Nov. 19, 2006

HOUSTON, Texas -

2006 C-USA Championship Match Notes
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For the second time since 2003, the Univesity of Memphis volleyball team will play in the Conference USA championship match. No. 3 Memphis, the only high-seeded team to avoid an upset, will take on a familiar face in UAB. First serve is set for 5 p.m. and the match will be aired live on CSTV.

(3) Memphis vs. (5) UAB Conference USA Championship Match November 19, 2006 Supplemental Notes

Memphis vs. UAB

• Memphis is 35-10 all-time against its travel partner. Memphis has defeated UAB in 12 of the last 15 meetings.

• The Tigers have faced the Blazers twice this season, with each team winning a five-gamer at home. Memphis outlasted UAB in Memphis on Sept. 29--just 10 days after squandering a 2-1 lead and a late lead in game four to the Blazers.

• Coming into Sunday's championship match, the Tigers are 10-11 all-time in Conference USA Championship matches. Memphis and UAB have only met once in C-USA tournament play, with the Tigers coming away with a 3-1 win in 1997.

Head-to-head Stat Comparison
Category        Memphis      UAB
Kills             130        126
Pct.             .229       .206
Assists           113        119
Aces               23         13
Digs              151        139
Blocks           17.0       13.0

Peak Performers vs. UAB

Shelby Burton - 40 kills, 4.00 kills per game, .397%, 7 total blocks Sarah Bury - 20 kills, 30 digs, 7 total blocks, 5 service aces Melissa Nance - 27 kills, 9 total blocks, .404% Laura Côté - 103 assists, 10.30 assists per game, 25 digs, 6 total blocks Christen Clayton - 48 digs, 4.80 digs per game

Memphis in the Conference USA Championship

• Sunday's championship appearance is the second for Memphis since 2003. The 2003 Tigers advanced to the title match, but lost to Louisville 3-0.

• Memphis has made an appearance in the C-USA semifinals in three of the last four seasons.

• Memphis is 9-1 in C-USA tournament matches when being the higher seed.

Tournament Notes

• Sophomore setter Laura Côté set the Conference USA record for assists by a sophomore in the Tigers 3-1 win over Houston last night. Côté dished out a season-high 67 assists and increased her record-setting season total to 1,633. The previous sophomore record was 1,575 set by former Memphis standout Heather Watts in 2002, and Cincinnati's Anne Kordes in 1995.

• Côté's 67 assists was a season-high for the sophomore setter. Her previous season-high was 66 assists, which she doled out in a five-game win over Austin Peay in the opening weekend of the season.

• Sophomore Sarah Bury made a career-high 19 digs in the 3-1 semifinal win over Houston Saturday night. Bury posted her second consecutive double-double with 14 kills. She now has 12 double-doubles on the year. The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native went for 15 kills and 11 digs in the quarterfinal win over UTEP on Friday.

• Junior middle hitter Shelby Burton slammed her way out of a late-season slump with a pair of dominating performances in the Conference USA Championship. Burton, who leads the Tigers in kills and hitting percentage, has averaged 5.50 kills per game and is hitting .577 in the tournament. For the year, the San Antonio, Texas native is hitting .410--good for second on Memphis' single-season list. Burton has nailed down 44 kills in the two matches--23 kills vs. UTEP and 21 vs. Houston. The First Team All-Conference pick has combined 10 or more kills with an attack percentage of .400 or better 16 times this year, but had failed to hit .300 in the final three regular season contests.

• Colette Ramirez provided a big offensive spark for the Memphis offense in the 3-1 win over Houston. Ramirez, who averaged just 1.5 kills per game prior to Saturday night, slammed down 15 kills (3.75 kpg) and hit .344 for Memphis. Ramirez downed six kills in game two and five more in game three against the Cougars. The 15 kills is the second most for Ramirez as a Tiger. The transfer from Virginia Tech's career-high is 17 kills, which she posted vs. North Carolina in 2004. Her career-high at Memphis is 16 against Ole Miss on Oct. 24, 2006.

Season Notes

• Memphis is hitting .273 as a team, tying the program's highest single-season attacking clip ever. The Tigers hit .273 in 1981, but have not hit higher than .240 since.

• Head coach Carrie Yerty is now just two wins shy of becoming Memphis all-time winningest coach. Yerty is 210-161 in her 11 years at Memphis. The coaching wins record is held by Diane Hale, who led the Memphis program from 1978-86.

• Memphis' 27 wins in 2006 matches the win total from 2004 and marks the third time in the last four years that the Tigers have won as many as 27 matches. The .794 winning percentage is the second-highest by a Tiger squad.