Weekly Release (PDF)

Preview with Head Coach Kurt Kohler

Live Links (Tentative)
Chaminade:  Live Stats | Live Audio
BYU-Hawaii:  Live Stats
Hawaii-Hilo:  Live Stats | Live Audio

Fort Hays State University's volleyball squad heads for the beaches of Hawaii this week, set to battle in four matches at the Hawaiian Invitational, Sept. 5-8, and one match against Hawaii-Hilo, to kick off the 2013 campaign.
 
The Tigers will start competition on Thursday, Sept. 5 with a 7 p.m. HT (midnight CT), matchup against Chaminade, whom the program has never faced. 
 
On Friday, Sept. 6 FHSU will pit itself against preseason No. 5 BYU-Hawaii in a 7:30 p.m. HT (12:30 a.m. CT), game at the Seasiders' gym, where both teams are relatively new to each other, having last squared off in 1991.

Matches with Lewis ( Noon HT, 5 p.m. CT) and Hawaii Pacific (7 p.m. HT, midnight CT) will close out the tournament for FHSU on Saturday.  Lewis and FHSU have never played, while the Tigers and Hawaii Pacific haven't seen each other since 1992.
 
After an off-day, the Tigers will finish their Hawaii trip with a 7 p.m., contest at HHU.  The Vulcans and FHSU have faced each other once, a 2-0 loss for the Tigers in 1991.

"I think this first week we've just got to get out and find our team chemistry," head coach Kurt Kohler said.  "We've got to figure out a starting lineup as we get into our conference season.  We play some good competition out here in Hawaii, so we really want to see how our kids respond to some of the top teams in the country."
 
FHSU was voted to finish seventh in the MIAA this season, but will look to exceed expectations with several solid returners, including five players with All-MIAA accolades in their careers. Senior middle hitter Jenna Ulrich and senior outside hitter Madison Schwartz are each two-time All-MIAA selections, while senior libero Makenzie Weinman grabbed her first all-conference nod in 2012. Junior outside hitter Sara Hewson and junior rightside hitter Taylor Mares each have an all-conference selection to their credit as well. Returning to give FHSU added punch are juniors Camille Hubert and Samantha Ledy. Hubert redshirted 2012 with an injury and bolsters the outside hitter position, while Ledy gives the Tigers another solid option in the middle. Sophomores Tara Hoekman and Mallory Flagor are also in the mix after seeing significant action last year.
 
With plenty of new faces on the team's roster, the Tigers will need to minimize mistakes early to show they belong, and will look for several of their newcomers to step into a leading role, including setter Libby Ary (Canon City, Colo., Yavapai [Ariz.] College), Middle and Outside Hitter Rebekah Spainhour (Derby, Kan.) and Outside Hitter Haley Corkill (Kansas City, Mo., Winnetonka HS).

"I think our returners are pretty well set in a lot of the starting positions, but we do have some freshman who will get on the court," Kohler said.  "It's going to be interesting to play with some lineups and see what we need to do.  We had a couple scrimmages and worked some things out, but a lot of it's going to depend on how well everybody reacts to the competition."
 
Aside from the five matches to start the season, the FHSU women will be given an opportunity to see the island and some of its tourist locations – including the Pearl Harbor Museum and World War II Monuments, the Dole Plantation, the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet, Chief's Luau and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.  Included in the last full day is a team hike to the top of Diamondhead.

"During the day we've got some different adventures planned, but we also have a lot of time to really focus on volleyball," Kohler said.  "We're trying to spend our mornings doing a little bit of sight-seeing but then spend our afternoons really focusing and getting our game plans and things together.  We've got an extra day when we're done with everything to just relax before we fly home, so hopefully our girls stay focused through the week until that last day."

Fans can follow along with FHSU's trip through a daily blog updated by different players daily at fhsuathletics.com.