA Pct 15 Megan Cyr Alston Kearns Alexa Micek Nikki Glass Hannah Thompson Dariyan Hopper Brie Merriwether Rachel Buckley Alesha Wilson Meredith Richardson Katie Ganny Morgan Cormier Laura Blab TM TEAM # BLOCK (by Total) S BS BA Total Blk/S 7 Brie Merriwether Alesha Wilson Megan Cyr Dariyan Hopper Meredith Richardson Morgan Cormier Rachel Buckley Nikki Glass Alexa Micek Katie Ganny Alston Kearns Hannah Thompson # KILL (by K) S K K/S 23 Dariyan Hopper Nikki Glass Brie Merriwether Alesha Wilson Meredith Richardson Rachel Buckley Megan Cyr Morgan Cormier Laura Blab Hannah Thompson Alston Kearns Rachel Frick Alexa Micek # SERVE (by SA) S SA SE SA/S TA Pct 10 Nikki Glass Alston Kearns Alexa Micek Megan Cyr Brie Merriwether Hannah Thompson Dariyan Hopper Katie Ganny Laura Blab Rachel Frick Morgan Cormier Rachel Buckley Meredith Richardson Alesha Wilson # DEFENSE (by Dig) S Dig Dig/S BHE 2 Alston Kearns Alexa Micek Nikki Glass Megan Cyr Hannah Thompson Dariyan Hopper Brie Merriwether Rachel Buckley Morgan Cormier Alesha Wilson Katie Ganny Rachel Frick Meredith Richardson Laura Blab # RECEPT (by TA) S RE RE/S TA Pct 10 Nikki Glass Alston Kearns Alexa Micek Hannah Thompson Dariyan Hopper Morgan Cormier Rachel Frick TM TEAM Rachel Buckley Megan Cyr Alesha Wilson Laura Blab Brie Merriwether Meredith Richardson

11 The Automated ScoreBook NC State Overall Team Statistics (as of Nov 24, 2012) All matches Overall record: 22-9 Conf: 12-8 Home: 16-3 Away: 4-6 Neutral: 2-0 Team Statistics ST OPP ATTACK Kills Errors Total Attacks Attack Pct Kills/Set SET Assists Assists/Set SERVE Aces Errors Aces/Set SERVE RECEPTIONS Errors Errors/Set DEFENSE Digs Digs/Set BLOCKING Block Solo Block Assist Total Blocks Blocks/Set Block Errors Ball handling errors ATTENDANCE Total Dates/Avg Per Date 19/597 10/926 Neutral site #/Avg 2/0 Current win streak 0 - Home win streak 2 - Match wins by #sets 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Total NC State Opponents Sets won by set 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Total NC State Opponents Points by set 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Total NC State Opponents