Women's Volleyball News & Awards

Four Cougars Earn All-Conference Awards

Kelly Koons	Lynn Abbinante
Jaci Stewart	Lauren Bradford

November 4, 2008 – Batavia, Ohio  The Ohio Regional Campus Conference (ORCC) announced their post-season awards today.  Four UC Clermont Cougars appeared on the list.

Junior Kelley Koons (Miamisburg High School) earned her second conference Most Valuable Player award in three years.  She has also been selected First Team All-Conference in all three years of her career.  This selection marks the fourth consecutive season a Cougar has won the Most Valuable Player award.  In addition to Koons, current player Jaimie Martin and former player and current assistant coach Whitney Brown garnered this honor during the four year run.

Sophomore Lynn Abbinante (Western Brown) and freshman Lauren Bradford (Norwood) joined Koons on the First Team.  Abbinante was also voted First Team All-Conference in her freshman year.

Sophomore Jaci Stewart (Blanchester) captured her first ever post-season honor by being selected Second Team All-Conference.

ORCC coaches voted for these awards.  Coaches were not permitted to choose their own players.  Selections were limited to a maximum of four players per school.

“As always, I am very proud of these individuals,” said UC Clermont Head Coach Joe Harpring.  “Just like the remainder of our team, they contributed greatly to the success we enjoyed this past season.  I think we have many more players deserving of post-season recognition, but I am pleased to see our maximum allowance of four place so highly in the voting.”

UC Clermont Finishes 5^th at National Championships

October 25, 2008 – Ft. Wayne, Indiana  With an exciting five game win over Robert Morris – Springfield, the UC Clermont volleyball team finished in 5^th place at the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) National Championship tournament.

The Cougars qualified for their third consecutive trip to the national championships after a 16-6 regular season campaign.  The top eight teams in the country plus host Taylor University-Ft. Wayne were selected for the contest.

Play began on Thursday, October 23 as the nine teams were slotted into three pools of three.  In the first match, UC Clermont faced the Penn State Athletic Conference champions Penn State – Fayette.  The Cougars controlled the contest from the outset and rolled to a 25-16, 25-18, 25-14 victory. 

In match two of pool play, Clermont faced their Louisville neighbors – Spalding University.  Spalding is a member of the USCAA and also an NCAA Division III program.  The Cougars employed a makeshift line-up without the front-row presence of injured middle hitter Lynn Abbinante and were unable to slow down their opponent’s attack.  Spalding took this match 25-17, 25-16, 25-13.  The loss left Clermont with a 1-1 record and clinched second place in their pool.

Day two began bracket play and determined seeding for the final day’s contests.  Clermont drew host Taylor University-Ft. Wayne.  Taylor University had just announced that the Ft. Wayne campus would be closing this year, so the TU-FW volleyball team had extra incentive for their last-ever tournament.  UC Clermont battled, but did not quite overcome this incentive as TU-FW triumphed 25-21, 25-20, 25-18.  The loss slotted Clermont for the 5^th place match on Saturday. 

In the 5^th place match, Clermont faced a Robert Morris-Springfield team which had beaten them the previous weekend.  In that prior contest, the Cougars were missing injured middle hitter Lynn Abbinante. Robert Morris completed a three game sweep and seemed to take the Cougars lightly coming into the 5^th place match.  This time would be different as Abbinante returned to the line-up.  UC Clermont’s front row controlled the net in this tight contest with dominating blocking and their usual powerful attack.  The Cougars’ back row defense was also strong as the team recorded a 23-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-16, 15-13 win.  The victory was a noteworthy accomplishment against a highly regarded program (Robert Morris had defeated two-time national champion Florida College earlier in the tournament) and capped an outstanding season. 

The USCAA selection committee awarded two UC Clermont players with post-season honors.  Kelley Koons received Honorable Mention All-American laurels (even though several non-voting opposing coaches indicated she deserved first-team honors.)  Lynn Abbinante was named to the All-Academic team for her success on the court and in the classroom.

UC Clermont finishes the season with an 18-8 record and a 5^th consecutive Ohio Regional Campus Conference title.  Head Coach Joe Harpring was quite pleased with the season.  “I’m very proud of our players.  They worked hard during the season and improved quite a bit.  The win in the 5^th place game was a culmination of this work.  I’m very much looking forward to next year and blending our returning players with some outstanding recruits and transfer students.”

UC Clermont Receives Bid to USCAA National Championships

October14, 2008 – Batavia, OH  The UC Clermont volleyball team today received a bid to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) National Championship Tournament in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.  The bid marks the third consecutive year the Cougars have qualified for this tournament and comes on the heels of clinching their fifth consecutive Ohio Regional Campus Conference (ORCC) title.

The Cougars will open pool play on Thursday, October 23 against four of the eight selected teams.  Results from this pool will determine seeding for bracket play on Friday.  The tournament is hosted by Taylor University – Ft. Wayne.

UC Clermont currently stands second in the latest USCAA Coaches’ Poll after spending two weeks ranked number one.  The Cougars were dropped to the second spot last week even though they went undefeated during that period.  Clermont tops the latest USCAA power ratings.

“Our players have accomplished quite a bit this year,” said Clermont Head Coach Joe Harpring.  “The selection to the tournament is quite an honor and really puts an exclamation point on the season after battling through an extremely tough conference schedule.  I am very proud of this team.  The tournament will be a great experience for us as we get to face many top-level USCAA volleyball programs.”

The Cougars still have six regular season matches remaining before heading to Ft. Wayne – including two home contests.  All opponents field strong teams, so the final week should be excellent preparation for “Nationals”.

UC Clermont Wins Two – Claims at Least Share of Conference Title

October 12, 2008 – Batavia, Ohio   The UC Clermont volleyball team reeled off two impressive wins in the last week, including a victory against conference foe Ohio State University – Lima.  The win over Lima clinched at least a share of the ORCC championship for Clermont and may have sealed the title outright as second place Miami-Hamilton dropped a rescheduled/unscheduled match at Ohio University-Chillicothe Friday night.

On Wednesday, October 8, UC Clermont hosted USCAA rival Southern State Community College in a re-match of the season opener.  The Cougars prevailed in three games 25-11, 25-10, 25-20.  Clermont featured a balanced offensive attack, as four players recorded at least five kills.

Sunday’s game against OSU-Lima featured good serving and a sharp transition game.  The Cougars swept the young Barons 25-12, 25-11, 25-10.  As a team, Clermont recorded 21 service aces and added 26 digs.  The offense was also strong as nine Cougars recorded kills.

Clermont finishes the regular season with a difficult week.  The Cougars host NCAA Division II program Kentucky State University on Wednesday and then travel to a rejuvenated Cincinnati Christian University on Thursday.  Over the weekend, the Cougars close the home portion of their schedule Saturday against Miami University-Hamilton before traveling to Marion, Ohio on Sunday for the USCAA-based Scarlet Wave Invitational.

 

 

UC Clermont Wins Three – Maintains Slim Lead in Conference

  

October 6, 2008 – Batavia, Ohio  The UC Clermont Cougars wrapped up an extended weekend of conference play with a hard-fought 23-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-15 win over Miami University – Middletown.  With this victory, the Cougars maintain a one game lead over Miami University – Hamilton with two ORCC matches remaining.

The weekend started with an exciting three game sweep of Ohio University - Chillicothe on Friday, October 3.  A record crowd in excess of 120 attended the school-sponsored pre-game tailgate party and stayed to watch the volleyball action.  Propelled by their cheering fans, the Cougars jumped to an early 7-0 lead in game one and went on to take the first two games 25-17 & 25-16.  Chillicothe showed their talent in game three by rebounding before bowing to Clermont in a close 25-23 contest.  Erica Hoctor led the back row defense with 15 digs, while Jaci Stewart added 4 kills and 7 digs.  Jaimie Martin led the blocking to aid the defense with a stellar performance.

The next day, Clermont traveled to Lima, Ohio for the first of two match-ups against the Ohio State University-Lima Barons.  The Barons are basically a team of freshmen, but hustle on the court and are improving with each match.  Game one was a close affair with Clermont pulling out a 25-19 win.  The Cougars then heated up the offense to take the next two games 25-13 & 25-10.  Shawnessey Chiodi and Katie Patrick combined to lead another stellar back row performance.  Sarah Shumate anchored the net with outstanding blocking.

Monday’s contest with the Thunderhawks resembled the first meeting between these two quality teams.  Clermont led late in game one before Middletown rebounded at the end for the win.  The next three games went back and forth before a late burst in game four sealed the win for the Cougars.  Kelley Koons (24 kills) and Lynn Abbinante (18 kills) contributed to a strong attack for Clermont.  Lauren Bradford recorded a season high 46 assists.  Cindy Votel anchored the defense with 7 digs.

UC Clermont next hosts USCAA foe Southern State Community College at 7:00 on Wednesday, October 8, before returning to conference play on Sunday, October 12.  A victory on Sunday in the rematch against Ohio State University-Lima will clinch at least a share of the ORCC title for Clermont, but winning will be difficult against yet another tough conference opponent.  Game time is 1:00 at the Cougardome.

 

 

Cougars Pull Out Pair of Wins Against Tough Conference Foes

 

September 27, 2008  Hamilton, Ohio   The UC Clermont Cougars recorded a couple of close victories this week to take the early lead in the ORCC championship race.

In a mid-week contest, The Cougars visited a much-improved Miami University-Middletown squad.  The Thunderhawks are a strong team under newly re-hired Head Coach Jon Bennett.  “Miami-Middletown was one of the top teams in the ORCC during Coach Bennett’s first tour as head coach and they are well on their way to returning to that level,” said Clermont Head Coach Joe Harpring.

The Thunderhawks jumped to an early lead and held on to win game one 25-23.  UC Clermont recovered, but had their hands full the remainder of the match as they took the next three games 25-23, 25-22, 25-23.  The combination of Kelley Koons, Lynn Abbinante, Jaci Stewart, Jaimie Martin and Sarah Shumate collectively recorded 55 of the Cougars’ 60 total kills.  Setter Lauren Bradford registered a season-high 44 assists and added 17 digs.  Erica Hoctor, Katie Patrick and Cindy Votel all reached double digits in digs during the tightly-contested match.

On Saturday, the Cougars traveled to Miami University-Hamilton to face the undefeated Harriers.  “Miami-Hamilton has one of the most talented groups of players I have seen from their program,” said Clermont Coach Joe Harpring.

Clermont controlled the net in game one, recording a 25-15 win.  The Harriers stepped up their play in games two & three, but Clermont was able to pull out 27-25, 25-23 victories to sweep the match.  In a memorable moment, freshman Shawnessey Chiodi recorded her first collegiate kill.  Blocking was also a key as the Cougars registered three solo blocks and 16 block assists.

Even though UC Clermont has an early lead, the regular season conference race is far from decided.  There are several solid teams in the running.  The title chase will likely go until the last weekend of the season.

UC Clermont next hosts conference foe Ohio University-Chillicothe on Friday, October 3.  Game time is 6:00 P.M.  Clermont will be hosting a free tailgate party before the match.  Bring your family and friends to watch the Cougars face another tough conference opponent.

 

 

UC Clermont Number One in USCAA – Lauren Bradford Named Setter of the Week

 

September 23, 2008 – Batavia, OH   The UC Clermont volleyball program was honored in two national press releases today.

The United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) released the results of their first 2008 coaches’ poll today.  UC Clermont was voted tops in the nation.  The Cougars earned the honor after defeating No. 2 ranked Ohio State University-Marion in last weekend’s Cougar Classic.  This historic accomplishment is a first for the volleyball program in their four years of membership in the USCAA.  The team has qualified for the USCAA national championship tournament the previous two years, but has never been ranked No. 1.

The Cougars also received an individual honor today.  Lauren Bradford, a freshman from Norwood High School, was named the USCAA National Setter of the Week for the period September 15-21.  Bradford tallied 92 assists, eight kills, eight blocks and 20 digs in three matches – including the win over Ohio State University-Marion.  She joins junior Kelley Koons in receiving player of the week awards this season.

 

 

UC Clermont Starts Conference Play with Win – Splits Cougar Classic Matches 

September 22, 2008 – Batavia, Ohio   The UC Clermont Cougars completed a busy week of volleyball competition with a successful 2-1 record against three high level opponents.

After a postponed home opener on Monday due to the city-wide power outage, UC Clermont started their week on the road Wednesday with a 20-25, 25-17, 25-14, 25-13 victory over a strong Ohio University-Chillicothe team.  Chillicothe is a vastly improved squad and will definitely be a factor in the Ohio Regional Campus Conference (ORCC) race.  The win begins Clermont’s chase for the conference title and establishes their ORCC record at 1-0.

UC Clermont next hosted their annual Cougar Classic tri-match on Sunday, September 21.  The Cougars faced Indiana University-East from the NAIA and Ohio State University-Marion – the number three ranked team in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA).

In the first match, Clermont gave the Red Wolves from IU-East all they could handle before succumbing 25-23, 24-26, 25-17, 18-25, 11-15.  The defeat evened the Cougars’ record at 2-2 against programs which offer athletic scholarships - with both losses lasting the maximum five games.

In the finale, UC Clermont faced OSU-Marion for the third time this season.  The Scarlet Wave are currently ranked number three in the USCAA power ratings (just behind UC Clermont) and battled the Cougars in their first two match-ups in Pittsburgh.  Clermont won game one 25-17, then had to come from behind late in game two before prevailing 25-23.  The Cougars finished the three game sweep with a 25-16 result.

UC Clermont’s defense was a key to this week’s success.  As a team, the Cougars averaged 6.3 blocks and 12.9 digs per game.  Serving was also a factor as Clermont averaged 2.5 aces per game.

Clermont next hits the road for a pair of tough conference matches against Miami University-Middletown and Miami University-Hamilton.  Both programs are improved and have started their respective seasons well.  These results will show where UC Clermont stands in the early season chase for the conference crown.

 

 

Cougars Split Pair of Matches Against NCAA Division II Foes 

September 10, 2008 – Frankfort, KY    The UC Clermont volleyball team finished a run of two matches against NCAA Division II opponents with a heartbreaking five game loss to Kentucky State University.  The Cougars led 14-11 in the fifth and deciding game, but could not get the clinching 15^th point to close out the contest.

UC Clermont started this week of high level competition with an exciting 25-18, 25-15, 25-11 win over Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio.  The Cougars used strong serving and a quick transition game to take control of play against a scrappy Central State team.   Outside hitter Jaci Stewart led the squad with five aces.  Outside hitter Jaimie Martin added two aces to her seven kills.  Libero Erica Hoctor anchored the defense with four digs.  Freshmen Katie Patrick, Shawnessey Chiodi and Sarah Shumate also contributed strong individual efforts to a balanced offensive and defensive performance for Clermont.

Since NCAA Division II schools give athletic scholarships, the win was worth enhanced power rating points in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national rankings.  As a result of this win, coupled with victories over USCAA opponents in their prior four matches, UC Clermont was ranked number one in the nation in the first week’s USCAA power ratings.

UC Clermont started the Kentucky State match slowly.  The Thoroughbreds won the first game 25-15.  The Cougars rebounded against a tough Kentucky State defense and hostile crowd by capturing the next two games 25-19 and 25-21, before suffering a bit of a hiccup in game four (10-25).  Game five went back and forth as each team scored consecutive points to alternately take control of the contest.

Middle Hitter Kelley Koons registered 21 kills as she hit a sizzling .425 for the contest.  Clermont’s other middle hitter, Lynn Abbinante, contributed 11 kills and 11 blocks as she also hit at a strong .333 pace.  Setter Lauren Bradford collected a season-high 39 assists in the match.  Defensive specialist Cindy Votel led a group of Cougars with three digs.

After a three week road trip, Clermont returns to their own gym for their home opener against Cincinnati Christian University on Monday, September 15.  CCU recently joined the NAIA and has revitalized their volleyball program by starting their season with a 2-1 record.  Game time is 6:00 P.M. at the “Cougardome”.

 

Koons Named USCAA National Volleyball Player of the Week

September 2, 2008 – Batavia, OH   U.C. Clermont middle hitter Kelley Koons, a junior from Miamisburg High School, was named the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) National Player of the Week for the period August 25-31.

Koons helped the Cougars defeat four USCAA opponents during the week.  She contributed 34 kills, 17 service aces, 14 digs and 16 blocks as the Cougars started the season 4-0 and captured the championship of the Penn State – New Kensington Invitational tournament.

This award marks the third consecutive season during which Koons has received this National Player of the Week honor.

 

UC Clermont Wins Penn State – New Kensington Invitational Tournament

 

August 30, 2008 – Pittsburgh, PA   The UC Clermont womens’ volleyball team traveled to Pittsburgh to face three USCAA member schools in the Penn State – New Kensington Invitational.  With a victory over Ohio State University-Marion in the championship match, the Cougars captured the tournament title and trophy.

The Cougars began play in this double elimination event with a three game sweep of host Penn State – New Kensington.  The scores were 25-12, 25-11, 25-10.  Junior middle hitter Kelley Koons led the way with a stellar 11 service aces, 6 kills and 4 blocks.  Sophomore middle hitter Lynn Abbinante added 7 kills. With this victory, the Cougars advanced to the winner’s bracket.

In their next match, Clermont faced a familiar foe in Ohio State – Marion.  The Scarlet Wave took the first game 25-18 before the Cougars rebounded in the next three games, winning 25-23, 25-14, 25-23.  The match featured stellar defense from both teams.  Sophomore Erica Hoctor and Kelley Koons led the defense with 7 digs each.  Freshman setter Lauren Bradford registered a tournament high 31 assists. As a result of this win, the Cougars clinched a spot in the championship match the next day.

Ohio State – Marion joined UC Clermont in the finals after advancing from the consolation bracket with a tough five game win over Penn State - Beaver. The Scarlet Wave once again got out to a good start in the finals.  Marion took the first game 25-20 before the Cougars rebounded with a convincing 25-14, 25-16, 25-15 sweep.  Sophomore outside hitter Jaimie Martin led the offense with 9 kills, while sophomore outside hitter Jaci Stewart contributed 5 blocks.  The team, including freshmen Katie Patrick, Cindy Votel and Sarah Shumate, combined for 20 digs in the finals.

UC Clermont next faces the first of two NCAA D-II foes – Central State University.  Game time is 7:00 for this Wednesday contest in Wilberforce, Ohio.

News & Awards Archive

• UC Clermont Volleyball Team Gains NAIA Transfer
• Former UC Clermont Volleyball Standout Joins Coaching Staff
• U.C. Clermont Volleyball Adds Tennessee Native
• U.C. Clermont Volleyball Signs Norwood Three Sport Star
• U.C. Clermont Volleyball Players Receive Awards at Honors Convocation
• Milford Grad to Join UC Clermont Volleyball Team
• UC Clermont Volleyball Spring Season Re-cap
• UC Clermont Volleyball Signs Western Brown Standout
• Norwood All-City Middle Joins UC Clermont Volleyball Team
• Whitney Brown Hall of Fame Induction