CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, POMONA

Bronco Sports News

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2004

Contact: Paul Helms

(909) 869-2812

 

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

MEDIA NOTES

 

2004 CPP Record: 12-9. 2004 CCAA Record: 7-4

 

Broncos To Start Important Homestand This Week: Cal Poly Pomona’s women’s volleyball team, coming off a tough road loss to Sonoma State on Saturday, begins an important four-match homestand against CCAA opponents this weekend. The Broncos will host Cal State Bakersfield on Friday night and Cal State L.A. on Saturday night. Both matches are critical if the Broncos want to keep alive their postseason aspirations. Cal Poly Pomona is currently third in the California Collegiate Athletic Association and leads Cal State Bakersfield and Sonoma State by one game with Cal State L.A. one game further back. Cal State Bakersfield and Cal State L.A. are both ranked regionally in the top four. The Broncos are trying to build upon two consecutive winning seasons. Cal Poly Pomona concluded its 2003 season with an overall record of 19-11. The Broncos were also 14-8 in the CCAA and finished in sole possession of fourth place. Coupled with a 20-11 record in 2002, the Broncos won 39 matches over the last two seasons, which equals the best two-year win total since the 1993 and 1994 seasons. Those teams also won 39 matches in two years. Cal Poly Pomona came within one victory of recording back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since the 1992 and 1993 seasons. The Broncos have won 18 or more matches in four of the last five seasons.

 

Last Week: The Broncos began the second half of CCAA play with mixed results last week.  Cal Poly Pomona got off to a good start on Friday by defeating Cal State Monterey Bay in straight sets 30-25, 30-16, 30-22. With the win, the Broncos swept the season series with the Otters. Allison Anderson (Jr., Chino Hills, Ayala HS) led the way with 13 kills and five blocks. Casey Riedel (So., Saugus, Saugus HS) had 12 kills and five blocks while Kellie Francis (Jr., Chino, Don Lugo HS) had 12 kills, 19 digs and eight blocks to pace a balanced Bronco attack. The next night however, Cal Poly Pomona wasn’t as fortunate. The Broncos lost to Sonoma State in four games, 26-30, 30-21, 30-21, 30-26. With the result, the Broncos remained in third place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. Anderson led Cal Poly Pomona with 15 kills and six blocks, while Francis had 14 kills and 17 digs. Emily Kennedy (Jr., Upland, Upland HS) had 47 assists, two aces and nine digs for the Broncos.  

 

Scouting the Opposition: Cal Poly Pomona is 18-33 all-time against Cal State Bakersfield. Earlier this season, the Broncos outlasted the Roadrunners in Bakersfield in a five-game thriller 30-19, 26-30, 30-28, 16-30, 15-13. Cal Poly Pomona is 27-27 all-time against Cal State L.A. Earlier this season, the Broncos defeated the Golden Eagles at Los Angeles 26-30, 33-31, 30-26, 30-21. That was the first time Cal Poly Pomona beat both schools at their home courts in conference play in the same season in 1987.

 

Rankings: For the first time in six weeks, Cal Poly Pomona did not receive any votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s Top 25 poll. Two members of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (UC San Diego in second and Cal State San Bernardino in seventh) were included in the national Top-10, while Cal State Bakersfield and Cal State L.A. received votes, but were not in the top-25. Six Pacific Region teams were included in the top-25 and eight received votes in the poll. In a preseason poll of CCAA coaches, the Broncos were picked to finish fifth in the conference behind UC San Diego, Cal State San Bernardino, Cal State L.A. and Cal State Bakersfield.

 

How About That Schedule: Cal Poly Pomona will once again face a very challenging schedule in 2004. Cal Poly Pomona will face each California Collegiate Athletic Association team twice in 2004 and UC San Diego (2nd) and Cal State San Bernardino (7th) are included in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association’s national Top-25 poll. The Broncos will be at UC San Diego on Friday, Nov. 5 and at Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday, Nov. 6. Cal State Bakersfield and Cal State L.A. also received votes and the Broncos will host the Roadrunners this Friday, Oct. 22 and the Golden Eagles this Saturday, Oct. 23.

 

Anderson Earns Player of the Week Honors: Allison Anderson (Jr., Chino Hills, Ayala HS) was named the Molten California Collegiate Athletic Association Women’s Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 6-12. Anderson, who earned All-America honorable mention last year, had 29 kills to lead the Broncos to big road wins at Cal State L.A. and Cal State Bakersfield. She averaged 3.22 kills per game and hit at a .290 percentage. She also had 1.44 blocks per game. Against Cal State L.A., Anderson had 13 kills, six blocks, four digs, two assists and a service ace. Anderson then added 16 kills on .361 hitting against Cal State Bakersfield to go along with seven blocks, four digs and two aces. With the score tied at 12-12 in the fifth game, Anderson produced three kills to give the Broncos the 15-13 win in the deciding game. It was the first weekly honor of Anderson’s Cal Poly Pomona career. She is the first Bronco to earn CCAA Player of the Week honors since Kellie Francis got the nod last season for the week of Sept. 29 – Oct. 5 after leading the Broncos to a win over then-No. 1 Cal State San Bernardino.

 

On The Bench: Rosie Wegrich, who holds the Cal Poly Pomona standard for most wins by a head coach, will begin her 13th season with the program. Wegrich has compiled a 561-416-10 record in 29 years as a head coach and is one of the most successful Division II coaches in the nation. Before coming to Cal Poly Pomona, Wegrich coached at Division I programs at Minnesota and Arizona. She has a 232-157 mark at Cal Poly Pomona and picked up her 200th win as Bronco head coach in a thrilling five-game victory over Cal State L.A. on Nov. 15, 2002. Wegrich also picked up her 500th career win when the Broncos posted a four-game victory over Grand Canyon in the final match of the 2000 season.

 

Look Who’s Back: The Broncos have seven players and four starters returning in 2004. Allison Anderson (Jr., Chino Hills, Ayala HS) led the team in kills last season with 442, which is ninth on the all-time single-season list. She also led the team in blocks with 110. Anderson received All-America honorable mention by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, was named to the 10-player All-Pacific Region first team by the AVCA and received second-team All-CCAA honors. Kellie Francis (Jr., Chino, Don Lugo HS) was fourth on the team in kills with 180 despite missing several matches with injury and should be a major contributor in 2004, while Elizabeth Defoort (Jr., Glendora, Citrus College), fifth on the team in kills with 167, should play a larger role on the team this season. Emily Kennedy (Jr., Upland, Upland HS) led the team in assists last season with 1,395, which is the second-highest single-season total in the program’s history. Kennedy is currently second on the career assist list with 3,475. The Broncos also have Breezie Jordan (Jr., Ventura, Buena HS), who was second on the team in digs with 241, coming back.

 

Look Who’s New: Cal Poly Pomona welcomes another solid recruiting class that should make major contributions for the Broncos. Antoinette Kathol (Fr., Sierra Madre, La Salle HS) is 6-foot-2-inches tall and the tallest middle blocker on the team since Karla Tate. Kiting Kolar (Fr., La Canada, La Canada HS) is a 5-6 libero who has been impressive and Jen Bullock (Sr., Anaheim, Eastern New Mexico) is a 5-9 setter with an impressive volleyball background. Stephanie Chen (Fr., Walnut, Walnut HS) is another freshman libero who has been a contributor. The Broncos are also expecting big things from Christina Gordon (Jr., Moreno Valley, Riverside CC), who will see extensive time at an outside hitter position, and Mallory Manzo (Fr., Fontana, Etiwanda HS). Both players redshirted last season.

 

Taking The Fifth: Cal Poly Pomona has made a habit of playing lengthy matches. Of the Broncos’ first 21 contests, eight of them have been decided in five games. Cal Poly Pomona is 5-3 in those matches, including a five-game win over Sonoma State on Sept. 24. The Broncos trailed in the fifth game, 9-6, but rallied and eventually broke a 12-12 tie on a kill by Antoinette Kathol (Fr., Sierra Madre, La Salle HS) and a block by Kathol and Emily Kennedy (Jr., Upland, Upland HS). The match ended on a kill by Kellie Francis (Jr., Chino, Don Lugo HS). Earlier this season, the Broncos endured a program-record five consecutive matches that lasted five games. The old record was four. With eight five-game matches already in the books, the Broncos are closing in on the single-season record of nine set by the 1987, 1991 and 1997 squads. Cal Poly Pomona is 3-0 in five-game matches away from home, going 2-0 against Alaska Fairbanks in Alaska and edging Cal State Bakersfield in Bakersfield. Cal Poly Pomona is 2-3 in five-game matches at home, losing to Seattle Pacific, Seattle University and the University of Indianapolis and beating Sonoma State and Western New Mexico. The Broncos were 2-3 in five-game matches last season, beating then-No. 1 Cal State San Bernardino and Chico State, while losing to Chaminade, Northwest Nazarene and Sonoma State. The Broncos were 2-5 in five-game matches in 2002 and 3-5 in 2001. Cal Poly Pomona was 7-2 in five-game matches in 1997 when the Broncos were 24-8 overall and last qualified for the NCAA Division II playoffs.

 

The Leaders Of The Stats: Kellie Francis (Jr., Ontario, Don Lugo HS) leads the Broncos with 315 kills, while Allison Anderson, a honorable mention All-American in 2003, is second with 295. Christina Gordon (Jr., Moreno Valley, Riverside CC) has 181 kills and Elizabeth Defoort (Jr., Glendora, Citrus College) has 154 kills. Anderson’s hitting percentage of .310 leads the team. Emily Kennedy (Jr., Upland, Upland HS) leads with 829 assists, while Jen Bullock (Sr., Anaheim, Eastern New Mexico) has 116. Kennedy leads with 31 aces, while Kiting Kolar (Fr., La Canada, La Canada HS) has 29. Kolar leads in digs with 263, while Jordan has 154. Anderson has a team-high 71 blocks, while Antoinette Kathol (Fr., Sierra Madre, La Salle HS) has 68.

 

 

CAL POLY POMONA

Women’s Volleyball

CPP Schedule

 

8/26     at Alaska Fairbanks!                             W, 3-2

8/27     vs. Findlay!                                           L, 1-3

8/28     vs. Western State!                                W, 3-0

8/28     at Alaska Fairbanks!                             W, 3-2

9/1       vs. Seattle Pacific                                  L, 2-3

9/3       vs. Indianapolis^                                   L, 2-3

9/3       vs. Seattle University^                           L, 2-3

9/4       vs. Western New Mexico^                   W, 3-2

9/4       vs. Chaminade^                                    L, 0-3

9/10     at Cal State L.A.*                                W, 3-1

9/11     at CS Bakersfield*                               W, 3-2

9/14     vs. University of La Verne                     W, 3-0

9/17     at Chico State*                                     W, 3-0

9/18     at CS Stanislaus*                                  W, 3-0

9/24     vs. Sonoma State*                                W, 3-2

9/25     vs. CS Monterey Bay*                         W, 3-1

10/1     vs. CS San Bernardino*                       L, 0-3

10/2     vs. UC San Diego*                               L, 0-3

10/6     at CS Dominguez Hills*                        L, 0-3

10/15   at CS Monterey Bay*                           W, 3-0

10/16   at Sonoma State*                                 L, 1-3

10/22   vs. CS Bakersfield*                              7:00 p.m.

10/23   vs. Cal State L.A.*                               7:00 p.m.

10/29   vs. CS Stanislaus*                                7:00 p.m.

10/30   vs. Chico State*                                   7:00 p.m.

11/5     at UC San Diego*                                7:00 p.m.

11/6     at CS San Bernardino*                         7:00 p.m.

11/10   vs. CS Dominguez Hills*                       7:00 p.m.

11/12   vs. Grand Canyon*                               7:00 p.m.

 

*Denotes CCAA Game

!= Midnight Sun Invitational, Alaska Fairbanks

^= Holiday Inn-Select Diamond Bar/Cal Poly Pomona Invitational