The University of Alaska Fairbanks    

Nanooks volleyball begins play in Calif.

by RICHARD LARSON, Staff Writer, Fairbanks Daily News Miner

The University of Alaska Fairbanks volleyball team begins the 2003 season today with matches against Florida Southern and Cal State Los Angeles in the Cal Poly Pomona Invitational in Pomona, Calif.

The Nanooks meet Florida Southern at 7 a.m. (AST) and face Cal State Los Angeles at 2:30. On Saturday, UAF plays Chaminade at 9 a.m. and Cal Poly Pomona at 5 p.m. The Nanooks complete their road trip through California with a 5 p.m. non-tournament game on Monday against Cal State Dominguez Hills.

"This opening weekend is very important to us because we want to get the season off to a good start," UAF coach Phil Shoemaker said in a UAF press release. "It will be difficult because every team in the tournament ended the 2002 season ranked in their region. We would like to come away from the weekend with four or five wins and set the record straight on how UAF fares in the region. A good performance against ranked regional teams will make a difference when the NCAA tournament comes around."

The Nanooks missed a spot in the NCAA tournament despite a 16-7 record partially because of a lack of games against regional competition outside the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

UAF has an all-time record of 10-18 against the teams they will face in the Pomona Invitational. The Nanooks are 0-3 against Florida Southern, 1-4 against Cal State Los Angeles, 8-7 against Chaminade and 1-4 against Cal Poly Pomona.

The Nanooks, who were picked to finish second in the pre-season GNAC coaches poll, return from California to play a pair of exhibition matches on Sept. 5-6. UAF opens conference play on Sept. 12 when defending league champion Western Washington visits the Patty Center in a crucial match. The Nanooks host Seattle Pacific on Sept. 13 and host Alaska Anchorage on Sept. 20.

"Usually we come back to host the Nanook Classic on the second weekend of the season,: Shoemaker said. "However, we don't have a tournament this year and I like the idea of having some time off after getting back from California. That will give us some time to process what we learned from our trip and to get ready for conference play."