Hilbert Muses Volleyball Post With Virginia

Idaho volleyball coach Tom Hilbert interviewed on Monday and Tuesday for the vacant coaching job at the University of Virginia.

Virginia, last in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1994, is replacing Karen Uhler, who resigned for personal reasons.

“I’m in a great situation at Idaho, but this was something I felt I needed to look at,” Hilbert said. “It’s very similar to Idaho when I first came here. The thing is Idaho is committed to a good program and I’m not sure if Virginia is ready to do that. That’s a concern of mine.”

Virginia is expected to interview seven candidates.

Hilbert is 121-61 in six years at Idaho. The Vandals are 79-16 over the last three years, each season qualifying for the NCAA Tournament.

Hilbert has announced that two high school seniors have agreed to attend the University of Idaho and play volleyball next fall.

Milannee Kim from Boise, Idaho and Beth Craig, of Milpitas, California, will join the Vandals in the fall of 1995.

Kim, who will graduate from Boise High School, was the most valuable player of the Southern Idaho Conference this past year and led her team to a fourth place finish in the Idaho High School State Championships.

Kim comes from a very athletic family. One sister played rugby at Stanford, while another was a member of the crew team at Cornell. Both her mother and father were athletes in college. Her mother played volleyball at Boise State. She has also had a number of cousins in collegiate and an uncle, Dan Bowers, who played football at BYU and professionally with the Miami Dolphins.

“I am very excited about Lannee coming to Idaho,” said Hilbert. “With her tremendous athletic ability and her background in volleyball, she will be an outstanding player for the Vandals. And with Lynne (Vandal returning setter Lynne Hyland) coming back for her junior and senior years, Lannee will have a chance to learn our system gradually.”

Craig is a 6-1 middle blocker from Milpitas High School.

“Beth is a very athletic player,” explains Hilbert. “Her high school is in a very very good conference in northern California, so she is playing at a high level. She very well could come in and make an impact right away in the middle.”

Hilbert is hoping to possibly sign one more player this spring which would give the Vandals 13 players on their roster.

Huma transfers

University of Idaho football player Miregi Huma, who started at safety as a true freshman in 1992, has transferred to Idaho State.

Huma, 6-foot and 185 pounds from Covina, Calif., also started in 1993 and he started the 1994 season opener before spraining a knee ligament. After returning, his playing time was limited but he did start against McNeese State in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs.

Due to transfer rules, Huma will sit out the 1995 season and then have one year of eligibility remaining.

Huma’s departure leaves UI thin in an already numbers-short secondary.