Aug. 30, 2001
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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Following nearly a month of rigorous preseason training, Western Kentucky will take the court for the first time in the 2001 season this weekend when it travels to Toledo, Ohio, for the Clarion Hotel Westgate Rocket Classic. The Lady Toppers will open tournament play Friday at 6 p.m. (CT) against Cleveland State, before matching up with Chicago State (1 p.m.) and host Toledo (6 p.m.) on Saturday.
WKU returns six letterwinners and four starters from last year's club which went 25-8 and won a share of the Sun Belt Conference's East Division title. The Lady Toppers have been picked to repeat as SBC East co-champions, thanks in large part to their three returning all-conference standouts -- senior outside hitters Tara Thomas and Natalie Furry, and junior setter Sara Noe.
Thomas is a 2001 preseason all-Sun Belt selection after putting together a blockbuster junior campaign a year ago. The Louisville native was an AVCA all-South Region Team selection after ranking among the league leaders in kills per game (4.48), digs per game (3.46) and hitting percentage (.278), along with an SBC-best 22 double-doubles. She also became just the second player in school history to log for 400 kills and 400 digs in one season, finishing with 529 kills and 408 digs in 2000.
Furry was also a 2001 preseason all-SBC pick after winning all-league honors for the second time last year. She ranked third in the Sun Belt with a sparkling .316 hitting percentage and posted a career-high 10 double-doubles during the Lady Toppers' championship season. Furry is also a star in the classroom, and last year, she became the first player in Sun Belt (and WKU) history to be named to the Verizon Academic All-America? Team.
Noe made the most of her first season in the starting lineup in 2000, earning second-team all-Sun Belt honors after setting a league record with 14.15 assists per game, good for 10th in the nation. She should reach a personal milestone this weekend, needing just 74 assists to become the fourth player in school history with 2,000 career assists.
The Rocket Classic will provide a stern test for Western Kentucky, since the Lady Toppers have only played their three opponents a combined total of two times in their history. In fact, WKU will open its season with a first-time opponent when it squares off with Cleveland State on Friday night. The Vikings have five letterwinners and three starters back in the fold this season for second-year head coach Chuck Voss, who guided CSU to a 12-17 mark in his first year at the helm.
Chicago State will provide the opposition for Western is Saturday's first match. The Cougars have many new faces in uniform this season, as only three letterwinners and two starters are back from a 5-18 campaign in 2000. Second-year head coach Heidi Cartisser will lead CSU in search of its first-ever win over WKU -- the Lady Toppers took the team's only other meeting, 3-0, at the Machined Ceramics Hilltopper Invitational on Sept. 18, 1998.
Toledo will have a deep and experienced club on the floor when it matches up with Western Kentucky Saturday night. The Rockets have all 11 letterwinners and six starters returning from last season, giving fifth-year head coach Kent Miller reason to be excited. UT will also look to maintain its perfect record against the Lady Toppers in the all-time series -- the Rockets squeezed out a 3-2 win over WKU on Nov. 12, 1988, at the Butler Invitational in Indianapolis.
-- WKU --
