Photo courtesy of JU Athletics

The JU Athletics department announced Monday that former University of South Florida assistant coach Michelle Collier has been named the new head coach of the volleyball team.

Collier is the eighth coach for the Dolphins volleyball team and is heading over to JU after serving two seasons as assistant coach in South Carolina.

Director of Athletics Alan Verlander was quoted saying, “I’m thrilled to welcome Michelle to the JU family. She and her family will be a wonderful addition to JU Athletics. Her credentials and contacts in the sport of volleyball will enable her to be very successful at JU. I look forward to seeing her teams graduate and compete for championships in the near future. I’m excited about the new era of JU volleyball.”

Collier graduated in 2002 from the University of South Florida, where she was also an assistant coach. Her 2,279 career kills placed her fifth in the NCAA Division I, and she was named the Conference USA Player of the Decade in 2004. Following her graduation, her professional career took her across the globe, playing in Holland, Puerto Rico, Cyprus, Indonesia and Spain over a four-year career, winning numerous accolades including the Indonesian League MVP and the Best Foreign Player in Cyprus. She also claimed the C-USA Freshman of the Year plaque in 1998 and led her school to three of the program’s seven NCAA Tournament appearances. She joined the USF Hall of Fame in its third class, which was announced in 2011. She was the first Bulls volleyball player to earn that honor.

Collier said she is looking forward to meeting with the girls and getting them fired up and ready.

“I am super excited and want to thank Alan and Marsha (Haskew, Senior Women’s Administrator), President (Kerry) Romesburg for the opportunity to start my head coaching career at JU,” Collier said. “It’s been great, and it was a great experience I had here (during the interview process). I am looking forward to working with a great group of girls, turning this program around, and winning some championships.”

Collier is fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese and is married to Rafael Silva, who spent the last nine years as a professional volleyball player in the top divisions of both Brazil and Spain. They have one daughter together, Tais Collier Silva.

Photo by Grace Singer

The women’s volleyball team rode upon the tracks of an unsteady, athletic roller coaster this past weekend. For three straight days from Oct. 21-23, they confronted their competitors, experiencing a different result each day.

The Lady Fins stepped aboard this wild ride on Friday Oct. 21 when they faced cross-town and conference rival, University of North Florida. JU started out on fire against UNF. From early on in the match, they struck as efficient and aggressive.

The Fins jumped out on the Ospreys by winning the first two sets by a score of 25-23 in each set.

Even though both sets were close as the teams battled, JU was in control and in the driver’s seat to close out this match.

In the potential final set, UNF and JU went back and forth, tying twice at nine apiece and fifteen all. The Ospreys then separated themselves with a 10-1 run, closing the third set with a 16-25 victory.

In the fourth set things nudged even closer thanks to JU seniors Alliya Drzewiecki and Kathryn Kane. JU fell behind early, but those ladies were able to swim back to a 22-21 deficit. This effort fell short in the closing moments, losing the set to UNF (22-25).

In the final set, which would decide the outcome between these rivals, both teams rallied back and forth and went on mini runs. They finally knotted up at 14 all, then exchanging match-point opportunities multiple times. UNF finally climbed the hill though, with back-to-back kills to put them past JU 19-21 in the fifth and final set to win 3-2 overall.

Back at home, JU tried to bounce back from the tough loss the next day against Bethune Cookman.

Seniors Kane and Drzewiecki stole the show once again with 13 and 11 kills respectively. The major difference being that their effort this match was enough to lead JU to a victory over BCU (3-1) in a notably one-sided match.

The following day on Oct. 23, JU was involved in another battle against Florida A&M that did not bring much success. The Lady Fins lost the first two sets 25-27 and 18-25, but the ladies showed off their fighting spirit and their strong conditioning as they battled back.

JU was able to take the next two sets in commanding fashion, winning by a score of 25-18 in the third and fourth sets. The athletic roller coaster came to a screeching halt in the fifth and final set as JU fought hard, the scoreboard resembling a seesaw until they eventually fell short with a final score of 13-15, losing the overall match against FAMU 3-2.

“We just fell a little short. We dug ourselves a huge hole but did a good job of battling back,” said JU Head Coach Shaun Kupferberg.

The Dolphins plan to right their wrongs on their next road trip, this time to Macon, Georgia this Saturday Oct. 29 to compete against Mercer University.

Photo by Grace Singer

The Lady Fins played host to two Atlantic Sun Conference opponents this past weekend. Both volleyball teams hailed from the state of Tennessee in Belmont University and Lipscomb University. On Friday, Oct. 14 Lipscomb came to town and faced off against JU at Swisher Gymnasium. The Lady Bisons, number one in the conference, spent little time jumping out on the Dolphins.

In the first set JU was up 11-9, and then the Lady Bisons went on a tear. After going up 14-12, the set ended on an 11-1 run to clinch the first set at 13-25.

In the second set JU remained close early when they were down 9-6. Then Lipscomb began separating themselves once again after Lady Bison Lauren Ford contributed three straight kills. They went up 14-6 and didn’t look back; LU took the second set from the Dolphins 15-25.

The third set did not bode well for the Lady Fins either. The closest it was in this set is when the two teams knotted at 11-apiece.  However, this glimmer of hope washed away quickly as the Dolphins went on a 11-1 run to ice the set and match to win 3-0.

“This wasn’t our night. All we can do is regroup and get back after it tomorrow,” said JU Head Coach Shaun Kupferberg.

The Dolphins aimed to do just that when they were right back on the court against Belmont the next day, October 15. Belmont, number two in the A-Sun, spent little time adjusting to road play as they jumped out on JU taking the first two sets (19-25, 17-25).

With JU’s back up against the ropes in the deciding set, they fought hard. Senior Alliya Drzewiecki, who had three early service aces, led this surge. This allowed the Lady Fins to jump out 8-1. That was just the spark they needed because they were able to hold off some runs by the Bruins and took set number three 25-22.

The fire that JU caught in the third set though was quickly extinguished in the fourth. Belmont went up fast 17-6 and refused to look back, earning the win 13-25 and a 3-1 victory over JU.

The Women’s Volleyball team had a very rough weekend overall against the Volunteer State but hope to bounce back this Friday. The Lady Fins plan to spike crosstown rival UNF in the first installment of the annual SunTrust River City Rumble.

Photo by Grace Singer

The Jacksonville University Women’s Volleyball team had an up-and-down weekend in Atlantic Sun Conference play. They opened the weekend’s events on Friday, Sept. 30, against Mercer University. This thrilling match started off fast with JU taking a 22-17 lead in the first set but in the end MU knotted it at 23 all. Both teams went back and forth but consecutive points by Mercer allowed them to capture the first set.

The Dolphins grasped onto the second set 25-22. Mercer answered this swiftly, winning the third 25-21, making the fourth set a must win for the Fins. The Dolphins put forth the relentless firepower of junior Alison Loeppky who took a 20-17 lead in this set. They did not fold the lead on their way to a 25-19 victory, leading to a deciding fifth set.

The Lady Fins who have been a part of multiple nail-bitters this season did not fold under the pressure of a final set. The two teams tied at 10 apiece, and then The Bears went on a mini-run to go up 14-13 and have game point. Sophomore Kylie Jacob kept hope alive though with a clutch kill. Another kill by Jacob on the next point and a strong block by JU helped log a conference win for The Fins.

Sophomore Niatha Cullen zeroed in on her perception of how the Dolphins came away with the win.

“We kept the ball in play and hit our spots as talked about in the game plan which kept them out of system,” said Cullen.

One day later on the first of October JU faced off with Kennesaw State University, another A-sun opponent. JU jumpstarted the match by jumping out on the Owls 13-11 in the first set and never looked back, a service ace clinched this set for the Dolphins.

However, as the game spiraled down the Lady Fins seemed to fall short on power, losing the next three sets (21-25, 19-25, 18-25) giving the Owls a 3-1 victory over Jacksonville. Head coach Shaun Kupferberg spoke on the defeat.

“We came out and executed perfectly in the first set, but it went downhill for us after that,” said Coach Kupferberg.

Friday Oct 7, the Fins aspire to bounce back, striking with their best shots against East Tennessee State University.

Photo by Grace Singer

The Women’s Volleyball team was back in action this weekend to open up Atlantic Sun Conference play. After a tough loss on Friday, September 23 to Florida Gulf Coast University (5-7), Jacksonville University (8-9) spent little time stressing the match. Come Saturday, September 24 they were right back on the road to face Stetson University (7-7) in a tight match. With plans of redeeming themselves and snapping a four-match losing streak, the Lady Fins took out their anger on The Hatters.

The first set was very back in forth, until the last few points when the score was tied 23 all, but an error by JU helped Stetson ended up securing the first set. Then JU went on a tear in the second and third set winning both in large part to strong play by senior Ashley August, and sophomore Niatha Cullen who had 12 kills and 12 digs.

The Hatters showed fight though as the fourth set was tied 12-12 then they separated themselves. Stetson went on an 8-2 run to ice that set and force the fifth and deciding set. SU jumped out early with an 8-4 lead on JU, but the Fins tied it up at 10-10. Then JU went up 14-13 in the winding moments of the match, and they clinched the win on a block by sophomore Alyssa Robertson. JU Head Coach Shaun Kupferberg was very pleased with the win.

“It’s nice to get back in the win column, we didn’t have our best match, but we found a way to win,” said Kupferberg.

JU hopes to continue these good fortunes in their next match this Friday, September 30, when they host Mercer University (4-11) in Swisher Gymnasium.

Photo by Grace Singer

This past Sunday, September 18, 2011 the Jacksonville University Volleyball Team (7-8) took on a tough opponent in Troy University (9-4) at home in Swisher Gymnasium. This was the third game in as many days for the Dolphins, and Troy showed no remorse. They jumped out quickly on JU, and took the first set.

The second set was back and forth between both teams as it was knotted at 8 pts. a piece early on. Both teams then went on mini-runs, but the Trojans took the second set as well. Troy was led by Kayla Pickart, had 10 kills as she helped put her team up early in the third set, but the strong fight in the Lady Fins showed. The late charge, led by sophomore Alyssa Robertson, gave JU a 23-21 lead toward the end of the set. This attempt fell short though as Troy put away the Dolphins with a 3-0 sweep to win the match.

The Dolphins did have some strong efforts by seniors Alliya Drzewiecki who had 10 kills, and Ashley August who registered 19 digs, but the team fell just short. JU head Coach Shaun Kupferberg commented on the fins weekend loss.

“This is not what we wanted heading into A-Sun play, but I’m confident we will get back to ourselves by next weekend,” said Kupferberg.

This was the third straight loss for the Dolphins this weekend, as they fell to Florida International University, and University of Texas El-Paso as well. Sophomore Niatha Cullen commented on the room for improvement for the upcoming weeks.

“We need to stay disciplined on offense and defense, limit errors and stay aggressive”, said Cullen.

The Dolphins will try to put that plan into action this upcoming Friday September 23, when they open up A-sun conference play against Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Fla.

Aggressively across the court, the Jacksonville University Women’s Volleyball team proved to Campbell, their rivalry, that they knew who they were coming against in the home finale at Swisher Gym on Friday, November 5.

Fans were screaming, “Let’s Go JU,” creating an atmosphere overwhelming pressure for the players who knew that they must not let their fans down.  The gym was packed with several students and parents who came out to support JU or Campbell.

“It was fun and filled with excitement,” said graduate student Unique Singleton. “I really enjoyed the game.”

After losing five of their six conference matches, the ladies played their best game in the home finale.

“Towards the beginning the game was intense, but we became confident and beat Campbell,” said Jessica Hurtado, junior from JU.

The first set was 25-17, the second 25-22, and the third 25-20.  This showed how competitive the overall game was.  For each quarter, fans were patiently waiting to see how much the team had improved throughout the season and if the girls were playing their best.

“The game was pretty intense overall because the energy level was high,” freshman Shannon Tapscott said. “The setting showed how much people love volleyball and I think the fact that there were a lot of people was comforting for the JU volleyball team.”

This game helped the JU girl’s volleyball team leave the gym on a good note believing that even though they may have lost a few times, this win means there is hope for the next game.  It encouraged the girls to be very confident, especially knowing that their fans are there for them.

“It was great that the student body was able to come out to support JU’s girl volleyball team, but students should come out to all the games no matter how important it is,” said Andy Cecil, play-by-play commentator and senior at J.U. “Overall it was a great game to send the seniors out on.”

As tough as the other team may have seemed, the girls made sure that they went on that court ready to accomplish the goal, which was not only to win, but also to leave a bright memory.  In the end they beat Campbell 3-0, and walked off the court with the song, “All I do is win,” playing in the background.

After 14 road matches to start the 2010 season, the Dolphins enjoyed some home cooking as senior outside hitter Aidan Yeager tallied a match-high 11 kills, a .526 (11-1-19) hitting percentage and four blocks to lead the JU volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-21, 25-12, 25-17) win over Florida A&M, Friday evening at Swisher Gymnasium.

Photo by Grace Singer

JU (7-8) cruised in its home opener after tallying a blistering .410 (42-8-83) hitting percentage while notching a match-high seven blocks to help hold FAMU (0-11) to a .074 percentage.

“It was nice to finally be home,” said JU head coach Shaun Kupferberg. “We got to play in front of some friendly faces and we have been missing that so far this year. We played well tonight and I’m looking for us to keep this momentum going.”

Along with Yeager, junior outside hitter Kathryn Kane added 10 kills, a season-high .409 (10-1-22) hitting percentage, five digs and three aces. Freshman setter Kendall Courtney paced the offense with 37 assists while adding six digs and two blocks. Junior libero Ashley August (14 digs) and freshman middle blocker Alyssa Robertson (five blocks) led the defense for JU.

Maria Ceccarelli led the Rattlers with 10 kills while Pamela Barrera added six kills. Susan Egoavil led the defense with 13 digs.

In the first set, both teams battled through 11 ties (the last coming at 16-16) until JU used a 5-0 run to open up a 21-16 advantage. The Rattlers would cut the deficit to 22-21 after an attack error by the Dolphins but JU would answer with a 3-0 run to take a 1-0 lead in the match.

In the second frame, JU jumped out to an early 7-1 lead on an ace by Kane and then extended the advantage to 12-5 after an attack error by Ashley Johnson. JU made it 15-6 after a ball handling error by Jessica Bond and then used a 4-0 run to make it 19-7 with another ace by Kane. Both teams would trade points the rest of the way until a kill by freshman outside hitter Jenell Larsen gave JU a 2-0 lead heading into the break.

In the third set, the Dolphins took an early 8-3 lead on a kill by senior outside hitter Brittany Lehman and then increased the margin to 12-6 after an attack error by Ceccarelli. The Dolphins would cruise the rest of the way until an ace by August sealed the match for JU.

The Dolphins will end their week with a non-conference match at Stetson on Saturday at 3 p.m.