OM Volleyball Opens Season

Rebels face UMBC Friday at the George Washington Invitational to open the season. / Photo by Nathan Latil, UM

Rebels face UMBC on Friday; Maryland, George Washington await on Saturday

After weeks of hard work in the gym playing against each other, the Ole Miss volleyball team is ready to take the court for the start of the 2013 season and face a team other than itself. The Rebels will open play Friday at the GW Invitational in Washington, D.C., against UMBC at 4 p.m. CT. Ole Miss will then close out the tournament Saturday with a doubleheader against Maryland (11 a.m. CT) and host-school George Washington (6 p.m. CT).

“We made it through our preseason and two-a-days healthy, and that’s always a great start,” said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin, who is entering his 12th year at the helm. “We’re very excited about the season. We have the talent to compete for an SEC Championship. Obviously that’s everyone’s goal. The personnel are there. It’s just going to be a matter of chemistry and how they are meshed together. To start out, we made some great strides in that area. It’s time to play someone else and stop beating up on ourselves.”

Ole Miss welcomes seven newcomers to Oxford this season, including five freshmen and two junior college transfers. That class, made up by Marie-Pierre Bakima, Laura Beaty, Kristen Brashear, Melanie Crow, Aubrey Edie, Margaret Eggert and Cara Fisher, was recognized by PrepVolleyball.com over the offseason as being ranked Highest Honorable Mention.

Among the numerous key returnees to the Rebels are senior outside hitter Kara Morgan and 2012 SEC All-Freshman selections Nakeyta Clair and Ty Laporte.

Morgan enters her senior campaign as one of the top scoring threats in the Southeastern Conference, and one of the Rebels’ most vocal leaders. Her 731 career kills are the ninth most all-time at Ole Miss during the rally scoring era.

Clair and Laporte return as two of the most athletic and versatile middle blockers in the league. Clair was twice named SEC Freshman of the Week, and led the Rebels with 84 blocks, including 17 solo blocks and 1.11 blocks per set. Laporte had the highest attacking percentage on the team last season at .312, which was also the highest in the SEC among freshmen and 10th highest overall.

Saturday evening’s match against George Washington has an added note of interest, as senior middle blocker Kellie Goss will be facing her twin sister, Rachael, who is an outside hitter for the Colonials.

Ole Miss opens its home slate Sept. 6 against Kennesaw State (11:00 a.m. CT) and Georgia Southern (7:30 p.m. CT) as part of the Magnolia Invitational, and has won the tournament for each of the last six years. The Rebels will close out the tournament Saturday at 1:30 p.m. CT against Arkansas State.

For all Ole Miss volleyball news and information, including recaps of each of the Rebels’ three matches at the GW Invitational, go to OleMissSports.com. Fans can also follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissVB and on Facebook at Ole Miss Volleyball.

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Ole Miss Athletics Media Relations
August 29, 2013