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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Slow-Starting Vandals Visit Red-Hot, No. 6 Cougs Tonight

FROM SPORTS REPLAY (Wednesday, September 17, 1997): Replay University of Washington volleyball player Tamara VanEngelen played for North Central but did not graduate from the school. She was home-schooled. Also, Leslie Tuiasosopo is a junior, not a senior. Both errors appeared in Tuesday’s college volleyball report.

If complacency is the reason the University of Idaho volleyball team is off to a less-than-stellar start, Bohler Gym in Pullman is not the place it wants to be.

But the schedule was made long before the Vandals opened the season 3-5 and tonight at 7, Idaho and Washington State meet in their annual bordertown showdown.

Problem is, this year’s match might not be much of a showdown.

Washington State, ranked sixth in the USA Today/AVCA Top 25 poll, enters with an impeccable 11-0 record after last weekend’s cross-country sweep at the Rhode Island Tournament.

The Cougars are riding a 19-match home winning streak and hold a 25-10 edge in the series. Last year in Moscow, WSU beat Idaho 15-9, 15-1, 17-15, putting an end to Idaho’s 49-match Memorial Gym winning streak.

Idaho, under first-year coach Carl Ferreria, has suffered losses to Michigan, Washington (currently No. 20), Utah, Butler and most recently Gonzaga.

“After we start to get beat, then the players start to respond and want to play well,” Ferreria explained. “Experienced and mature teams know how to respond from the get-go.”

Although the Vandals continue to adjust to first-year sophomore setter Anna Reznicek, Ferreria was quick to point out the team’s slow start is “definitely, definitely, definitely not” due to the setter.

Jessica Moore leads the team in kills with 126 on 290 attempts (.266 hitting percentage) and Beth Craig follows with 87 (.189). Redshirt freshman Alli Nieman of Sandpoint, who has been starting about 75 percent of the time, has 60 kills (.252).

The Vandals travel to Storrs, Conn., this weekend where they will play in the Connecticut Tournament.

Washington State, meanwhile, opens Pac-10 play Friday at Oregon State and Saturday at Oregon.

Notes

Vandals outside hitter Shalyne Lynch will miss the rest of the season because of medical reasons unrelated to sports. Lynch experienced headaches, dizziness and double vision and is undergoing further medical evaluations. She was second on the team in kills per game (3.17). … University of Washington’s Tamara VanEngelen, a North Central graduate, is being redshirted after playing in 16 matches last year. VanEngelen was playing behind Husky star quick hitters Makare Desilets and Leslie Tuisosopo, both seniors. With the move, VanEngelen is certain to pick up playing time next year as a redshirt sophomore. UW, meanwhile, is off to a 5-4 start with all four losses to ranked opponents (BYU, Texas, Arkansas and Colorado). … University of the Pacific’s Elsa Stegemann, a World University Games player, who returned to college, suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury last week. The No. 8 Tigers travel to Moscow on Oct. 2. University Games teammate, Kara Milling, is back at UCLA. She was the Pac-10 player of the week last week after being named MVP in the Hawaiian Airlines Wahine Classic, where she had 60 kills on 111 attempts and only 11 errors.

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Tonight Idaho at Washington State, 7 at Bohler Gym.

This sidebar appeared with the story: Tonight Idaho at Washington State, 7 at Bohler Gym.