Volleyball to Make Opponents Out of Old Friends
August 23, 2007

The University of Texas at Tyler volleyball team has announced their first-ever Alumni game. The match will take place Sunday, Aug. 26, at 3 p.m. at the Herrington Patriot Center.

Third-year volleyball coach Kristee Phelps (formerly Turpin) is excited about the opportunity to bring the past and present of her program together on one court.

“It’s the first time we’ve been able to do it,” Phelps said. “I got a lot of push from (former players) Kelli Roberts, Jessica Lightfoot and Tami Trail. They have worked hard to get enough alumni together to do this.”

“The alumni will get t-shirts so we can identify them. The alumni are still just one or two years out, so they’re pretty much in shape. It’ll be a good challenge for our kids.”

“And I’ll be playing with the alumni,” she laughs.

The game will not only be an opportunity for a fun afternoon, but also a good chance to get this year’s team some experience against a veteran group of opponents.

“We’re really excited about the game and also for our team,” Phelps said, “We’ll get tired of seeing each other in practice, so it’ll be good to see some new faces, especially with our girls going up against the girls who built this program.”

“Since this is the class that will finally get to play in the playoffs, it’ll be nice to get to play against the players that helped get them to that point.”

The Patriots volleyball team begins its season Sept. 1 at the UT Dallas Tournament.

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