Volleyball Set To Open 2009 NCAA East Regional Play On Thursday, November 19th at 12 Noon

November 17, 2009

Bridgeport, CT-The University of Bridgeport women's volleyball team, under the direction of head coach Leo Uzcategui, will open play in the 2009 NCAA Division II Championship East Regional hosted by Dowling College in Oakdale, NY, on Thursday, November 19, when the number three seed Purple Knights face the number six seed, UMass Lowell River Hawks at 12 noon. This year's marks the second consecutive NCAA appearance for UB. Last year, Bridgeport, making the program's first-ever NCAA trip, defeated Bentley University in its regional opener before falling to Dowling College in the regional semifinals.

Joining UB and UMass Lowell in the 2009 NCAA Division II Championship East Regional are: number one seed, Dowling College, number two seed University of New Haven, number four seed Adelphi University, number five seed Bentley University, number seven seed, Pace University and number eight seed, Georgian Court University.

Bridgeport and UML met once during the regular season in Connecitcut with UB winning 3-1 (25-20, 15-25, 25-23, 25-15) on September 4, 2009.

UB enters this year's NCAA Championship with a single-season school record for wins, 31, (the Purple Knights are 31-6 overall), and the team captured its first-ever East Coast Conference Championship last Saturday night defeating Dowling College in five-sets. Bridgeport also enters the NCAA's having won 22 of its last 25 matches, and during that string of contests, the Purple Knights posted a school-record 14-match winning streak.

Leading the team on offense this year has been junior Terry Masava, who has averaged an impressive 3.56 kills/set with a .255 attack percentage. A First Team All-East Coast Conference selection and the Most Outstanding Player of the 2099 ECC Championship Tournament, Terry is a solid all-around player who is averaging 0.54 blocks, 2.47 digs and 0.40 service aces per set.

Another First Team All-Conference performer for the Purple Knights is graduate student Agatha Baliddawa, who averages nearly one block per set at 0.96. Baliddawa leads Bridgeport in attack percentage at .355, and she averages 2.54 kills per set.

Senior Juliana Moraes, a Second Team All-ECC pick, is perhaps the team's most versatile player, ranking anywhere from third to fifth in every statistical category except service aces per set.

Junior Ivana Kovacevic-Jurasin is a force for the Purple Knights both on offense and defense, as she is second on the team in kills per set at 2.55 and leads the team in digs averaging 2.91 per ser and service aces per set at 0.54.

Senior setter Milica Micovic has directed the Bridgeport offense to the tune of nearly eight assists per set.

Libero, JJ Edwards, has had a fine senior season averaging 2.75 digs and 0.51 service aces per set.

Here is the complete schedule for the 2009 NCAA Division II Championship East Regional hosted by Dowling College in Oakdale, NY:

Thursday, November 19

Match No. 1 No. 3 seed (Bridgeport) vs. No. 6 seed (UMass-Lowell) – 12 Noon

Match No. 2 No. 7 seed (Pace) vs. No. 2 seed (New Haven) -2:30 PM

Match No. 3 No. 5 seed (Bentley) vs. No. 4 seed (Adelphi) – 5:00 PM

Match No. 4 No. 1 seed (Dowling) vs. No. 8 seed (Georgian Court) – 7:30 PM

Friday, November 20

Match No. 1 Winner of match No. 1 vs. Winner of match No. 2 – 5:00 PM

Match No. 2 Winner of match No. 3 vs. Winner of match No. 4 – 7:30 PM

Saturday, November 21

Regional Championship Match – 7:00 PM

Admission for each day of the tournament play will be as follows:

Adults                                                   $ 5.00
Students with I.D./Senior Citizens        $ 3.00
Children, ages 2-12                              $ 2.00
Children under the age of 2 shall be admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult.