Sept. 14, 2005

ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The UNC Asheville Volleyball Classic will be held at Justice Center this weekend (Sept. 16-17). The Bulldog volleyball program will welcome Elon, Samford and Western Carolina to the mountains for the classic.

The tournament begins Friday night when UNC Asheville hosts Samford at 7 p.m. On Saturday, the Bulldogs take on Elon at 10 a.m. and then finish up the tournament with a match against Western Carolina starting at 7 p.m. The two other matches on Saturday has Samford battling Western Carolina at 12:30 p.m. and at 4:30 p.m., Elon takes on Samford.

The Bulldogs are looking to win their third straight tournament. Asheville is 6-2 on the season and won six of its last seven matches. Last weekend, UNCA had one of its best tournament victories ever as it won the five-team Bears Brawl at Mercer University. Julie Torbett's club stunned Conference USA foe Memphis and WAC opponent Louisiana Tech on Friday. Both matches saw the Bulldogs lose the first game but win the next three games.

On Saturday, UNCA whipped Florida International in three games and then edged host Mercer in five games. Junior outside hitter Elif Unlu was named tournament MVP, while senior outside hitter Rose Butler earned a spot on the all-tournament team. It was a weekend to remember for the Bulldog program but it's time to get ready for this weekend's tournament.

"Last weekend is in the past," declared Torbett. "We had some great wins at Mercer, but it's time to focus on the three matches we're going to play Friday and Saturday. I expect three tough matches."

Torbett wants to see her team play well at home after losing to Appalachian State at home back on August 26.

"We're 0-1 at home and we don't like that," stated Torbett. "We need to win at Justice Center in front of our fans."