UT Tyler Volleyball: Ready to Climb in 2009
August 5, 2009

In 2008, The University of Texas at Tyler volleyball team advanced to the American Southwest Conference Tournament and came within one point of winning its first-round match. This year head coach Kristee Phelps thinks the Patriots can advance even farther and possibly pick up some hardware along the way.

The 2009 edition of the UT Tyler volleyball team will feature five returners from last year’s team including All-ASC East selections Amanda Hanson and Danika Waldrep. In addition to Hanson and Waldrep, both sophomores, senior Christy Meredith and juniors Whitney Clements and Kelsey Winn will also be rejoining the Patriots for their 2009 campaign. The five returners will bring with them a wealth of experience to this year’s team, as all five played in all 30 matches for UT Tyler last season.

Phelps feels that one area where last year’s team lacked was height and she has aimed to fix that by bringing in eight recruits, four of which are 5-foot-10 or taller.

“One of our strengths this year will be height,” says Phelps, who will begin her fifth season as head coach. “More importantly, it will be height we can distribute on the right side of the net to strengthen us defensively.”

Not only will this year’s recruiting class bring height to the court, but all come from solid volleyball backgrounds. Melissa Ingebretsen of McKinney Boyd HS, Lauren Mathews of Waco Reicher HS, Stephanie Pupenbroke of Carrollton Creekview HS, Sarah Smith of Kempner HS, Hillary Taylor of Hebron HS and Anna Troutman of Springdale HS in Arkansas will all join the Patriots as freshmen this season.

In addition to the six players coming to UT Tyler from high school, Phelps is also bringing in two junior college transfers. Holly Kieschnick of Brookhaven College and Christina Smith of Hill College each helped guide their respective teams to the postseason last year, while Kieschnick played a key role in helping Brookhaven win the 2008 NJCAA Division III National Championship.

While excited about the additions to this year’s team, Phelps knows that last year’s seniors, Megan McCarty and Ashley Montalvo, have left the team with both defensive and leadership gaps to fill.

“With the loss of Megan and Ashley, we worked hard in the off-season to find players with the ball control we need. We have three players coming in that will be able to fill the void of those two leadership roles. In addition, Danika and Kelsey showed in the spring they are big ball controllers, both offensively and defensively.”

With the right pieces in place, Phelps is looking to make a return trip to the ASC tournament and feels that the Patriots have a shot at the East Division title.

“To win the ASC East we will have to be creative offensively against the top teams in the division. We worked on that during the spring and I feel like I our ball control will be there. All of these girls know what it feels like to win, but one of our first tasks will be to get everyone accustomed to the commitment it will take to win our division.”

The Patriots will open their 2009 season on September 4-5 at home with the UT Tyler Invitational. The non-conference portion of this year’s schedule will see the team travelling to tournaments hosted by perennial national powers Austin College and Trinity (Tex.), as well as a home game with Austin and a home and away series with regional foe, University of Dallas.

Although the non-conference portion of the 2009 schedule is admittedly tough, Phelps knows that it will pay dividends down the stretch for her team.

“We want to perform well against regional opponents and we know the more we play teams like Austin and Trinity the better prepared we will be for our conference schedule and the postseason.”

Phelps and team will open conference play on September 17 at LeTourneau and will play their first ASC home match on September 25 against defending ASC champions, Texas-Dallas.

The Patriots will host the first of two ASC Crossovers this season on October 2-3 and two weeks later will take a 10-plus hour bus ride to Sul Ross State in Alpine, Texas for the other.

UT Tyler will play its home finale on October 27 against rivals East Texas Baptist and will close out the regular season on the road when they travel to Texas-Dallas on October 31.

“I believe we have what it takes to be a great team, if we can match our effort with our potential than this season will be one these girls will remember for years to come.”

Athletics Home Page