Florida Atlantic University Volleyball 2014 Postseason Guide

Florida Atlantic University Volleyball 2014 Postseason Guide

2014 FAU VOLLEYBALL OWL QUICK FACTS GENERAL Location:.... Boca Raton, FL Founded:..1961 Enrollment:...30,759 Nickname:..Owls Colors:...Blue and Red Arena: FAU Arena (2,980) Press Row Phone: (561) 297-4092 Affiliation: NCAA Division I Conference: Conference USA Athletic Dept. Phone: (561) 297-3710 President: John Kelly, Ph. D Athletics Director:.Patrick Chun Athletics Web Site:.www.fausports.com FAU VOLLEYBALL HISTORY First Year of Volleyball:..1987 All-Time Record:...401-426 Best All-Time Year:..2005 (29-3) NCAA Tournament Appearances...Three ( 98, 99, 05) NCAA Tournament Record:. 0-1 Affiliations:.. Atlantic Sun (11 seasons, 94-06)...Sun Belt (7th season, 06-13).Conference USA (2nd season, 13-pres.) COACHING STAFF Head Coach:... Fernanda Nelson Alma Mater:......National American 03 Record at FAU:....38-47 Years at FAU:... 3rd Asst. Coaches:...Roberto Santasofia, Chuck Amshoff 2014 REVIEW Overall Record:....18-11 Home:.8-3 Away:.........7-5 Neutral:......3-3 C-USA Record (Finish): 9-7 (11th) Starters Returning/Lost:...4+libero/2 Letterwinners Returning/Lost:...9/7 Newcomers:......4 NOTES OFF TO A FLYING START: FAU began the 2014 season by winning the FAU Invitational at home. Katarina Stepanovic and Liene Mellupe were named to the All-Tournament Team, while Genesis Viera was named MVP. The Owls -6 start to the season was their best start to a season since 2005. A STEP FORWARD: Katarina Stepanovic was named to the FAU Invitational All-Tournament team at the beginning of the year and that propelled her to a great season. The junior from Serbia was named C-USA Defensive Player of the Week earlier this season, becoming the first Owl volleyball player in nearly eight seasons to earn weekly conference recognition. She was also named First Team All-C-USA. WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU? Junior middle blocker Brittney Brown was named to three All- Tournament Teams (Jacksonville Marriott Classic, Allstate Sugar Bowl Classic, Hilton Garden Inn/Homewood Suites Classic) during the nonconference schedule. Her great play continued in conference play and she was named Second Team All-Conference for her efforts. IN THE BEGINNING Setter Genesis Viera was named MVP of the seasonopening FAU Invitational. Later in the year, she earned Conference USA Setter of the Week, after recording a career high 61 assists in a win over FIU. ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS: Juniors Katarina Stepanovic and Brittney Brown were named to the All- Conference USA Team. Stepanovic led the team in hitting percentage (.370) and blocks per set (1.03) and was second on the team in kills per set (2.41). Brown led the team in kills per set (2.80) and was second on the team in blocks per set (0.98). NOTES: FAU RECORD BOOK: Katarina Stepanovic.370 hitting percentage this season (Tiffany Collins,.376, 1st all-time).349 career hitting percentage (Tiffany Collins,.316, 1st all-time) 96 block assists this season (Katie Arvidson, 109, 2005) Genesis Viera 1,073 assists this season (Heidi Ericson, 1,099, 1996, 7th alltime) Team 337 block assists (School record: 395 block assists, 2012) FINISHING THEM OFF: The Owls are 18-6 this season when winning the first set. UNITED NATIONS: The FAU roster features five players from foreign countries. Genesis Viera is from Puerto Rico, Liene Mellupe hails from Latvia, while Ivana Bulajic, Kristina Rankovic and Katarina Stepanovic are all from Serbia. OWLS WITH A W: Seniors Ivana Bulajic and Liene Mellupe, who both came to FAU as junior college transfers last season, have won 41 matches so far in their FAU careers. That is the winningest two-year stretch since the 2004-05 seasons, when the Owls won 50 total matches.

2014 FAU VOLLEYBALL BREAKDOWN BY CLASS SENIORS (2) Bulajic Mellupe JUNIORS (4) Brittney Brown Rankovic Stepanovic Swope SOPHOMORES (7) Erika Brown Rosado Shoaff Tekavec Unger Viera Wojciakowski FRESHMEN (1) Eakin BY STATE FLORIDA (4) Rosado (Lakeland) Shoaff (Pembroke Pines) Swope (Orlando) Unger (Lake Mary) CALIFORNIA (1) Brittney Brown (Fresno) OHIO (2) Erika Brown (Westerville) Tekavec (Solon) MICHIGAN (1) Wojciakowski (Grand Rapids) TEXAS (1) Eakin (Wichita Falls) FOREIGN (5) Bulajic (Serbia) Mellupe (Latvia) Rankovic (Serbia) Stepanovic (Serbia) Viera (Puerto Rico) NUMERICAL ROSTER No. Name Ht Pos. Cl. Hometown (Last School) 1 Genesis Viera 5-8 S So. Toa Baja, Puerto Rico (Tulsa) 2 Michele Swope 5-11 OH Jr. Orlando, Fla. (Denver) 3 Kristi Tekavec 6-0 OH So. Solon, Ohio (Solon HS) 5 Sarah Eakin 6-4 MB Fr. Wichita Falls, Texas (HS) 6 Nathalie Rosado 5-7 L So. Lakeland, Fla. (McKeel Academy) 7 Brittney Brown 6-2 MB Jr. Fresno, Calif. (College of Central Florida) 8 Erika Brown 6-0 MB/RS So. Westerville, Ohio (St. Francis DeSales) 9 Katarina Stepanovic 6-2 MB Jr. Barosevac, Serbia (UT-Brownsville) 10 Ivana Bulajic 6-3 MB/RS Sr. Pancevo, Serbia (Tyler JC) 11 Nicole Unger 5-9 DS So. Lake Mary, Fla. (HS) 16 Liene Mellupe 5-11 OH/RS Sr. Riga, Latvia (Southern Idaho) 17 Beth Shoaff 5-8 S So. Davie, Fla. (Hollywood Hills HS) 18 Brianne Wojciakowski 6-2 MB So. Grand Rapids, Mich. (Forest Hills Northern) 33 Kristina Rankovic 5-10 OH Jr. Lazarevac, Serbia (Vernon College) ALPHABETICAL ROSTER No. Name Pos. Ht. Cl. Hometown (Last School) 7 Brittney Brown 6-2 MB Jr. Fresno, Calif. (College of Central Florida) 8 Erika Brown 6-0 MB/RS So. Westerville, Ohio (St. Francis DeSales) 10 Ivana Bulajic 6-3 MB/RS Sr. Pancevo, Serbia (Tyler JC) 5 Sarah Eakin 6-4 MB Fr. Wichita Falls, Texas (HS) 16 Liene Mellupe 5-11 OH/RS Sr. Riga, Latvia (Southern Idaho) 33 Kristina Rankovic 5-10 OH Jr. Lazarevac, Serbia (Vernon College) 6 Nathalie Rosado 5-7 L So. Lakeland, Fla. (McKeel Academy) 17 Beth Shoaff 5-8 S So. Davie, Fla. (Hollywood Hills HS) 9 Katarina Stepanovic 6-2 MB Jr. Barosevac, Serbia (UT-Brownsville) 2 Michele Swope 5-11 OH Jr. Orlando, Fla. (Denver) 3 Kristi Tekavec 6-0 OH So. Solon, Ohio (Solon HS) 11 Nicole Unger 5-9 DS So. Lake Mary, Fla. (HS) 1 Genesis Viera 5-8 S So. Toa Baja, Puerto Rico (Tulsa) 18 Brianne Wojciakowski 6-2 MB So. Grand Rapids, Mich. (Forest Hills Northern) COACHING STAFF Head Coach: Fernanda Nelson (3rd Season) Assistant Coach: Roberto Santasofia (1st Season) Assistant Coach: Chuck Amshoff (1st Season) PRONUNCIATION GUIDE Ivana Bulajic (E-von-uh Bull-EYE-itch) Liene Mellupe (lee-in-ay me-you-pay) Nathalie Rosado (Natalie) Beth Shoaff (SHOW-ff) Katarina Stepanovic (STEP-on-oh-vick) Kristi Tekavec (TECH-uh-vick) Genesis Viera (vee-air-uh) Brianne Wojciakowski (Wo-joe-COW-ski)

2014 FAU VOLLEYBALL FERNANDA NELSON Head Coach (3rd season) 38-47 Record National American 03 Coaching Experience 2004-08 National American Univ. (Asst. Coach) 2008-12 Florida Gulf Coast Univ. (Asst. Coach) 2012-pres. Florida Atlantic University (Head Coach) Fernanda Nelson was named Florida Atlantic University's head volleyball coach on June 4, 2012. Nelson became the fifth head coach in FAU volleyball history after serving as an assistant at Florida Gulf Coast University four seasons. While at FGCU, Nelson helped the Eagles to a 63-43 overall record (46-17 Atlantic Sun Conference record) and the 2008 regular season A-Sun title. She also assisted head coach Dave Nichols in guiding FGCU to a winning record in its first season of sand volleyball in 2012. The position at FGCU came after eight years as both a player and a coach at National American University in Sioux City, South Dakota. Nelson arrived at NAU in 2000 and earned second-team NAIA All-American honors as a freshman. She was National Player of the Year as both a sophomore and a senior and led NAU to a national championship as a junior. Nelson ended her career as a threetime All-American selection. She was named to the NAU coaching staff immediately following the conclusion of her playing career. While an assistant, NAU won four straight regional championships and the 2006 NAIA National Championship. Nelson and her husband Ethan have a daughter, Bella. One of the best setters in the storied history of the Brazilian National Team and named Brazil's best setter in 1997, Nelson helped FGCU setter Roberta Santos and outside hitter Ana Kokanvic, two of the best players in FGCU history, earn first team All-Atlantic Sun honors in their senior campaign. Additionally, libero Holly Youngquist was a two-time second-team All-Atlantic Sun selection under Nelson's charge. In four seasons, Nelson has helped coach seven All-Atlantic Sun selections (three first team), four conference Freshmen Team honorees, a unanimous A-Sun Freshman of the Year, an ESPN/ CoSIDA Academic All-District 3 selection (Holly Youngquist; second team) and 27 A-Sun All-Academic selections. In her first season at FAU, Nelson recorded her first career victory in a five-set win over Stetson. The Owls more than doubled their win total from the previous year, while in the process snapping a conference losing streak that had lasted almost two years. She also led the team to a victory over a Big East opponent (Villanova) at the Arizona State University Sheraton Invitational. FAU Year-By-Year Under Fernanda Nelson Overall Home Away Neutral Conference YEAR CONF. W-L Pct. W-L Pct. W-L Pct. W-L Pct. W-L Pct. 2012 Sun Belt 7-19.269 4-6.400 2-8.200 1-5.167 2-13.133 2013 C-USA 13-17.433 7-6.538 3-8.273 3-3.500 4-10.286 2014 C-USA 18-11.621 8-3.727 7-5.583 3-3.500 9-7.563 TOTALS 38-47.447 19-15.559 12-21.364 7-11.389 15-30.333

FAU Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 16, 2014) Conference matches RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL ALL GAMES 9-7 6-2 3-5 0-0 CONFERENCE 9-7 6-2 3-5 0-0 NON-CONFERENCE 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 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 7 BROWN, Brittney 49 141 2.88 54 294. 296 1 0.02 0 0 0.00 0 20 0.41 15 33 48 0.98 16 0 172.5 9 STEPANOVIC, Kat 56 146 2.61 37 318. 343 5 0.09 18 16 0.32 0 46 0.82 7 62 69 1.23 5 0 202.0 16 MELLUPE, Liene 30 76 2.53 29 252. 187 3 0.10 7 6 0.23 2 102 3.40 3 6 9 0.30 2 0 89.0 3 TEKAVEC, Kristi 47 119 2.53 51 366. 186 2 0.04 0 0 0.00 1 28 0.60 4 13 17 0.36 5 0 129.5 33 RANKOVIC, Kristin 56 110 1.96 57 410. 129 8 0.14 15 21 0.27 10 123 2.20 2 9 11 0.20 2 0 131.5 10 BULAJIC, Ivana 49 81 1.65 47 210. 162 4 0.08 1 2 0.02 0 33 0.67 8 37 45 0.92 7 0 108.5 18 W O J C I A K O W S K I, 31 31 1.00 13 105. 171 1 0.03 0 1 0.00 0 7 0.23 0 20 20 0.65 1 1 41.0 2 SWOPE, Michelle 20 12 0.60 12 55. 000 3 0.15 0 6 0.00 3 27 1.35 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 12.0 1 VIERA, Genesis 55 28 0.51 9 91. 209 589 10.7 4 2 0.07 0 120 2.18 8 26 34 0.62 3 3 53.0 6 ROSADO, Nathalie 53 3 0.06 0 5. 600 24 0.45 4 8 0.08 5 180 3.40 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 7.0 11 UNGER, Nicole 56 2 0.04 0 6. 333 19 0.34 2 13 0.04 9 160 2.86 0 1 1 0.02 0 0 4.5 17 SHOAFF, Beth 10 0 0.00 1 1-1.00 39 3.90 1 2 0.10 0 10 1.00 0 0 0 0.00 0 2 1.0 8 BROWN, Erika 10 0 0.00 0 1. 000 3 0.30 3 6 0.30 0 12 1.20 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 3.0 TEAM - - - - - - - - - - - 7 - - - - - - - - - FAU 56 749 13.3 310 211. 208 701 12.5 55 83 0.98 37 868 15.5 47 207 150. 2.69 41 6 954.5 Opponents 56 751 13.4 396 216. 164 702 12.5 37 76 0.66 55 884 15.7 32 243 153. 2.74 29 19 941.5 Team Statistics FAU OPP ATTACK K ills 749 751 E r r o r s 310 396 Total Attacks 2114 2163 Attack Pct. 208. 164 K ills / S e t 13.4 13.4 SET A s s is t s 701 702 A s s is t s / S e t 12.5 12.5 SERVE A c e s 55 37 E r r o r s 83 76 A c e s / S e t 1.0 0.7 SERVE RECEPTIO E r r o r s 37 55 E r r o r s / S e t 0.7 1.0 A t t e m p t s 1135 1224 Reception Pct. 967. 955 DEFENSE D ig s 868 884 D ig s / S e t 15.5 15.8 BLOCKING Block Solo 47 32 Block Assist 207 243 Total Blocks 150.5 153.5 B lo c k s / S e t 2.7 2.7 Block Errors 41 29 Ball handling errors 6 19 ATTENDANCE T o t a l 1573 2961 Dates/Avg Per Da 8/197 8/370 Neutral site #/Avg 0/0 Current win streak 1 - Home win streak 1 - Date Opponent Score Score by set Att. *Sep 18 at FIU 3-1 25-16,24-26,25-18,25-16 103 *Sep 26 at UTSA L 1-3 25-27,20-25,25-17,25-27 413 *Sep 28 at UTEP 3-0 25-11,25-12,30-28 418 *Oct. 3 UAB 3-0 25-18,25-17,25-23 370 *Oct. 5 WKU L 0-3 21-25,24-26,18-25 216 *Oct 12 at Charlotte 3-1 25-21,19-25,25-21,25-22 496 *Oct. 17 USM 3-0 25-20,25-17,25-13 231 *Oct 19 MT 3-0 25-17,25-19,25-22 0 *Oct 24 at North Texas L 1-3 25-23,23-25,17-25,21-25 492 *Oct 26 at WKU L 1-3 25-22,19-25,21-25,23-25 410 *Oct 29 FIU 3-1 25-22,20-25,30-28,25-21 409 *Oct 31 CHARLOTTE 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-19 126 *Nov. 2 RICE L 0-3 18-25,21-25,25-27 221 *Nov 07 at MARSHALL L 2-3 25-22,25-16,24-26,21-25,8 372 *Nov 09 at USM L 0-3 22-25,18-25,25-27 257 *Nov 14 LATECH 3-0 25-11,25-15,25-20 0 Record in 3-set matches: 6-3 Record in 4-set matches: 3-3 Record in 5-set matches: 0-1

FAU Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 16, 2014) All matches RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL ALL GAMES 18-11 8-3 7-5 3-3 CONFERENCE 9-7 6-2 3-5 0-0 NON-CONFERENCE 9-4 2-1 4-0 3-3 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 7 BROWN, Brittney 98 271 2.77 103 565. 297 9 0.09 0 0 0.00 0 45 0.46 17 58 75 0.77 19 1 317.0 9 STEPANOVIC, Kat 100 241 2.41 54 505. 370 9 0.09 30 29 0.30 0 77 0.77 7 96 103 1.03 10 0 326.0 3 TEKAVEC, Kristi 84 189 2.25 84 576. 182 4 0.05 0 0 0.00 6 49 0.58 7 20 27 0.32 7 0 206.0 33 RANKOVIC, Kristin 103 223 2.17 106 766. 153 14 0.14 30 41 0.29 22 228 2.21 4 18 22 0.21 3 1 266.0 16 MELLUPE, Liene 79 153 1.94 65 544. 162 14 0.18 21 18 0.27 10 258 3.27 7 14 21 0.27 3 0 188.0 10 BULAJIC, Ivana 89 158 1.78 78 414. 193 6 0.07 2 5 0.02 0 61 0.69 9 54 63 0.71 9 1 196.0 18 W O J C I A K O W S K I, 48 65 1.35 21 172. 256 5 0.10 3 6 0.06 0 14 0.29 2 26 28 0.58 1 1 83.0 2 SWOPE, Michelle 40 24 0.60 14 79. 127 5 0.12 2 11 0.05 5 42 1.05 0 1 1 0.03 0 0 26.5 1 VIERA, Genesis 102 55 0.54 20 185. 189 107 10.5 9 10 0.09 0 219 2.15 9 46 55 0.54 7 4 96.0 8 BROWN, Erika 24 8 0.33 3 16. 312 4 0.17 5 8 0.21 0 18 0.75 0 2 2 0.08 0 0 14.0 6 ROSADO, Nathalie 102 5 0.05 0 10. 500 47 0.46 5 13 0.05 13 346 3.39 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 10.0 11 UNGER, Nicole 93 3 0.03 0 14. 214 29 0.31 16 27 0.17 18 257 2.76 0 2 2 0.02 0 0 20.0 15 HICKS, Savannah 1 0 0.00 0 0. 000 0 0.00 0 0 0.00 0 1 1.00 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 0.0 17 SHOAFF, Beth 23 0 0.00 1 3 -. 33 79 3.43 2 6 0.09 0 21 0.91 0 0 0 0.00 1 2 2.0 TEAM - - - - - - - - - - - 13 - - - - - - - - - FAU 105 139 13.2 549 384. 220 129 12.3 125 175 1.19 87 163 15.5 62 337 230. 2.20 60 10 1750. Opponents 105 129 12.3 668 388. 162 123 11.7 87 169 0.83 125 160 15.3 51 415 258. 2.46 45 37 1642. Team Statistics FAU OPP ATTACK K ills 1395 1297 E r r o r s 549 668 Total Attacks 3849 3883 Attack Pct. 220. 162 K ills / S e t 13.3 12.4 SET A s s is t s 1298 1231 A s s is t s / S e t 12.4 11.7 SERVE A c e s 125 87 E r r o r s 175 169 A c e s / S e t 1.2 0.8 SERVE RECEPTIO E r r o r s 87 125 E r r o r s / S e t 0.8 1.2 A t t e m p t s 1990 2230 Reception Pct. 956. 944 DEFENSE D ig s 1636 1608 D ig s / S e t 15.6 15.3 BLOCKING Block Solo 62 51 Block Assist 337 415 Total Blocks 230.5 258.5 B lo c k s / S e t 2.2 2.5 Block Errors 60 45 Ball handling errors 10 37 ATTENDANCE T o t a l 2490 3855 Dates/Avg Per Da 11/226 12/321 Neutral site #/Avg 6/9 Current win streak 1 - Home win streak 1 - Date Opponent Score Score by set Att. Aug 29 BCU 3-0 25-7,25-19,25-14 358 Aug 29 MCN L 2-3 25-19,25-17,16-25,15-25,1 358 Aug 30 STET 3-1 25-21,23-25,25-21,25-13 201 Sep 05 vs Coastal Carolina L 2-3 25-21,16-25,19-25,25-20,1 0 Sep 05 at North Florida 3-0 25-23,25-22,25-21 0 Sep 06 at Jacksonville 3-0 25-22,25-15,25-15 88 Sep 06 vs BCU 3-0 25-13,25-12,25-11 54 Sep 12 vs Howard L 2-3 17-25,25-19,25-12,19-25,9 0 Sep 12 vs Southeastern La. 3-1 25-14,25-23,23-25,25-16 0 Sep 13 at Tulane Green Wave 3-0 25-19,25-16,25-18 201 *Sep 18 at FIU 3-1 25-16,24-26,25-18,25-16 103 Sep 19 vs UMKC L 1-3 25-17,23-25,22-25,20-25 0 Sep 20 vs Alabama State 3-0 25-18,25-19,25-15 0 Sep 20 at FGCU 3-1 25-22,25-17,23-25,25-22 605 *Sep 26 at UTSA L 1-3 25-27,20-25,25-17,25-27 413 *Sep 28 at UTEP 3-0 25-11,25-12,30-28 418 *Oct. 3 UAB 3-0 25-18,25-17,25-23 370 *Oct. 5 WKU L 0-3 21-25,24-26,18-25 216 *Oct 12 at Charlotte 3-1 25-21,19-25,25-21,25-22 496 *Oct. 17 USM 3-0 25-20,25-17,25-13 231 *Oct 19 MT 3-0 25-17,25-19,25-22 0 *Oct 24 at North Texas L 1-3 25-23,23-25,17-25,21-25 492 *Oct 26 at WKU L 1-3 25-22,19-25,21-25,23-25 410 *Oct 29 FIU 3-1 25-22,20-25,30-28,25-21 409 *Oct 31 CHARLOTTE 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-19 126 *Nov. 2 RICE L 0-3 18-25,21-25,25-27 221 *Nov 07 at MARSHALL L 2-3 25-22,25-16,24-26,21-25,8 372 *Nov 09 at USM L 0-3 22-25,18-25,25-27 257 *Nov 14 LATECH 3-0 25-11,25-15,25-20 0 Record in 3-set matches: 12-3 Record in 4-set matches: 6-4 Record in 5-set matches: 0-4