University of Tennessee Athletics
VOLLEYBALL MAGAZINE RANKS LADY VOL RECRUITING CLASS SIXTH
July 12, 2006 | Volleyball
July 12, 2006
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. The accolades continue to pour in for head coach Rob Patrick and staff as Volleyball Magazine has named the incoming Lady Vol recruiting class sixth in the nation. The ranking marks the second time that the 2006 group has been recognized nationally, with PrepVolleyball.com placing it eighth in June. Headlining the class of seven set to join the Big Orange in the fall are setter Jena Berg (Bristol, Wis.), middle blocker Carol Cheade (Niteroi, Brazil), middle blocker Leah Hinkey (Glenwood Springs, Colo.) and outside hitter Kylie Marshall (Puyallup, Wash.).
"We are very excited about our 2006 recruiting class, as we feel that it fills all of our team's needs, and each one has the ability to compete for a starting job in her first year," Patrick said. "It is nice to know that people outside our program also feel so highly about this class. They are quick, physical athletes who will be coming in with a tremendous amount of volleyball experience, maybe the most of any class that we have signed."
The Tennessee class ranks behind only Penn State, Texas, Notre Dame, Texas A&M and Wisconsin in Volleyball Magazine's analysis. Pepperdine, Arizona, Stanford and Nebraska round out the top-10, while California, Louisville, Purdue, USC and defending national champion Washington earned Honorable Mention honors.
Berg, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's 2005-06 Female Athlete of the Year, has been named first team all-state each of the past two seasons after taking a spot on the second team as a sophomore. Ranked 33rd on the Senior Aces 2006 list by PrepVolleyball.com, she earned first-team All-Lakeshore Conference accolades all four years at Westosha Central High School after running a 6-2 offense while setting and hitting middle. Her team claimed the 2003 and 2004 Division I (the highest level) state championships, while finishing second in 2002 and falling in the quarterfinals in 2005. The Falcons went 167-18 (.903 winning percentage) in her time at WCHS. The quick athlete was named to the all-state tournament team in each of her last three seasons. Berg also competed on the track team and was honored as the Lakeshore Conference Female Track Athlete of the Year as a junior after winning the state title in the 300-meter hurdles and crossing second in the 100-meter high hurdles. The consummate hard worker is a member of the National Honor Society and was honored as a member of the Honor Roll all four years at WCHS. She chose Tennessee over Michigan State, Illinois State and Wisconsin.
"Jena brings a wealth of volleyball experience and is probably the most versatile player in this class as she can set, hit and play defense, all at very high levels," Patrick said. "She will be playing the setter position for us and has the experience to step in and play as a freshman."
Cheade is a very experienced volleyball player who competed with the Ecamengo and Botafogo volleyball teams in Brazil, winning both state and national championships. She chose Tennessee because of its excellence in academics and athletics. Other schools she was considering included Florida State, Texas and Arkansas.
"Carol is a player who can play any of the front row positions and will allow us to diversify our offense by being able to attack successfully anywhere along the net," Patrick said. "She will bring a different style of volleyball from her home country of Brazil, which will compliment and fit in very well with our offensive and defensive schemes. She has the ability to stay in a match in all six rotations as her back court skills are at a very high level."
Hinkey, ranked 74th among high school seniors, spent two years as captain of the Glenwood Springs High School squad and was named to the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News first team all-state lists. She also earned accolades as a member of the first team All-Western Slope Conference. She helped lead GSHS to the Colorado 4A (the second-highest level) state tournament in 2003, 2004 and 2005. The dedicated athlete also competed with the Colorado Juniors club team, which qualified for the Junior Olympic national championships. She saw success on the track team as well, helping the 4x100 and 4x200-meter relay squads to school-record times. Hinkey was named to the Academic Honor Roll. She chose Tennessee over Long Beach State, Washington and Hawaii.
"Leah attacks the ball off of one foot as well as anyone I've seen coming out of high school," Patrick said. "Her quickness in attacking the ball will cause opposing defenses some problems. She is also a highly skilled blocker. She is someone who has the potential to be the same type of player that (2005 Vball Magazine first-team All-American) Kristen Andre was."
Marshall, the 43rd-ranked senior on the PrepVolleyball list, has been playing at Emerald Ridge High School which finished third at the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) 4A (the highest level in Washington) volleyball state tournament this year and fourth the past two seasons. She earned more than 1,000 career kills at ERHS. Marshall competed with the KJ Volleyball Club, which finished ninth at the Junior Olympics national championships in 2004. She also was a member of the USA Youth National Team which won the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) title in the 2004 tournament contested in Puerto Rico. With the ERHS tennis team, she played on a South Puget Sound League (SPSL) championship-winning squad in 2004 and 2005. Marshall has been named to the Honor Roll all four years with a 4.0 GPA and was named a WIAA Scholar-Athlete each of those seasons. She is a member of the National Honor Society and finished second at districts in a Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) competition. Marshall chose Tennessee over Long Beach State, Michigan and UCLA.
"Kylie will come into our program with the most experience of any of our players in this class, as she has played at the highest level in our youth national team programs," Patrick said. "Her quickness, explosiveness and ball control skills will give her an opportunity to compete for a starting job when she sets foot on campus."
The class will help Tennessee retool after losing a talented senior class, which led the Big Orange to back-to-back NCAA Regional appearances the past two campaigns and the school's first-ever berth in the NCAA Final Four last season.
The Lady Vols will begin their 2006 campaign at home for the first time in nine years, hosting the Comcast Lady Vol Classic. UT (25-9 in 2005) will open the season with a 7 p.m. contest on Aug. 25 versus Virginia (20-11).
