Opportunity is knocking at the door for the 2003 Minnesota volleyball team. That opportunity includes the chance to continue where the team left off last year, in their quest to take an already successful volleyball program to the next level. The core of this returning group of players led the way to the program's first Big Ten title in school history, and advanced to the "Sweet Sixteen" in 2002. Those players along with a talented incoming class of freshmen are now presented with the challenge of sustaining their success in conference play, and moving forward even further on the national level.

"We had a very competitive spring season," said head coach Mike Hebert. "We worked on some new things during the offseason, with the emphasis being that we can't just stay the same and expect to do what we did last year. Coming into the season we wanted to put some new wrinkles into our attack, while at the same time emphasizing to our team that things get harder when you are the team that won the conference title the previous year. Winning a conference title is a very difficult thing to do at any level, but an even bigger challenge is to maintain the level of that success."

The 2002 Minnesota volleyball team made history winning the first Big Ten title in school history and claiming a school record (in the NCAA era) with 32 wins. Minnesota started off the 2002 season opening eyes around the nation by advancing to the championship in the State Farm Classic, and kept themselves in the limelight throughout the year spending 13 straight weeks in the top 10 (Sept. 16-Dec. 9). After winning the program's first Big Ten title, Minnesota heads into season looking to continue to raise the level of play and learning to play with a target on their backs each and every match.

"Last year we did not dominate our opponents in conference play, on the way to the conference title, as other great Big Ten teams have done in the past," said Hebert. "We played our game and did an extremely good job of winning the big points at the right time, and that is what helped us succeed. It is important for us to continue to improve as a team. During the offseason we charted some of the statistics for the teams that made it to the Final Four. Those statistics indicated that we were on par with those teams in all but two categories. Those categories included blocking and hitting percentage. One of our main goals heading into the season is to improve in those two categories, while continuing to play to our strengths (the service game and defense)."

Minnesota will be well equipped to continue the success from last year, as it returns nine letterwinners from the 2002 conference championship team, including second team AVCA All-American opposite hitter Cassie Busse and Third Team AVCA All-American libero Paula Gentil. The Golden Gophers also return All-Big Ten setter Lindsey Taatjes (formerly Lindsey Vander Well), along with the outside hitting tandem of Trisha Bratford and Erin Martin. The Golden Gophers also return middle blocker Jessica Byrnes, who was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.

"I like the fact that we return almost the whole group of players that was so successful for us last season," said Hebert. "Last year's team did a great job of not looking too far ahead and worrying about what it would take to succeed on a match-by-match basis. I think if they keep that mentality and continue to improve we will continue to be a very tough team to contend with both on a national level and in conference play this season."

The Golden Gophers return five of its their starters from last season. Minnesota also adds Athena Mallakis, who missed the 2002 season after having knee surgery, back to the mix of players. Add to that a recruiting class that was ranked fourth in the nation and Minnesota looks to have the talent to exceed the high level of success it reached last season.

"Our practices will be extremely competitive," said Hebert. "That should help our team in our match preparation. We have four very good setters to practice with, an experienced group of attackers returning and a very talented young group of middle blockers. All of our freshmen are extremely experienced players for their age who will push for playing time on the court. That should benefit the overall depth and versatility of our team going into the 2003 season."

The five starters returning from last year should give the Golden Gophers a good core to build around this season. Minnesota will also look to rotate more players in and out this year with the added depth of some of the newcomers. The following is Golden Gopher breakdown by position:

Setter
Minnesota heads into the 2003 season with one of the deepest group of quality setters in the nation. The Golden Gophers return Lindsey Taatjes to the team, after a year that saw Taatjes collect All-Big Ten honors and set a Minnesota single-season record for most assists in the season. More importantly, Taatjes continued the long legacy of success by Golden Gophers setters. With last year's All-Big Ten honors, Minnesota has now placed a setter on the Big Ten All-Conference First Team the past four years.

"Taatjes had a great year for us last season," said Hebert. "She was very consistent and steady, and she transferred those characteristics over to the rest of the team last year. Lindsey (Taatjes) did a great all-around job at the setter position for us. She did a tremendous job of setting the stage for attackers to succeed, along with playing very well defensively and contributing on the block."

Taatjes will have a great deal of competition at setter heading into the 2003 season in freshman Kelly Bowman. Just as Taatjes eyed starting at setter in her first year behind three-time All-Big Ten setter Lindsey Berg, so to will the talented Bowman. The credentials that Bowman brings to the table make her a player that Minnesota will look to get on the floor immediately this season. Bowman was ranked the fourth-best high school senior in the nation on the prepvolleyball.com "Hot 100" list. She was named an All-American in 2002 and was the A-2 Junior National MVP for USA Volleyball that same year.

"Kelly (Bowman) is an extraordinarily gifted volleyball player," said Hebert. "She is a complete player who can do anything on the court and has an advanced feel for the game for someone her age. Coming into the season Lindsey (Taatjes) projects as our starting setter. However, Bowman will be on the court a lot and allow us to do different things on offense that will make our team more versatile. Bowman should also continue to excel at the setter's spot as she learns the college game, and will push Lindsey (Taatjes) to get better everyday."

The Golden Gophers will also have the luxury of having two more setters in practice. Marci Peniata, who was one of the top setters in the state of Minnesota out of high school, will provide depth at the setter spot as well as receiving playing time at defensive specialist. Jen Bowman, who transferred from Long Beach State and is the older sister of Kelly Bowman, will sit out the season due to the transfer rule. However, she will be available to practice for Minnesota this season.

Outside Hitter
The 2002 season was a breakthrough year for a trio of Golden Gopher attackers. First and foremost on this list, was Cassie Busse who was named a second team AVCA All-American as a junior. Busse recorded the 10th-highest kill total in school history and the fifth-highest service ace total. She ended the season first in the Big Ten in service aces per game, fifth in kills per game, sixth in hitting percentage and emerged as the Golden Gophers best all-around player during the 2002 season.

"Cassie (Busse) has become our best all-around player," said Hebert. "She contributed in a big way in every aspect the game last season. Cassie (Busse) has improved by leaps and bounds each year she has been in the program, and I have no doubt that she will be one of the best all-around players in the nation her senior season."

Erin Martin and Trisha Bratford also had big breakthrough seasons for Minnesota in 2002. Martin was second on the team with 448 kills, led the team in block solos and was third in the Big Ten in service aces per game. Throughout most of the 2002 season, Martin was the Golden Gophers' second option on the attack to Busse. Bratford struggled at the beginning of the season, but emerged down the stretch for the Golden Gophers. She had 230 kills in her final 16 matches for an average of 4.11 kpg. That stretch started when she hit .421 with 11 kills in a three-game sweep against then No. 8 Penn State (on Oct. 19), and culminated when she pounded out a career-high 26 kills against Georgia Tech in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

"Both Erin (Martin) and Trisha (Bratford) made tremendous strides for us last season," said Hebert. "They provided us with a potent attack from the left-side in 2002, which was one of the reasons we won the conference title last year. This year we will look for them to progress even more on the left side. The main area of this progress entails both players keeping their error totals down so that we can have a more consistently effective attack. If they are able to play more consistently this year our team has a good chance to be even better than last year." Rounding out the attack for Minnesota will be Amanda Cipperly and Erin Lorenzen. Cipperly will provide depth for the Golden Gophers at the outside hitting spot. Last year, Cipperly came off the bench and played a big role for Minnesota, most notably in a five-game victory at Wisconsin in which she tallied eight kills and six digs. Lorenzen will provide depth for the Golden Gophers at the opposite hitter position behind Busse. Lorenzen also played a big role for Minnesota off the bench last year. Her most notable match came when she tallied 11 kills in a four-game victory over No. 19 Santa Clara.

The emergence of a well-rounded attack last year played a big role in the Golden Gopher's march to their first ever Big Ten title. Minnesota was 17-4 on the season when three or more attackers registered double figure kills, and was 9-0 when four or more attackers did so. With everyone from last year's attack returning the Golden Gopher's should continue to improve off a very impressive 2002 campaign.

Middle Blocker
The middle blocker position is the one spot on the court that is a question mark for the Golden Gophers heading into the 2003 season. With Bethany Brafford leaving the program due to personal reasons, Minnesota is thin on experience at middle blocker. What they are not thin on is talent as a mix of one sophomore and two freshman will battle for playing time. Jessica Byrnes is the most proven of the Minnesota middle blockers. Byrnes was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team, and led the Golden Gophers in hitting percentage as a freshman at .323. Byrnes was also third on the team in blocking and third in kills. Part of the next phase of Byrnes' development is to improve her blocking and increase her hitting percentage.

"Jessica (Byrnes) is a quality player, with the potential to be one of the top middle blockers in the conference and possibly the nation," said Hebert. "She gave us a great season last year, stepping in after Maggie (Freiborg) got hurt, and playing as a consistent attack threat from the middle blocker spot. As part of her development we want her to improve upon her blocking and try to be more effective on the attack from different angles, which would raise her attack percentage. From the work ethic and skill that we have seen out of her in just one year with the program, we are pretty confident she can make the necessary adjustments to become a great middle blocker."

Minnesota will get Athena Mallakis back after she redshirted her 2002 season due to a knee injury. How she returns from her injury may play a big role in how much depth the Golden Gophers will have at the middle blocker position. Mallakis had knee surgery the February before she came to Minnesota and used a redshirt year to get accustomed to the everyday rigors of collegiate volleyball. She is very talented and looking to prove that she can rebound from the injury that cost her the 2002 season.

The Golden Gophers also brought in an extremely talented middle blocker in Meredith Nelson. Nelson spent the summer training and playing as one of only three high school players on the A-2 U.S. National Team. Nelson was ranked No. 10 on prepvolleyball.com "Hot 100" senior players list. She was an AAU and High School All-American in 2002.

"Coming into the season Jessica (Byrnes) is our only middle blocker with big-time college experience," said Hebert. "However we believe that Meredith (Nelson) has the ability to adjust to college volleyball quickly and contribute right away, especially after an experience like playing for the A-2 U.S. National Team. Athena (Mallakis) is a talented player who just needs to get some college experience. This is a very talented group that should only get better with experience."

Libero/Defensive Specialist
Perhaps the biggest impact of the 2002 season came from this group of defensive specialists and liberos. This group was paced by libero Paula Gentil who set a new Minnesota single-season dig record with 574 last season and became the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. However, graduating senior Lisa Axel and junior defensive specialist Lisa Reinhart also had a big hand in a defensive that limited opponents to a .160 hitting percentage on the season.

Gentil made defense the "in-thing" at the Sports Pavilion in 2002, as her acrobatic dives to keep balls alive often brought loud cheers from the Golden Gopher faithful. However, her most important contribution might not have been evident to the casual fan. That contribution was the ball control that she brought to the team that allowed Taatjes an easy transition in her first year as a setter. The libero, a position that was in its first year in college volleyball in 2002, is a position that is not necessarily appreciated. However, Gentil made her mark by becoming the only libero to make any of the AVCA All-American teams. She was also the Region Freshman of the Year and one of three Minnesota first team All-Big Ten selections.

"Paula (Gentil) had an incredible year for us last year," said Hebert. "Defense was a weakness for us in 2001 and our players had done a great job in the spring to make our team better at it. When she came in it was just infectious and we turned into one of the top defensive teams in the nation. We believe that Paula is as good as any libero in the nation and that gives our team a big advantage over others defensively."

Overlooked in the spectacular freshman season of Gentil and the solid senior season of Axel, was the improved play of Reinhart. During the 2002 season, Reinhart appeared in all 38 matches and was one of five Minnesota players to register over 200 digs (244). Marci Peniata joins Gentil and Reinhart to make up an impressive group. Peniata is two-time All-American setter out of Armstrong High School in Plymouth, Minn. Those players could also be joined by Kelly Bowman who will occasionally play at the defensive specialist slot.

"Lisa (Reinhart) had a great 2002 season," said Hebert. "She was one of our most improved players and a big reason why the defense was at such a high level. Marci (Peniata) has great instincts for a player her age. Her defensive instincts are comparable to what Paula's were coming in last year. She will have a good chance to play right away for us."

Schedule
The 2003 schedule will test the Golden Gophers right away with trips to two of last year's Final Four participants tournaments in two of the first three weeks. Minnesota will also take on six other teams that were ranked in the top 25 to end the 2002 season. Minnesota jumps right into the fire to start the season, as it takes on the Wahine of Hawai'i, who advanced to the Final Four last season, in the opening match of its season at the Hawaiian Airlines Tournament on Aug. 29. The Golden Gophers will also take on UCLA, who finished 2002 ranked No. 15, and Louisville in the same tournament. Minnesota returns home to take on a field of Dayton, Kansas and Marquette at the Nike Invitational on Sept. 5-6. The Golden Gophers will then travel to a second 2002 Final Four participant's tournament when they head to Gainesville, Fla. Minnesota will take on Xavier in the first match, and either Florida or Florida A&M in its second match.

The Golden Gophers follow that up with the annual "Border Battle" against Northern Iowa, who finished 2002 ranked No. 9, in Rochester, Minn. on Sept. 17. Minnesota will follow that up by hosting the Diet Coke Classic, which includes a field of Charlotte, Colorado State and UW-Milwaukee.

Minnesota will start Big Ten play at Bloomington, Ind., against Indiana on Friday, Sept. 26. The Golden Gophers first Big Ten home match will take place on Friday, Oct. 3 against Northwestern. Minnesota will travel to Wisconsin on Sunday, Oct. 12, and host the Badgers on Friday, Oct. 31. The Golden Gophers will also travel to Ohio State and Penn State on Oct. 17-18, and finish up the season hosting the same two teams. Minnesota will take the Nittany Lions on Friday, Nov. 28, and the Buckeyes on Saturday, Nov. 29.

"We have put together a very tough schedule this season," said Hebert. "Last year, we hosted a lot of top teams and took the first step towards national recognition by defending our home turf. This year we have the challenge of playing some very tough matches on the road and in neutral sites. Hopefully we can make a positive statement in some of the matches, while at the same time preparing for a tough and grueling Big Ten schedule."

This is a first in Minnesota volleyball history. It is the first season that the Golden Gophers have something to defend going into the year. Minnesota goes into the season as the defending Big Ten champions and is coming off tying its highest final national ranking in school history. The question is where will this opportunity take the hungry and talented Minnesota volleyball program next. Opportunity is knocking at the door for the 2003 Minnesota volleyball team. That opportunity includes the chance to continue where the team left off last year, in their quest to take an already successful volleyball program to the next level. The core of this returning group of players led the way to the program's first Big Ten title in school history, and advanced to the "Sweet Sixteen" in 2002. Those players along with a talented incoming class of freshmen are now presented with the challenge of sustaining their success in conference play, and moving forward even further on the national level.

"We had a very competitive spring season," said head coach Mike Hebert. "We worked on some new things during the offseason, with the emphasis being that we can't just stay the same and expect to do what we did last year. Coming into the season we wanted to put some new wrinkles into our attack, while at the same time emphasizing to our team that things get harder when you are the team that won the conference title the previous year. Winning a conference title is a very difficult thing to do at any level, but an even bigger challenge is to maintain the level of that success."

The 2002 Minnesota volleyball team made history winning the first Big Ten title in school history and claiming a school record (in the NCAA era) with 32 wins. Minnesota started off the 2002 season opening eyes around the nation by advancing to the championship in the State Farm Classic, and kept themselves in the limelight throughout the year spending 13 straight weeks in the top 10 (Sept. 16-Dec. 9). After winning the program's first Big Ten title, Minnesota heads into season looking to continue to raise the level of play and learning to play with a target on their backs each and every match.

"Last year we did not dominate our opponents in conference play, on the way to the conference title, as other great Big Ten teams have done in the past," said Hebert. "We played our game and did an extremely good job of winning the big points at the right time, and that is what helped us succeed. It is important for us to continue to improve as a team. During the offseason we charted some of the statistics for the teams that made it to the Final Four. Those statistics indicated that we were on par with those teams in all but two categories. Those categories included blocking and hitting percentage. One of our main goals heading into the season is to improve in those two categories, while continuing to play to our strengths (the service game and defense)."

Minnesota will be well equipped to continue the success from last year, as it returns nine letterwinners from the 2002 conference championship team, including second team AVCA All-American opposite hitter Cassie Busse and Third Team AVCA All-American libero Paula Gentil. The Golden Gophers also return All-Big Ten setter Lindsey Taatjes (formerly Lindsey Vander Well), along with the outside hitting tandem of Trisha Bratford and Erin Martin. The Golden Gophers also return middle blocker Jessica Byrnes, who was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.

"I like the fact that we return almost the whole group of players that was so successful for us last season," said Hebert. "Last year's team did a great job of not looking too far ahead and worrying about what it would take to succeed on a match-by-match basis. I think if they keep that mentality and continue to improve we will continue to be a very tough team to contend with both on a national level and in conference play this season."

The Golden Gophers return five of its their starters from last season. Minnesota also adds Athena Mallakis, who missed the 2002 season after having knee surgery, back to the mix of players. Add to that a recruiting class that was ranked fourth in the nation and Minnesota looks to have the talent to exceed the high level of success it reached last season.

"Our practices will be extremely competitive," said Hebert. "That should help our team in our match preparation. We have four very good setters to practice with, an experienced group of attackers returning and a very talented young group of middle blockers. All of our freshmen are extremely experienced players for their age who will push for playing time on the court. That should benefit the overall depth and versatility of our team going into the 2003 season."

The five starters returning from last year should give the Golden Gophers a good core to build around this season. Minnesota will also look to rotate more players in and out this year with the added depth of some of the newcomers. The following is Golden Gopher breakdown by position:

Setter
Minnesota heads into the 2003 season with one of the deepest group of quality setters in the nation. The Golden Gophers return Lindsey Taatjes to the team, after a year that saw Taatjes collect All-Big Ten honors and set a Minnesota single-season record for most assists in the season. More importantly, Taatjes continued the long legacy of success by Golden Gophers setters. With last year's All-Big Ten honors, Minnesota has now placed a setter on the Big Ten All-Conference First Team the past four years.

"Taatjes had a great year for us last season," said Hebert. "She was very consistent and steady, and she transferred those characteristics over to the rest of the team last year. Lindsey (Taatjes) did a great all-around job at the setter position for us. She did a tremendous job of setting the stage for attackers to succeed, along with playing very well defensively and contributing on the block."

Taatjes will have a great deal of competition at setter heading into the 2003 season in freshman Kelly Bowman. Just as Taatjes eyed starting at setter in her first year behind three-time All-Big Ten setter Lindsey Berg, so to will the talented Bowman. The credentials that Bowman brings to the table make her a player that Minnesota will look to get on the floor immediately this season. Bowman was ranked the fourth-best high school senior in the nation on the prepvolleyball.com "Hot 100" list. She was named an All-American in 2002 and was the A-2 Junior National MVP for USA Volleyball that same year.

"Kelly (Bowman) is an extraordinarily gifted volleyball player," said Hebert. "She is a complete player who can do anything on the court and has an advanced feel for the game for someone her age. Coming into the season Lindsey (Taatjes) projects as our starting setter. However, Bowman will be on the court a lot and allow us to do different things on offense that will make our team more versatile. Bowman should also continue to excel at the setter's spot as she learns the college game, and will push Lindsey (Taatjes) to get better everyday."

The Golden Gophers will also have the luxury of having two more setters in practice. Marci Peniata, who was one of the top setters in the state of Minnesota out of high school, will provide depth at the setter spot as well as receiving playing time at defensive specialist. Jen Bowman, who transferred from Long Beach State and is the older sister of Kelly Bowman, will sit out the season due to the transfer rule. However, she will be available to practice for Minnesota this season.

Outside Hitter
The 2002 season was a breakthrough year for a trio of Golden Gopher attackers. First and foremost on this list, was Cassie Busse who was named a second team AVCA All-American as a junior. Busse recorded the 10th-highest kill total in school history and the fifth-highest service ace total. She ended the season first in the Big Ten in service aces per game, fifth in kills per game, sixth in hitting percentage and emerged as the Golden Gophers best all-around player during the 2002 season.

"Cassie (Busse) has become our best all-around player," said Hebert. "She contributed in a big way in every aspect the game last season. Cassie (Busse) has improved by leaps and bounds each year she has been in the program, and I have no doubt that she will be one of the best all-around players in the nation her senior season."

Erin Martin and Trisha Bratford also had big breakthrough seasons for Minnesota in 2002. Martin was second on the team with 448 kills, led the team in block solos and was third in the Big Ten in service aces per game. Throughout most of the 2002 season, Martin was the Golden Gophers' second option on the attack to Busse. Bratford struggled at the beginning of the season, but emerged down the stretch for the Golden Gophers. She had 230 kills in her final 16 matches for an average of 4.11 kpg. That stretch started when she hit .421 with 11 kills in a three-game sweep against then No. 8 Penn State (on Oct. 19), and culminated when she pounded out a career-high 26 kills against Georgia Tech in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

"Both Erin (Martin) and Trisha (Bratford) made tremendous strides for us last season," said Hebert. "They provided us with a potent attack from the left-side in 2002, which was one of the reasons we won the conference title last year. This year we will look for them to progress even more on the left side. The main area of this progress entails both players keeping their error totals down so that we can have a more consistently effective attack. If they are able to play more consistently this year our team has a good chance to be even better than last year." Rounding out the attack for Minnesota will be Amanda Cipperly and Erin Lorenzen. Cipperly will provide depth for the Golden Gophers at the outside hitting spot. Last year, Cipperly came off the bench and played a big role for Minnesota, most notably in a five-game victory at Wisconsin in which she tallied eight kills and six digs. Lorenzen will provide depth for the Golden Gophers at the opposite hitter position behind Busse. Lorenzen also played a big role for Minnesota off the bench last year. Her most notable match came when she tallied 11 kills in a four-game victory over No. 19 Santa Clara.

The emergence of a well-rounded attack last year played a big role in the Golden Gopher's march to their first ever Big Ten title. Minnesota was 17-4 on the season when three or more attackers registered double figure kills, and was 9-0 when four or more attackers did so. With everyone from last year's attack returning the Golden Gopher's should continue to improve off a very impressive 2002 campaign.

Middle Blocker
The middle blocker position is the one spot on the court that is a question mark for the Golden Gophers heading into the 2003 season. With Bethany Brafford leaving the program due to personal reasons, Minnesota is thin on experience at middle blocker. What they are not thin on is talent as a mix of one sophomore and two freshman will battle for playing time. Jessica Byrnes is the most proven of the Minnesota middle blockers. Byrnes was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team, and led the Golden Gophers in hitting percentage as a freshman at .323. Byrnes was also third on the team in blocking and third in kills. Part of the next phase of Byrnes' development is to improve her blocking and increase her hitting percentage.

"Jessica (Byrnes) is a quality player, with the potential to be one of the top middle blockers in the conference and possibly the nation," said Hebert. "She gave us a great season last year, stepping in after Maggie (Freiborg) got hurt, and playing as a consistent attack threat from the middle blocker spot. As part of her development we want her to improve upon her blocking and try to be more effective on the attack from different angles, which would raise her attack percentage. From the work ethic and skill that we have seen out of her in just one year with the program, we are pretty confident she can make the necessary adjustments to become a great middle blocker."

Minnesota will get Athena Mallakis back after she redshirted her 2002 season due to a knee injury. How she returns from her injury may play a big role in how much depth the Golden Gophers will have at the middle blocker position. Mallakis had knee surgery the February before she came to Minnesota and used a redshirt year to get accustomed to the everyday rigors of collegiate volleyball. She is very talented and looking to prove that she can rebound from the injury that cost her the 2002 season.

The Golden Gophers also brought in an extremely talented middle blocker in Meredith Nelson. Nelson spent the summer training and playing as one of only three high school players on the A-2 U.S. National Team. Nelson was ranked No. 10 on prepvolleyball.com "Hot 100" senior players list. She was an AAU and High School All-American in 2002.

"Coming into the season Jessica (Byrnes) is our only middle blocker with big-time college experience," said Hebert. "However we believe that Meredith (Nelson) has the ability to adjust to college volleyball quickly and contribute right away, especially after an experience like playing for the A-2 U.S. National Team. Athena (Mallakis) is a talented player who just needs to get some college experience. This is a very talented group that should only get better with experience."

Libero/Defensive Specialist
Perhaps the biggest impact of the 2002 season came from this group of defensive specialists and liberos. This group was paced by libero Paula Gentil who set a new Minnesota single-season dig record with 574 last season and became the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. However, graduating senior Lisa Axel and junior defensive specialist Lisa Reinhart also had a big hand in a defensive that limited opponents to a .160 hitting percentage on the season.

Gentil made defense the "in-thing" at the Sports Pavilion in 2002, as her acrobatic dives to keep balls alive often brought loud cheers from the Golden Gopher faithful. However, her most important contribution might not have been evident to the casual fan. That contribution was the ball control that she brought to the team that allowed Taatjes an easy transition in her first year as a setter. The libero, a position that was in its first year in college volleyball in 2002, is a position that is not necessarily appreciated. However, Gentil made her mark by becoming the only libero to make any of the AVCA All-American teams. She was also the Region Freshman of the Year and one of three Minnesota first team All-Big Ten selections.

"Paula (Gentil) had an incredible year for us last year," said Hebert. "Defense was a weakness for us in 2001 and our players had done a great job in the spring to make our team better at it. When she came in it was just infectious and we turned into one of the top defensive teams in the nation. We believe that Paula is as good as any libero in the nation and that gives our team a big advantage over others defensively."

Overlooked in the spectacular freshman season of Gentil and the solid senior season of Axel, was the improved play of Reinhart. During the 2002 season, Reinhart appeared in all 38 matches and was one of five Minnesota players to register over 200 digs (244). Marci Peniata joins Gentil and Reinhart to make up an impressive group. Peniata is two-time All-American setter out of Armstrong High School in Plymouth, Minn. Those players could also be joined by Kelly Bowman who will occasionally play at the defensive specialist slot.

"Lisa (Reinhart) had a great 2002 season," said Hebert. "She was one of our most improved players and a big reason why the defense was at such a high level. Marci (Peniata) has great instincts for a player her age. Her defensive instincts are comparable to what Paula's were coming in last year. She will have a good chance to play right away for us."

Schedule
The 2003 schedule will test the Golden Gophers right away with trips to two of last year's Final Four participants tournaments in two of the first three weeks. Minnesota will also take on six other teams that were ranked in the top 25 to end the 2002 season. Minnesota jumps right into the fire to start the season, as it takes on the Wahine of Hawai'i, who advanced to the Final Four last season, in the opening match of its season at the Hawaiian Airlines Tournament on Aug. 29. The Golden Gophers will also take on UCLA, who finished 2002 ranked No. 15, and Louisville in the same tournament. Minnesota returns home to take on a field of Dayton, Kansas and Marquette at the Nike Invitational on Sept. 5-6. The Golden Gophers will then travel to a second 2002 Final Four participant's tournament when they head to Gainesville, Fla. Minnesota will take on Xavier in the first match, and either Florida or Florida A&M in its second match.

The Golden Gophers follow that up with the annual "Border Battle" against Northern Iowa, who finished 2002 ranked No. 9, in Rochester, Minn. on Sept. 17. Minnesota will follow that up by hosting the Diet Coke Classic, which includes a field of Charlotte, Colorado State and UW-Milwaukee.

Minnesota will start Big Ten play at Bloomington, Ind., against Indiana on Friday, Sept. 26. The Golden Gophers first Big Ten home match will take place on Friday, Oct. 3 against Northwestern. Minnesota will travel to Wisconsin on Sunday, Oct. 12, and host the Badgers on Friday, Oct. 31. The Golden Gophers will also travel to Ohio State and Penn State on Oct. 17-18, and finish up the season hosting the same two teams. Minnesota will take the Nittany Lions on Friday, Nov. 28, and the Buckeyes on Saturday, Nov. 29.

"We have put together a very tough schedule this season," said Hebert. "Last year, we hosted a lot of top teams and took the first step towards national recognition by defending our home turf. This year we have the challenge of playing some very tough matches on the road and in neutral sites. Hopefully we can make a positive statement in some of the matches, while at the same time preparing for a tough and grueling Big Ten schedule."

This is a first in Minnesota volleyball history. It is the first season that the Golden Gophers have something to defend going into the year. Minnesota goes into the season as the defending Big Ten champions and is coming off tying its highest final national ranking in school history. The question is where will this opportunity take the hungry and talented Minnesota volleyball program next.