Newport News, Va., Regional Tournament Web Site


REGIONAL FACTS –  The No. 2 nationally ranked Emory University volleyball team has been chosen as an at-large team to the 2011 NCAA Division III Championships.  The Eagles open the tourney by playing in the Newport News, Virginia, Regional which will be hosted by Christopher Newport University.  All matches will be held at the Freeman Center on the CNU campus.

Action in the eight-team regional begins on Friday (Nov. 11) with four first-round matches.  On Saturday, the region semifinals will be played at 3:30 and 6:00 p.m., with the Regional Championship slated for 3:00 p.m., on Sunday (Nov. 13).  A list with times of the contests are below.

Friday, Nov. 11
Match 1 -- Randolph-Macon vs.  Johns Hopkins (12:30 p.m.)
Match 2 -- Emory vs. Richard Stockton (3:00 p.m.)
Match 3 -- Gallaudet vs. Salisbury (5:30 p.m.)
Match 4 -- Christopher Newport vs. Maryville (8:00 p.m.)

Saturday, Nov. 12
Match 5 – Match 1 winner vs. Match 2 winner (3:30 p.m.)
Match 6 – Match 3 winner vs. Match 4 winner (6:00 p.m.)

Sunday, Nov. 13
Newport News Regional Championship (3:00 p.m.)

THE COACHES – Emory Head Coach Jenny McDowell (Georgia, '89) is in her 16th year at the helm of the Eagles' program.  During her stint at Emory, McDowell has posted a school and career won-lost ledger of 510-127.  She achieved her 500^th victory on Oct. 8, 2011, when Emory topped Maryville College, 3-0.  She has 13 campaigns of 30 or more wins, including last year's school-record setting 36-5 record, and has now directed the program to 16 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament.  She has steered the Eagles to three national semifinal berths and has a national championship to her credit in 2008.

Richard Stockton is led by Allison Walker (Muhlenberg, 2000), who is in her sixth campaign as head coach. Entering the Emory match, Walker has directed the Lions to a 149-64 won-lost ledger.  This is the fourth time that she has guided the Ospreys to the NCAA Tournament. In addition, she has guided the program to four straight New Jersey Athletic Conference titles.

Bill Rogers (Virginia Commonwealth, 1990) is in his 10^th campaign in charge of the Randolph-Macon program and he starts the weekend with a won-lost slate of 228-96. He has led the Yellow Jackets to three NCAA Tournament berths.

In just two years, Johns Hopkins head coach Matt Troy (West Virginia, 2002) has compiled an overall record of 44-16. Prior to his appointment at JHU, Troy served as the head coach at Howard Community College for one season.

Calling the shots for Christopher Newport is head coach Lindsay Birch (CNU, 1992). Now in her 10^th year with the Captains, Burch heads into the NCAA Tournament with a school and career mark of 308-79.   This is the eighth time that the Captains have landed a berth in the NCAA Tournament during her tenure.

Kandis Schram is in her 26^th season as the head coach at Maryville College and posts a career effort of 622-328.  Schram has directed the Scots to eight NCAA Tournament bids and 18 seasons of 20 or more victories.

In his seventh season as the head coach at Gallaudet University is Lynn Boren (Gallaudet, 1996).  Under his watch, the Bison have captured four NCAA Tournament spots.

The Sea Gulls of Salisbury are led by 16th-year head coach Margie Knight (Salisbury).  At the start of the Newport News Regional, Knight posts a school and career record of 367-170 and has chalked up 12 seasons of 30 or more wins along with seven NCAA appearances.

2011 RECORDS – Emory, which was ranked No. 2 nationally among Division III teams in the Nov. 1 AVCA Poll, stands 34-4 in overall play.  Last weekend, the Eagles finished runner-up at the UAA Championships, topping Brandeis and NYU, both by 3-0 scores, on Friday before dropping a 2-3 verdict to then-No. 3-ranked Washington University in the title match. It was just the second Division III setback for Emory this year.

Richard Stockton brings an overall record of 25-8 into the match with Emory.  The Ospreys earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament following their 3-0 win over Ramapo in the finals of the New Jersey Athletic Conference Championships.

Randolph-Macon checks in with a 23-5 ledger and is coming off a title performance at the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Championships, the third straight year the Yellow Jackets have walked away with the crown. 

The Blue Jays of Johns Hopkins landed an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament after capturing the program's first-ever Centennial Conference championship, defeating Gettysburg in the finals.  The win over the Bullets upped JHU's overall mark to 25-4.

Host Christopher Newport, ranked No. 7 nationally, has won its last 10 matches and sports a 33-4 record heading into its fray with Maryville, winning 30 of its last 31 sets.  The Captains brought home the title at the USA South Championships last weekend, topping Averett, 3-0, in the finals.

Maryville, champions of the Great South Athletic Conference, owns a 26-7 record following a 3-0 decision over Piedmont in the finals of that league's tournament.

Gallaudet nabbed an automatic spot in the NCAAs for the eighth time in school history after defeating Penn St.-Berks, 3-2, in the finals of the North Eastern Athletic Conference Championships. The victory over the Nittany Lions boosted Gallaudet's record to 28-7.

Salisbury, champions of the Capital Athletic Conference, sports an overall record of 31-3 after defeating Stevenson University, 3-0, in the league's title match.

SERIES RECORDS WITH REGIONAL FIELD – Emory's contest against Richard Stockton will represent the first-ever meeting between the schools in volleyball.

Emory stands 7-0 all-time vs. Randolph-Macon. The Eagles and Yellow Jackets met earlier this season (Sept. 23) during the Emory Homecoming Tournament with the Eagles registering a 3-0 victory.

Emory holds a 5-0 edge in the all-time series with Johns Hopkins. The last meeting between the Eagles and Blue Jays took place in 2000, when JHU was a member of the UAA, with Emory posting a 3-0 victory.

Emory has won all 10 meeting against the Captains of Christopher Newport.  The last time the teams squared off was at the quarterfinals of the 2010 NCAA Tournament in Saint Louis where the Eagles emerged with a 3-2 decision, sending the team into the semifinal round.

Emory has compiled an all-time mark of 18-2 against Maryville.  The Eagles and Scots have played twice this season with Emory earning victories on both occasions, the first time by a 3-1 margin at the Wittenberg Invitational (Sept. 3) and the most recent a 3-0 verdict (Oct. 8) at the Emory National Tournament.

The Bison of Gallaudet hold a 2-1 margin in the series against Emory.  The last meeting took place in 1993 with the Eagles coming away with the win at the Emory & Henry Tournament.

If Emory and Salisbury collide at the Newport News Regional, it will be the first time the schools have met in volleyball.

EMORY AND THE NCAA TOURNAMENT – Emory's appearance in this year's NCAA Tournament Championship represents the program's 17^th appearance in the event, and the 16^th during Jenny McDowell's tenure as head coach.  The Eagles post an all-time record of 27-16 in NCAA play, 27-15 under McDowell.  The Eagles have played 15 NCAA matches on their home floor and stand 11-4 in those contests while showing a 16-12 slate in road/neutral matches.

EMORY AND THE NCAA FIELD – Emory has played a total of 13 matches against 10 teams that advanced to this year's NCAA Tournament Championship.  The Eagles have enjoyed a fair amount of success against this year's field that it has faced, racking up an 11-2 won-lost mark.  The Eagles have battled three NCAA Tourney members on two occasions (Washington University, 1-1, Juniata, 2-0 and Maryville 2-0).

McCALL CLIMBING THE CHARTS – Heading into this weekend's Newport News Regional, Amelia McCall finds herself firmly entrenched in a number of Emory career statistical categories.  Tied for the No. 2 spot among UAA players with a 3.87 kills-per-set average, the Montgomery, Ala., native has compiled 1,490 terminations during her stint as an Eagle, good for the No. 4 spot on the school's all-time list.  Currently No. 2 all-time at Emory in kills per set (3.59 kps), she has recorded 25 performances of double-figure kills this season and has a total of 71 in her career. In addition, she is ninth on the school's all-time list with 956 digs. 

SCHONEFELD THE DISTRIBUTOR – Senior Natalie Schonefeld, already the school's all-time leader in assists with 5,622, heads into the NCAA Tourney No. 2 in the UAA and among the top 10 players nationally with a 10.91 assists-per-set average.  She has doled out 50 or more assists on five occasions this year and, and her total of 1,244 ranks 11^th on the school seasonal chart.   She already holds the Emory's third (1,552, 2010), fourth (1421, 2008) and sixth (1,405, 2009)-highest seasonal marks in assists. 

BOURQUE A TOP HITTER – Junior Breanah Bourque has enjoyed a fine season and heads into the stretch run of the 2011 season tops in the UAA and among the top five nationally with a .436 attack percentage with that mark currently first on the school's seasonal list.  The 5-foot-11 Bourque has hit .400 or higher in 21 matches this year including two of three contests this past weekend at the UAA Championships (.600 vs. Brandeis and .405 vs. Washington University).  In addition, she stands fourth in the UAA with a 3.34 kills-per-set average and has produced 20 matches of 10 or more kills.

EAGLES QUARTET SERVE AS CAPTAINS – Serving as captains for the 2011 Eagles will be seniors Natalie Schonefeld, Amelia McCall and Kelsey Freeman (Orinda, CA) and junior Breanah Bourque.