Volleyball

The Capital volleyball team has continued to thrive both athletically and academically during the 17-year tenure of Head Coach Pam Briggs. CU volleyball reached its biggest heights this past decade, winning a pair of OAC championships and reaching the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. Nine Crusaders were recognized as All-OAC First Team performers, and 15 players were named to the OAC All-Academic squad. Three more student athletes were selected as Academic All-Americans for their prowess in the classroom. Briggs, the OAC Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2005, reviewed the past decade of Capital volleyball.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Capital University placed three seniors on the Ohio Athletic Conference Volleyball All-Academic Teams that were released Wednesday following a vote conducted amongst the OAC’s faculty athletics representatives.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Capital University senior volleyball players Allison Hostetler and Jenna Zumberger were each named to the 2009 All-Ohio Athletic Conference teams as voted upon by the league’s head coaches. Hostetler was an All-OAC First Team selection while Zumberger was an All-OAC Second Team pick.

A pair of seniors from the Capital University volleyball team were named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Teams on Thursday following a vote amongst members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Allison Hostetler was a Second Team pick while Jenna Zumberger was a Third Team selection.

WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The fifth-seeded Capital volleyball team nearly came back from an 0-2 deficit before falling to Otterbein 2-3 (10-25, 18-25, 25-23, 25-19, 10-15) in an OAC Quarterfinal Match on Tuesday evening.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Senior setter Jenna Zumberger was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Volleyball Player of the Week on Monday following the final week of the 2009 regular season.

ADA, Ohio – Visiting Capital lost its Ohio Athletic Conference volleyball regular season finale at #7 Ohio Northern in straight sets (14-25, 20-25, 19-25). CU (16-14, 5-4 OAC) will now play as the fifth seed in the OAC Quarterfinals at Otterbein on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

NEW CONCORD, Ohio – Visiting Capital rallied from a 10-5 gap in the fifth set and had two match points before Muskingum scored the final three points of the match to send the Crusaders to a 2-3 (25-21, 25-18, 20-25, 17-25, 16-18) Ohio Athletic Conference volleyball loss on Tuesday night.

COLUMBUS, Ohio- Despite going the distance in both matches, the Capital volleyball team dropped both decisions to Otterbein and Westminster on Senior Day.

The Capital University Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is encouraging CU fans to support the Crusader volleyball and football teams as they take on rival Otterbein this Saturday. Capital volleyball will play host to Otterbein at 11 a.m. before a student bus leaves to attend the football game in Westerville.

MARIETTA, Ohio – A hot start and a late rally combined to be enough for visiting Capital in a 3-2 (25-21, 25-11, 21-25, 19-25, 15-11) victory at Marietta in an Ohio Athletic Conference volleyball match on Tuesday night.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Seniors Steven McCarthy and Allison Hostetler each garnered Ohio Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors in their respective sports on Monday.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Homestanding Capital played point for point with #19 Heidelberg, but fell in three sets (23-25, 22-25, 23-25) in an Ohio Athletic Conference volleyball showdown on Saturday at the Capital Center.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Led by senior Allison Hostetler’s season-high 26 kills, the Capital volleyball team outlasted visiting John Carroll, 3-1 (29-27, 18-25, 25-15, 25-23) to advance to 4-0 in the OAC for the first time since 2005.

BEREA, Ohio - In a back and forth match that took five sets to be decided, the Capital women’s volleyball rallied to win the decisive fifth set and the match at Baldwin Wallace (21-25, 25-20, 25-22, 22-25, 15-12).

COLUMBUS, Ohio-In a rematch of the 2008 OAC Quarterfinal classic that went the distance, the Capital volleyball team upended Mount Union 3-1 (17-25, 25-17, 25-16, 25-22) for their first win over the Purple Raiders since a 3-0 home victory of the Purple and Black on October 8, 2005.

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Capital volleyball team continued its gutsy play on Saturday as it split a pair of matches at the Barker Chevrolet Classic hosted by Illinois Wesleyan. CU beat Trine, 3-1 (18-25, 27-25, 25-20, 25-20) before falling to Millikin in five sets (22-25, 13-25, 25-17, 25-17, 12-15).

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Capital played its most complete volleyball of the season to earn a split of its two matches on Friday at the Barker Chevrolet Classic. The Crusaders beat host Illinois Wesleyan, 3-0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-15) before falling to #7 Hope in three sets (22-25, 21-25, 15-25).

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Capital women’s volleyball team kicked off their OAC season on the right foot, quickly defeating Wilmington in straight sets (25-16, 25-10, 25-14). The Crusaders have now won four straight matches and improved to 10-7 overall on the year.

DELAWARE, Ohio – The visiting Capital volleyball team used a consistent offense and solid defense to post a non-conference victory at Ohio Wesleyan, 3-1 (25-21, 23-25, 25-8, 25-16) on Thursday night. With its season-best third straight win, CU improved to 9-7 overall.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - After splitting their first two sets against visiting Denison, the Capital women’s volleyball team took the momentum in the third set and eventually won the match, 3-1 (25-20, 21-25, 25-14, 25-18).

GREENCASTLE, Ind. – The Capital volleyball team placed seventh out of eight teams at the DePauw Invitational after winning two of four matches on the weekend.

COLUMBUS, Ohio- The Capital Crusaders Volleyball team used a dominating performance at home to defeat Cedarville, 3-1 (19-25, 25-18, 25-15, 25-17). With the win, Capital evens its overall record at 5-5.

HANOVER, Ind. - The Capital University volleyball team lost a pair of matches to Centre and Campbellsville at the Hanover Volleyball Invitational on Saturday.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Homestanding Capital fell short in a non-conference matchup with NAIA power Shawnee State in three sets (23-25, 18-25, 18-25). With the loss, Capital falls to 2-3 while Shawnee State improved to 4-0 on the season.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Homestanding Capital could not muster enough offense to stay with DePauw in a 0-3 (19-25, 23-25, 13-25) Championship Match loss at the 2009 Capital Volleyball Opener on Saturday.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Offense took center stage on Saturday morning as Capital hit .393 as a team in a 3-0 (25-15, 25-10, 25-20) sweep of visiting Allegheny at the 2009 Capital Volleyball Opener. With the win, the Crusaders (2-1) advance to the third place match scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at the Capital Center. Fans can follow the action with FREE Live Stats at www.CapitalCrusaders.net.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Capital University volleyball team went the distance for the second straight match of the day, but this time could not come out on top as the Crusaders lost to visiting Hanover, 2-3 (25-23, 25-22, 23-25, 18-25, 13-15) in Friday’s action at the 2009 Capital Volleyball Opener.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Homestanding Capital withstood a stiff test from Albion to win the first match of the Capital Volleyball Opener, 3-2 (25-23, 18-25, 25-21, 22-25, 15-11) on Friday afternoon. CU returns to the court as Head Coach Pam Briggs looks for her 350th career win later on Friday night. Capital takes on Hanover at approximately 7:00 p.m.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – The Capital University volleyball team was picked as one of the teams to beat in the 2009 Ohio Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll released on Tuesday. The Crusaders ranked fourth in the 10 team race.

When asked in an old commercial whether he was going to play baseball or football that upcoming year, Deion Sanders responded, “Both.” This also is the case for Jennifer Fekpe, who serves and spikes with the volleyball team in the fall and races for the Crusader track team in the winter and spring. Sports Information Assistant Bryan DeArdo caught up with Fekpe to talk to her about both sports.

Capital volleyball looks forward to a 2009 season with the hopes of building upon the strong play of five returning seniors and the experience gained during a 24-9 record last season and a fifth place finish in the Ohio Athletic Conference.

Volleyball senior Sara Doebel is the perfect example of an athlete that excels both on the court and in the books. Along with being a major cog on a squad that went 24-9 last season, Doebel had the highest GPA of any athlete on campus. Doebel recently talked with sports information assistant Bryan DeArdo about this year’s team, how she balances school and sports, and what she gets into in her spare time.

Kara Guster (volleyball) and Doug Gibbons (track & field) were named Capital's 2009 winners of the Clyde Lamb award which is given annually by the Ohio Athletic Conference to the best senior student-athletes from each OAC institution. Bryan DeArdo continues his "I WILL" series with a conversation with Kara Guster.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Capital University senior volleyball players Kara Guster and Jackie Helm were both named to the Ohio Athletic Conference All-Academic Team on Tuesday following voting conducted by the conference’s Senior Woman Administrators.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Three members of the Capital University volleyball team were awarded All-Ohio Athletic Conference recognition on Tuesday after voting conducted by the league’s head coaches. Junior Allison Hostetler was an All-OAC Second Team pick while seniors Jackie Helm and Kelly Steineman were All-OAC Honorable Mention selections.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Capital University seniors Kara Guster and Jackie Helm were each named to the ESPN The Magazine Volleyball Academic All-District IV First Team on Thursday. The duo will now advance to the national ballot and are eligible for Academic All-America honors, which will be announced on Nov. 24.