Volleyball takes two of three in Arkansas

The Jackets won two out of three matches in the Arkansas Clarion Inn Invitational this weekend. The Jackets' performances presented a promising start of the fall season.

"[Last weekend]was a pretty good preview of what's to come. Beating Pepperdine would have been an even better preview, but to beat Arkansas and Pittsburgh was what we went out there to do. We knew that we had to beat them, one of them being a SEC team, and it was a really big deal for our conference," said Talisa Kellogg, a Junior outside hitter.

In the first game against Pittsburgh, the scoreboard strongly reflected Tech talents. Kellogg pounded the ball to record 17 kills and Junior Michelle Kandell clinched 17 digs. On the defensive side, Nikki Kaminskas had a match-high six total blocks and Jordan McCullers debuted with an impressive ten digs. The Jackets' 3-1 victory over the competitive Pittsburgh squad showed the strong suits of the Jackets' offense and defense.

"[Mary Ashley Tippins] is doing awesome, especially for being young and the only one being added to our team. She's adapting quickly; she's fitting in with us...Jordan made a statement in the spring, so she's not really new, but they're both doing well," Kellogg said.

Tech showed their stuff against the SEC's Arkansas. Lindsey Gray and Kellogg each posted double-doubles. After trailing behind, the Jackets stole 11 points away from the Razorbacks and held on for a 3-1 match victory. Senior Ulrike Stegemann posted five kills while hitting .444 in the last game to give her a total of 16 kills for the match.

"We had been so amped up, so anxious to play, just really ready to get out there. We had worked out so hard during pre-season on passing and everything is just coming together. We got a lot more to come, so it's all really exciting. I feel so good about the weekend," Kellogg said.

Kellogg has shifted her position to a back-row hitter. As shown in the past weekend, this change has given the Jackets an extra edge: to have someone possessing stong offensive and defensive skills in the back row.

"This year, I'm really getting a chance to play back-row and really focus on my digs and my passing. [I can] just let the hitting come [to me], work on my shots and just try to go all out...[I am] ready to work on everything that I need to work on to stay there," Kellogg said.

The Jackets suffered their first loss to Pepperdine, the team who went on to win the tournament. Their first loss of the season saw the team dropping the match 3-1. Nevertheless, the Jackets' achievements and victories overshadow the loss. For instance, Kaminskas and Kellogg were named to the all-tournament team. Furthermore, the Jackets will spend the next two weeks to practice, concentrate on team coordinate and execute winning plays.

"We are focusing on passing. Passing is the key to running our quick offense, which is something that a lot of other teams don't have. They usually run a slow offense with high balls. For us to be in the system, we need our in-system passes and run our offense, so we're keying on our passing big time," said Kellogg.

Play resumes on Friday, September 14 when the Jackets host the Regency Suites/Georgia Tech Classic at the O'Keefe Gymnasium. Tech takes on Western Carolina at 10 a.m. in the opening match. The tournament will also host national competitors Arizona, Kentucky and Georgia. Tech will play their in-state rival in a game at 8p.m. on the same day. Tech is the reigning champion of the Regency tournament and will strut out their best players during the weekend.

"We are going to definitely see [great plays in the 2007 Regency tournament] again and more. We love playing at home; that's one of the greatest things about O'Keefe. The fans are so dedicated and the atmosphere; we're pumped to play at home, and we're going to bring even more than what we brought last year," Kellogg said.

Kellogg was named the tournament MVP at the conclusion of last year's tournament.