April 27, 2009

BEAUMONT, Texas - With 42 wins, a conference title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament to their name in the last two seasons the Lamar University volleyball team will look to build on their success in 2009 as head coach Justin Gibert released the schedule on Monday.

The Lady Cardinals will take the court on August 22 for an Alumni match , before opening the regular season on August 28, at 7 p.m. PT against Cal State Fullerton in Fullerton Calif., in the Titans tournament. They will conclude their west coast swing with matches against the University of Idaho and Appalachian State.

The next week will have LU heading in the opposite direction as they travel to Albany, New York for the University at Albany tournament. They will then return to Texas for a pair of tournaments close to home with the Houston Baptist tournament (University of Pennsylvania, HBU and Cal State Bakersfield) and the Sam Houston Tournament which features, SHSU, Central Michigan and North Texas.

"We are really excited about the opportunities provided by our 2009 schedule," Gibert said. "The non-conference tournaments in the early part of our season will be an excellent opportunity to see competition in areas of the country to which this team has not previously been exposed. The early season will also be a great test of our abilities as a team as we will face tough programs that have consistently placed in the top 100. As we move back into Texas and have more of a relative home court advantage, we expect to continue picking up wins and solidify our confidence going into the conference season."

The Lady Cards open their Southland Conference schedule in the first game of the Sam Houston tournament, taking on the Bearkats at 7 p.m. They turn around and play SHSU again on September 26, in the home opener at McDonald Gym.

Lamar will host eight matches at home, all SLC foes, while making eight trips to conference opponents. When the Lady Cardinals host Stephen F. Austin on October 24, the Ladyjacks will mark the first time in three years the Ladyjacks have traveled to Beaumont, and the first time the two teams will meet at McDonald Gym. After that match, every SLC team will have played at McDonald Gym.

Lamar has been tough to beat on their home court, posting a 21-2 record at McDonald Gym in the two years they have been playing there. They have dropped just one SLC contest at home in the last two years, compiling a 16-1 record.

"Conference play in the Southland will be tough again as we will face our last season in the tough west division before changing again into the east for our two year swing. With last year's performance, I expect our team to get a high pre-season ranking in 2009 and then the challenge will be to live up to our potential. We'll have a lot of young players that will be expected to contribute, but we also have tremendous experience where it counts and we expect that experience at key positions to drive us to another opportunity to play for a championship."

Last season Lamar posted an overall record of 17-12, going 12-4 in Southland Conference play to secure the No. 2 seed in the SLC tournament. The Lady Cardinals won the tournament with a 3-2 victory over Texas State, and made their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1993.