Marshall University Athletics
Herd Sets Sights on Retaining "Golden Ball" Against WVU
9/8/2005 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 8, 2005
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Thundering Herd volleyball team is back in action again this weekend when it co-hosts the Friends of Coal Blue-Green Classic at the Charleston Civic Center with West Virginia University.
The four-team tournament features the Herd and Mountaineers along with Coppin State and Morehead State. All eyes will be on the state capital Friday night when its two powers collide at 7:30 p.m. with state bragging rights and the traveling "Golden Ball" trophy on the line.
Marshall has won its last three meetings with the Mountaineers including last year's 3-1 victory in Huntington. This year's matches will be the first ever NCAA Division I Volleyball to be played in the Capital City.
"Marshall Volleyball is very excited about our upcoming participation in the Friends of Coal Volleyball Classic," Jacobs said. "To have West Virginia's two premiere state institutions competing in the State Capital will hopefully add greatly to the continued growth of women's volleyball in our region. Friends of Coal make the perfect sponsor for this event, as the name alone stands for a great part of West Virginia."
The Herd enters the match with a 2-2 record after downing Rutgers and UT-Arlington with 3-0 scores last weekend at the Maryland Invitational. The Mountaineers come into the tournament with a record of 4-2 on the year. Coppin State is 0-1, while the Morehead State Eagles are 3-4.
Marshall will be without it's leading offensive weapon in All-American Kelly-Anne Billingy, who is playing for her country of Trinidad in International play for the WVU match. Billingy is averaging six kills a game, but Jacobs says the Herd will be ready with or without Billingy.
"We didn't build this team so that without one player we'd be in trouble," Jacobs said. "We expect our team to step up and continue to play well."
The Thundering Herd is excited about the tournament, but especially the matchup with the Mountaineers. Sophomore Stephanie Cahill, who was a big factor in the Herd's win last year over WVU with 14 kills and 20 digs, said the team is pumped up and ready for the match.
"Coming in last year as a freshman I didn't know what to expect," Cahill said. "But after I saw how much fun it was to play in a rivalry game I realize what it means to Marshall and our fans. I think we're going to be fired up and ready to play."
After playing WVU, the Herd will battle Coppin State at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and finish off the tournament in the night cap against Morehead State at 8 p.m.
Coppin State plays Morehead to open the tournament Friday at 5 p.m. Also on Saturday, WVU will play Morehead at noon and Coppin State at 5:30 p.m.
Tickets are $5 for adults and students (high school and under) are admitted free.
