Sept. 22, 2005

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – South Carolina volleyball will open the 2005 season with a different twist as the Gamecocks (7-3, 0-0) take on the LSU Tigers (10-1, 0-0) and the Arkansas Lady Razorbacks (7-4, 0-0) this weekend. Due to damage from Hurricane Katrina, USC will play LSU Friday afternoon at 4 p.m. CT at Barnhill Arena in Fayetteville, Ark. The South Carolina vs. Arkansas match is scheduled for its original day and time, Sunday at 1:30 p.m. CT.

Head coach Nancy Somera will also make her SEC debut this weekend. In the Pac-10, Somera posted a 1-5 record in conference openers. The Garnet and Black are 9-5 in SEC openers and their last conference opener win came against LSU back in 2003.

Although this is the 15th season for South Carolina in the Southeastern Conference, this marks the 20th meeting for the Gamecocks against LSU and the 17th against Arkansas. South Carolina leads the series against LSU 12-7, while the Lady `Backs lead the series 10-6 against USC. Last year, LSU snapped a 10-match losing streak to USC.

In the SEC Preseason Coaches poll, LSU and Arkansas were tied to win the West, while the Gamecocks were picked to finish fourth in the East. The Tigers are off to an impressive start with their lone loss coming at the hands of No. 13 Texas A&M. That loss snapped a seven-match win streak for the Tigers. LSU is coming off of impressive victories against Arizona State and No. 8 Notre Dame. Jelena Mijatovic leads the team in kills with 206 and is averaging 4.90 kills per game. She also has 33 of the Tigers’ 85 service aces.

The Lady `Backs are coming off of back-to-back losses to No. 18 San Diego and No. 25 Long Beach State. The Gamecocks won the last meeting against Arkansas, a 3-0 victory in Columbia last year. Denitza Koleva leads the team in kills with 157 and is second on the team in digs with 111.

The Gamecocks will continue to look at several lineups to compensate for the loss of junior outside hitter Lynae Vanden Hull, who is out for the season due to a torn ACL and MCL. Shonda Cole remains the leading force for the Gamecocks as she has 167 kills, averaging 4.91 per game. She is also the team leader in hitting efficiency with .327. Senior Nicole Miller is the team’s leading blocker with 42 total, averaging 1.24 per game.