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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcon Volleyball Hosts Oakland Tuesday
September 02, 2002 | Volleyball
Sept. 2, 2002
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FALCONS OPEN 2002 SEASON TUESDAY
The Bowling Green State University volleyball team has been preparing for the upcoming season since the 2001 campaign ended last November. The Falcons open up non-conference play at home on Tuesday (Sept. 3) against Mid-Continent opponent Oakland University. The match is set to begin at 7 p.m. at Anderson Arena.
The Brown and Orange will then travel to the University of Pittsburgh Friday and Saturday (Sept. 6 & 7) to compete in the Pittsburgh Invitational. The Falcons will take on ACC opponent Duke University, Big East foe Pitt, and Missouri Valley member, Indiana State.
The match versus the Golden Grizzlies of Oakland will be BG's only home contest until late October, as the Falcons will be on the road to compete in three consecutive pre-season tournaments before beginning league play against Ohio University (Sept. 27).
HEAD COACH DENISE VAN DE WALLE Denise Van De Walle, the dean of MAC mentors, enters her 20th season with the Falcons, and has an overall record of 359-227 ... Van De Walle became the first-ever coach to amass 350 career wins at a MAC school, reaching that plateau in the Falcons' Oct. 20, 2001 win over Marshall ... the team's 21 wins last season enabled her to become the winningest coach in league history ... Van De Walle's total of 169 MAC wins through the 2001 season ranks her third all-time on that list.
Jeff Belmonte (Aquinas, '89) enters his first season with the Falcon program. Belmonte was named assistant coach in early March of 2002...Sean Huiet begins his third season with the Falcon volleyball program, and his second as an assistant coach.
The Opponents
Oakland University opened the 2002 season last weekend at the Spartan Invitational hosted by Big Ten powerhouse Michigan State. The Golden Grizzlies fell to all three tournament opponents in South Carolina, MSU and Georgetown, posting an 0-3 record for the weekend.
Head Coach Mark Ridley begins his first season at the helm of the Grizzly program and returns eight letterwinners and three starters from the 2001 squad. OU finished 6-22 and tied for sixth in the Mid-Continent Conference last year. Junior outside hitter Cortney Varterasian and sophomore middle blocker Karen Conger will lead Oakland this season after having been the top offensive weapons in 2001. The two averaged 1.35 and 1.38 kills-per-game, respectively, and combined for a total of 203 kills last fall.
Sixth-year Head Coach Jim Bertoli's Indiana State team posted a 14-17 overall record last year and a sixth place mark in the Missouri Valley Conference. He returns nine letterwinners and four straters from his 2001 squad. Sophomore middle hitters Brittanie Stowell and Kristin Widmar will be back this season after being named to the MVC all-freshman team last year. Stowell posted 299 total kills and averaged 2.65 kills-per-game as a frosh while Widmar finished her debut season with 254 total kills and 2.15 kills-per-game.
