YSUsports.com - Volleyball: Penguins Open 2008 Campaign in Columbus on Friday

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Aug. 28, 2008

Penguins Open 2008 Campaign in Columbus on Friday

    The Youngstown State volleyball team opens its 34th season on Friday in the four-team Ohio State Sports Imports Classic in Columbus. The Penguins will play its season opener against Xavier at 1:30 p.m. and a match against Toledo at 5 p.m. YSU will then take on hosting Ohio State at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Live stats will be available on ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
    The Penguins return five starters and its primary libero from last season's squad that collected the most wins in seven years. YSU assembled an overall record of 12-18, and its five conference wins were more than the previous six years combined.
    While the one departure is all-league opposite side hitter Jessica Fraley, seniors Ebony Barbosa and Karla Everhart join a powerful junior class at the net and a host of talented underclassmen in the back row. Barbosa enters her third year starting on the outside while Everhart is in her third year as the starting setter. Former Horizon League Co-Newcomer of the Year Ruth Boscaljon headlines the experienced middle group, and sophomore Laurie Shives had 437 digs in her first year.

Penguins Face Former Coach Utnage to Start Season
    YSU will see a very familiar face on the Xavier sideline when it opens the season on Friday afternoon. Christy Utnage, now an assistant for the Musketeers, spent the last two seasons in Youngstown in the same capacity. Utnage arrived in 2006 and saw YSU up its win total by three her first year and by two more in her second. Utnage left for Xavier in April, and Darcy Thompson replaced her on YSU's staff in June. The Penguins have not beaten Xavier in seven previous tries, but the two teams have not played since 1990.

Guins-Bucks: Part Two - Set for Saturday Evening
    Youngstown State and Ohio State will square off on the volleyball court just six hours after kickoff between the two schools just across Woody Hayes Drive at Ohio Stadium. The Penguins football team is playing the Buckeyes for the second consecutive season while the volleyball teams are playing for the third straight year. On the hardwood, the Buckeyes have won the past two outings in straight sets. YSU also lost to Ohio State in straight sets in 2004 in the only other meeting between the two schools.

Penguins and Rockets Set to Renew Old Rivalry
    YSU and Toledo will meet for only the third time this decade on Friday after playing 14 times from 1977-1999. The Rockets have won the past two matches, including a five-set affair in 2002. The Penguins' last victory in the series came on Nov. 14, 1999 in the midst of a 20-match winning streak.

Bonner in Search of 30th Career Win
YSU head coach Joe Bonner needs one more win to reach 30 in his career. All 29 of his wins have come as a Penguin - seven in 2005, 10 in 2006 and 12 in 2007. He spent five years as an assistant - three at Robert Morris and two at Dayton - before coming to YSU. The Flyers and Colonials reached the NCAA Tournament every season he was on their respective benches.

Penguins Picked to Finish Sixth in Horizon League Poll
The Youngstown State volleyball team has been picked to finish sixth in the Horizon League this season in a preseason poll of the league's coaches. If the Penguins finish where the poll projects, it would be their highest finish since joining the league in 2001.Reigning tournament champion Cleveland State earned the maximum 64 points by earning eight first-place votes while Valparaiso, a team that YSU defeated twice last season, was picked second with 56 points. Milwaukee was projected to finish third while UIC and Butler were picked to finish fourth and fifth. The Penguins earned the sixth spot ahead of Wright State, Loyola and Green Bay.