The Echo

Issue date: 11/1/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Jason Kile

Several Lady Mocs volleyball players continue to crush the UTC records book this season as they look towards their upcoming game against Furman this Friday.

Chattanooga senior middle blocker Leslee Ball, Sycamore, Ill., is the most recent name in the news. For the second time, Ball was named the Volleyball Player of the Week in the Southern Conference after her performances against The Citadel and Georgia Southern, Oct. 22-28. She was previously named SoCon Volleyball Player of the Week for her work in the final week of September.

Ball posted a career-high 31 kills and a .475 hitting percentage in the game against The Citadel, Oct. 23. The kill total was shy of breaking Mary Simpson's single-match record of 36 kills set against Western Carolina, November 11, 1988.

Ball then secured a match-high 24 kills in the 3-1 victory over Georgia Southern Saturday and posted a .435 hitting percentage.

Ball has totaled 1,373 kills and is currently ranked third on the Lady Mocs all-time kills list. She is also first in the SoCon for total kills at 253, as well as second in kills per game at 5.06 and an average of 5.73 points per game and is fourth in hitting percentage.

Ball is the third player in the SoCon records books to obtain the honor multiple times in her career.

This is also the third time a Chattanooga volleyball player has been named SoCon player of the week. Chattanoogan Lara Newberry, junior, shared the award Oct. 8-14.

Lara Newberry broke the all-time dig record at UTC with 35 digs and a career total of 2,087 registered in the game against Lipscomb, Oct. 16. The previous school record of 2,058 was set by Kylie Hunter from 1990-93.

Newberry also helped the Lady Mocs in their 3-1 victory over Western Carolina Tuesday, registering a match high 25 digs.
Newberry continues to be the top libero, or defensive specialist, in the nation, averaging 7.11 digs per game.

The Catamounts jumped out to a substantial lead, winning the first game and leading the second. before the Lady Mocs rallied by scoring ten of the final twelve points for the second game and, eventually, the match.

After defeating The Citadel and Georgia Southern, the Lady Mocs started this week 10-3 in the Southern Conference.
Senior outside hitter Jamie Engel, Troy, Ill., has posted 0.58 aces per game to place second in the SoCon in that category.

Also, freshman setter Bailee Chastain, Signal Mountain, Tenn., tied her career-high with 63 assists in the game against Citadel, as well as notching 56 assists in the game against Georgia Southern.

Chastain added on a match high 43 assists and 14 digs in the WCU game, while Engel finished with a match high 10 kills and 14 digs.

Chattanooga hosts Furman at Maclellan Gym Friday at 7:00 p.m.

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