The University of Alaska Fairbanks    

Official Site of Nanook Volleyball

Last Update: April 13, 2002

News Releases

April 13, 2002: Nanook Volleyball Team Lands Recruit

Tiffany Verbick, a 6-foot-1 middle hitter who played one year at Victor Valley Community College in Victorville, Calif., will be joining the University of Alaska Fairbanks volleyball team this fall. UAF coach Phil Shoemaker announced that Verbick, who earned first-team all-conference honors this past season, will have three years of eligibility when she arrives in Fairbanks.

"Tiffany is a player I was trying to sign out of high school, but she didn't feel ready to make the move at the time," Shoemaker said in a press release issued by the school. "I'm very pleased she decided to come now."

While playing at Sultana High School two years ago, Verbick was the team captain and Most Valuable Player and earned first-team all-league, all-area and all-region honors. Her team won its league and the CIF Championship.

"She's an aggressive and spirited player who will add a lot to our team's net strengths," Shoemaker said. "She's a very determined individual with high goals and aspirations athletically and academically and this always is a great addition to the team."

Shoemaker is looking to replace seniors - Angel Fairbanks, Tara Hollenbeck, Caitlin Kennedy and Kimber Jones. Verbick is the first recruit to sign with the Nanooks during the spring signing period, which began on Wednesday. Several more recruits are expeced to be announced in the near future.

November 28, 2001: Field Announced For 2002 Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament

The UAF Nanooks have announced the participants for the 2002 Nanook Classic, which will be held Sept 6-8. The three teams coming to Fairbanks are Washington State, Weber State and Southwest Texas. Washington State finished their regular season with a record of 17-11 and are currently playing in the NCAA Division I championship tournament. Weber State, who won the 1997 Nanook Classic, finished this season with a 13-16 record and Southwest Texas had an 11-9 record.

The participants in this year's Nanook Classic had successful seasons. Eastern Illinois, who defeated the Nanooks for the tournament championship, have a 21-8 record and are currently competing in the NCAA Division I championship tournament after winning the Ohio Valley Conference. Maine, who was defeated by the Nanooks, finished with a 17-12 record, which is the best in school history and Leah Voss was named the Conference Player of the Year. Navy, who was also defeated by the Nanooks, finished with an 11-16 record and Ashley Van Hartsvelt was named the co-Rookie of the Year for the Patriot League.

November 13, 2001: Three Nanooks Named To All-Conference Team

Three members of the 2001 UAF Nanook volleyball team were honored by being selected to Great Northwest Athletic Conference teams. Senior Angel Fairbanks was named to the All-Conference First Team. Senior Tara Hollenbeck and Junior Jamie Schanback received Honorable Mention. Fairbanks, who was on the second team last season, led the conference in kills per game with an average of 4.40 a game, and had 409 kills, 38 service aces, 256 digs and 55 blocks on the season. Hollenbeck set a new Nanook career record for blocks with 354, and had 208 kills and 111 blocks on the season. Schanback led the conference in digs per game with an average of 3.75 a game, and had 220 kills, 46 service aces, 334 digs and 24 blocks.

November 12, 2001: Late Season News!!

Angel Fairbanks was selected as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Week for the third time this season following the Nanooks victories over St. Martin's and Central Washington. Fairbanks had 32 kills, seven aces, seven blocks, 22 digs and hit for a .291 percentage during those matches.

Also during the season Angel Fairbanks tied with Louise Free of Northwest Nazarene for the most kills in a match with 28 kills against St. Martin's. Also leading the conference was Carlin Smith who tied with Brianne Halling of UAA for the most blocks in a match with 11 against Western Washington.

The Pacific Regional playoffs get started on November 15th at San Bernardino, Calif. The Great Northwest Athletic Conference will be represented by undefeated champion Western Washington and Seattle Pacific, who tied with UAF and Central Washington for second place. Unfortunately for the Nanooks, Seattle Pacific had two wins over UAF to get the bid. Third seed Western Washington (23-4) will be matched against sixth seed Cal State Los Angeles (19-10). Fifth seed Seattle Pacific (20-7) will be matched against defending national champion and fourth seed Hawaii Pacific (18-4). Getting byes on the first day of the tournament are first seed Cal State San Bernardino (28-2) and second seed UC San Diego (22-6).

November 10, 2001: It Was A Great Evening At The Patty Center!!

The evening began with a very nice ceremony for the four departing seniors (Tara Hollenbeck, Angel Fairbanks, Kimber Jones and Caitlin Kennedy) and got better as the UAF Nanooks (15-8, 12-6) swept a fine Central Washington Wildcats team (16-10, 12-6) by scores of 30-19, 30-23, 31-29. This win left the Nanooks in a three way tie with Seattle Pacific and Central Washington for second place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, behind champion Western Washington. During the match Tara Hollenbeck put down 6 blocks to become the Nanooks career leader in blocks with 354. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (15 kills, 9 digs, 6 aces, 4 blocks), Jamie Schanback (9 kills, 11 digs, 4 aces), Jenny Medl (21 assists, 5 digs, 2 aces), Kimber Jones (14 assists), Tara Hollenbeck (5 kills, 6 blocks), Caitlin Kennedy (9 digs) and Carlin Smith (5 blocks). The Wildcats were led by Tracey Anderson (8 kills, 7 digs), Carolyn Mires (8 kills, 4 digs), Gita Burke (7 kills, 4 blocks), Kate Reome (32 assists, 6 digs) and Katie Orgill (6 kills, 6 digs, 2 blocks).

November 9, 2001: Nanooks Return Home, Notch Win

The UAF Nanooks (14-8, 11-6) returned to the Patty Center for the final two matches of the season and began the weekend with a win over the St. Martin's Saints (8-21, 5-12) by scores of 30-14, 30-28, 28-30, 31-29. The Nanooks started out playing flawlessly in game one, and hit at a .680 rate, to get an easy win but then were unable to regain their sharpness throughout the remainder of the match to make the scores close. The Nanooks still hit at a .308 rate through the final three games to finish the match with a fine .368 hitting percentage. The Nanooks were led by Jamie Schanback (17 kills, .414, 18 digs, 2 aces), Angel Fairbanks (17 kills, 13 digs, 3 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (14 kills, .520, 12 digs, 2 blocks), Tara Hollenbeck (11 kills, .333, 3 blocks), Jenny Medl (36 assists, 7 digs), Kimber Jones (31 assists, 8 digs), Candice Smith (9 kills, .316, 3 blocks) and Carlin Smith (5 kills, .417, 4 blocks). The Saints were led by Emily Wofford (11 kills, 2 blocks), Charlotte Scofield (9 digs), Katie Zukowski (36 assists, 6 digs).

November 7, 2001: Five Nanooks Named To Academic All-Conference Team

Five members of the UAF Nanook volleyball team were named to the Great Northwest Athletic Academic All-Conference team. Leading the group is Jamie Schanback (Hispanic Studies, Jr., 3.87 GPA, Poway, CA). Also named were: Caitlin Kennedy (Education, Sr., 3.65 GPA, Yakima, WA); Candice Smith (Art History, So., 3.55 GPA, Mt. Lehman, B.C.); Tara Hollenbeck (Education, Sr., 3.48 GPA, North Pole, AK); and Kimber Jones (Biology, Sr., 3.27 GPA, Bend, OR). To be eligible for the academic team, student-athletes must have a minimum grade point average of 3.20 and be in their second year of competition at their university.

November 3, 2001: Nanooks Lose To League Champion Western Washington

The UAF Nanooks (13-8, 10-6) were defeated by the Western Washington Vikings (22-4, 17-0) by scores of 24-30, 30-27, 30-22, 22-30, 8-15. After losing the first game the Nanooks came back strong to win games two and three. Game four was close until the mid-way point when events went against the Nanooks and they were not able to recover, resulting in the loss. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (22 kills, 11 digs, 2 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (13 kills, 13 digs, 3 blocks, 3 aces, 3 assists), Jamie Schanback (12 kills, 18 digs, 4 blocks, 2 aces, 2 assists), Jenny Medl (26 assists, 13 digs), Kimber Jones (24 assists, 20 digs), Caitlin Kennedy (11 digs), Candice Smith (8 kills, 2 blocks), Carlin Smith (6 kills, 4 blocks) and Tara Hollenbeck (9 blocks). The Vikings were led by Shannon Rowland (18 kills, 14 digs, 2 blocks, 7 aces), Annamarie Thornton (18 kills, 11 digs, 4 aces), Rachelle Cooper (11 kills, 10 digs, 2 blocks, 4 assists), and Liz Bishop (9 kills, 47 assists, 14 digs, 2 blocks, 2 aces). Attendance: 418.

November 2, 2001: Nanooks Lose To Seattle Pacific

The UAF Nanooks (13-7, 10-5) flew to Seattle for a key match with the Seattle Pacific Falcons (11-5, 18-6) and were defeated by scores of 24-30, 16-30, 30-19, 25-30. This loss ended any hope that the Nanooks had of getting into the NCAA Regionals this season. The Nanooks did not play well in the first two games but came out in game three and played very well to get the win and avoid being swept. Game four was a tough game but the Nanooks committed too many hitting errors to stay with the Falcons. The Nanooks were led by Mallory Bergstrom (12 kills, .440, 10 digs, 2 assists), Angel Fairbanks (14 kills, 7 digs, 2 aces), Jenny Medl (21 assists, 11 digs), Kimber Jones (19 assists, 6 digs), Jamie Schanback (6 kills, 19 digs), Tara Hollenbeck (8 kills), Carlin Smith (5 blocks) and Candice Smith (4 blocks). The Falcons were led by Monica Abrahamson (12 kills, 15 digs, 4 blocks), Leah Wiiest (12 kills, 12 digs), Cathleen Price (11 kills, 8 digs, 5 blocks), Carri Colvin (11 kills, 13 digs) and Katy Higgins (49 assists, 9 digs, 3 blocks). Attendance: 200.

October 28, 2001: Nanook Record Book

As the 2001 season winds down some thought is being given to individual records. Four current players figure prominently in the top ten of several career and season record categories with at least 4 more matches to go. In addition, there are a couple of other players who are close to breaking into the top ten.

Tara Hemphill is currently 2nd in career blocks with 335 and needs just 15 more to move into 1st. Hemphill is also in 5th place for career kills with 804 and in 5th place for season blocks with 92. She is also 3rd in season blocks with 100 in her 2000 season and 10th with 76 in her 1998 season. She is also currently in 4th place for career hitting percentage with .231 and is 5th and 8th in season hitting percentage with .256 and .244 in 2000 and 1998.

Jenny Medl is currently 6th in career assists with 817, 9th in season assists with 776 and 10th in career service aces with 99 and is 8th in season service aces with 51 in 2000.

Angel Fairbanks is currently 9th in career kills with 660 and 9th in season kills with 341.

Kimber Jones is currently 4th in career assists with 1,021 and is also 7th in season assists with 953 in 2000.

October 27, 2001: Nanooks Complete Weekend With Another Sweep

The UAF Nanooks (13-6, 10-4) swept the Humboldt State Lumberjacks (6-18, 2-12) by scores of 30-24, 30-22, 30-27 to maintain their 2nd place position in the conference behind Western Washington. The Nanooks combined good serving (10 aces), a fine blocking game (13 blocks) with good setting and hitting performances from Kimber Jones, Jenny Medl, Carlin Smith, Mallory Bergstrom, Tara Hollenbeck and Angel Fairbanks to control the match throughout the contest. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (12 kills, 11 digs, 3 blocks, 4 aces), Tara Hollenbeck (8 kills, .333, 6 blocks), Carlin Smith (7 kills, .583, 7 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (7 kills, .375), Kimber Jones (16 assists), Jenny Medl (14 assists, 7 digs, 2 aces), Jamie Schanback (6 kills, 14 digs, 3 blocks) and Candice Smith (4 blocks). The Lumberjacks were led by Joella Schiepan (8 kills), Hanna Mounce (24 assists, 2 aces) and Rachel Halverson (12 digs, 3 blocks). Attendance: 169.

October 26, 2001: Nanooks Defeat Western Oregon

The UAF Nanooks (12-6, 9-4) swept the Western Oregon University Wolves (10-11, 6-7) by scores of 30-27, 30-27, 30-26 to stay in 2nd place in conference play. The Nanooks began the evening with a fine win in game one, then slacked off in game two before pulling out the victory. Game three started out with the Nanooks taking a substantial lead but then got stalled on match point allowing the Wolves to make the final score close. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (15 kills, 10 digs), Tara Hollenbeck (8 kills, 2 blocks), Carlin Smith (8 kills), Mallory Berstrom (7 kills, 17 digs), Kimber Jones (19 assists, 13 digs), Jenny Medl (21 assists, 5 digs), Candice Smith (5 kills, 4 assists) and Jamie Schanback (19 assists). The Wolves were led by Megan Korne (11 kills, 6 digs, 3 aces) and Tara Wilson (32 assists, 9 digs). Attendance: 208.

October 20, 2001: Nanooks Defeat Northwest Nazarene

The UAF Nanooks (11-6, 8-4) defeated the Northwest Nazarene Crusaders (11-8, 4-5) by scores of 30-14, 30-18, 26-30, 30-21. The Nanooks played wonderfully in games one and two as they ran off a pair of quick wins. In game three the Nanooks and the Crusaders battled for the lead when, with the score tied at 12-12, the Crusaders went on a run that gave them a 21-14 lead. The Nanooks battled back but fell short of scoring a sweep. In game four the Nanooks got tuff and despite several errors the Nanooks were able to overpower the Crusaders to win the match. This weekend's wins put the Nanooks back into a tie with UAA for second place in the conference. The Nanooks were led by Jamie Schanback (17 kills, 15 digs, 2 aces), Angel Fairbanks (15 kills, 8 digs, 3 blocks), Candice Smith (10 kills, .400, 4 blocks, 2 assists), Tara Hollenbeck (6 kills, 6 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (6 kills, 14 digs, 3 blocks, 3 assists), Jenny Medl (27 assists, 12 digs) and Kimber Jones (16 assists, 10 digs). The Crusaders were led by Erin Hellberg (8 kills, 13 digs, 3 blocks), Louise Free (7 kills, 6 digs, 2 blocks), Mindy Swanson (26 assists, 7 digs, 2 blocks) and Laryssa Mereszczak (10 digs). Attendance: 166.

October 19, 2001: Nanooks Rebound With Sweep Of Seattle

The UAF Nanooks (10-6, 7-4) played an extremely good match in sweeping the Seattle University Redhawks (8-14, 3-10) by scores of 30-22, 30-13, 30-23. The Nanooks played a well rounded match combining fine serving, which kept the Redhawks off balance all evening, with a stingy defense that blocked 11 Redhawk hit attempts and dug up most of the remaining attempts allowing only 22 Redhawk kills in the match. The Nanooks held the Redhawks to a -.076 hitting percentage while Tara Hollenbeck's .778 hitting led the Nanooks to a .219 hitting percentage. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (14 kills, 11 digs, 2 aces), Tara Hollenbeck (7 kills, .778, 4 blocks), Jamie Schanback (7 kills, 10 digs), Candice Smith (4 kills, .444, 5 blocks), Kimber Jones (13 assists, 10 digs, 2 aces) and Jenny Medl (14 assists). The Redhawks were led by Nicki Wolfert (7 kills, 5 digs), Nicole Taylor (6 kills, 2 blocks), Cassey Hussey (14 assists) and Lauren Jones (11 digs). Attendance: 149.

October 15, 2001: Nanooks Swept By Seawolves

The UAF Nanooks (9-6, 6-4) travelled to Anchorage and ran into a buzz saw as the UAA Seawolves (13-7, 6-4) swept the Nanooks by scores of 26-30, 25-30, 22-30. The Seawolves played very well throughout the match as the Nanooks were not able to stop the UAA hitting attack. The Seawolves hit .274 for the match and had four players hit better than .400 in the match. The Nanooks were led by Candice Smith (12 kills, .455, 3 digs, 2 blocks), Angel Fairbanks (12 kills, 6 digs, 2 blocks), Jamie Schanback (5 kills, 12 digs, 3 aces, 2 assists), Carlin Smith (5 kills, 2 assists, 2 blocks), Tara Hollenbeck (4 kills, 5 blocks) and Jenny Medl (32 assists, 9 digs), The Seawolves were led by Carolyn DeKay (12 kills, .476), Marise Knock (10 kills, .444, 9 digs, 3 aces), Janelle Veith (41 assists, 6 digs), Brianne Halling (8 kills, .412, 5 blocks), Jenny Mitchell (4 kills, .500, 3 blocks) and Kasey Kuelper (4 aces, 11 digs). Attendance: 796.

October 11, 2001: Nanooks Suffer Loss To Seawolves

The UAF Nanooks (9-5, 6-3) lost a tough match to the UAA Seawolves (12-7, 5-4) by scores of 30-24, 30-27, 22-30, 28-30, 13-15. The Nanooks got off to a great start by convincingly winning the first two games of the match. In game three the Nanooks began making errors that allowed the Seawolves back into the match. In the last two games the Nanooks fell behind, and then staged comebacks that fell just short, giving the Seawolves the victory. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (25 kills, 11 digs, 2 aces), Jamie Schanback (17 kills, 19 digs, 5 aces), Mallory Bergstrom (11 kills, 15 digs, 3 blocks), Jenny Medl (58 assists, 9 digs), Kimber Jones (15 digs), Carlin Smith (6 kills, 6 blocks) and Tara Hollenbeck (5 kills, 5 blocks). The Seawolves were led by Brianne Halling (14 kills, 5 blocks), Marise Knock (13 kills, 9 digs, 5 blocks), Janelle Veith (48 assists, 10 digs, 2 blocks) Michelle Garvin (7 kills, 20 digs, 3 aces, 2 blocks) and Kasey Kuelper (10 digs). Attendance: 383.

October 8, 2001: Nanooks Continue To Win On The Road

The UAF Nanooks (9-4, 6-2) pulled out another 5 game match by defeating the Seattle University Redhawks (8-10, 3-7) by scores of 30-15, 29-31, 30-27, 22-30, 18-16 to complete a three match road trip with three wins. These wins moved the Nanooks into second place in the conference, ahead of Seattle Pacific and Western Oregon, both of whom are 6-3 in conference play. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (25 kills, 14 digs, 4 aces, 2 blocks), Jamie Schanback (17 kills, 18 digs, 2 aces), Mallory Bergstrom (13 kills, 11 digs, 6 assists, 6 blocks), Jenny Medl (50 assists, 15 digs), Caitlin Kennedy (13 digs, 3 aces) and Kimber Jones (13 digs). The Redhawks were led by Nicole Taylor (19 kills, 2 blocks), Megan Kaysinger (12 kills, 2 blocks), Lizzy Safranski (11 kills, 18 digs, 4 blocks), Nicki Wolfert (10 kills, 16 digs, 3 blocks) and Cassey Hussey (37 assists, 12 digs). Attendance: 75.

October 8, 2001: Angel Fairbanks Named Conference Co-Player of the Week

Angel Fairbanks was selected as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference co-player of the week for the second time this season. In leading the Nanooks to a pair of road victories, Fairbanks had 48 kills, 24 digs and 5 blocks, including a conference high 28 kills against St. Martin's.

It has also been announced that the Nanooks are currently 17th in the nation in blocks with 2.86 per game. In addition to Fairbanks' conference high in kills, Carlin Smith also is tied with Anchorage's Brianne Halling for the lead in blocks in a match with 11.

October 6, 2001: Nanooks Stage Yet Another Comeback

The UAF Nanooks (8-4, 5-2) moved into second place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference after staging another wild comeback to defeat the St. Martin's Saints (5-16, 2-7) by scores of 26-30, 26-30, 30-26, 30-18, 16-14. In a replay of last night's match the Nanooks once again got behind two games to none but were able to regroup at the intermission to win the final three games and the match. Once again hitting was the key as the Nanooks were out hit in the first two games by a margin of .286 to .108, while in the final three games of the match the Nanooks hit at a .275 percentage while holding the Saints to a .148 hitting percentage. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (28 kills, 16 digs, 3 blocks), Jamie Schanback (17 kills, 20 digs, 2 aces), Mallory Bergstrom (11 kills, .579, 6 digs, 4 blocks), Jenny Medl (62 assists, 11 digs, 4 blocks, 2 aces), Tara Hollenbeck (9 kills, 7 blocks, 2 aces), Carlin Smith (6 kills, 3 blocks) and Caitlin Kennedy (13 digs). The Saints were led by Alicia Denny (22 kills, 12 digs, 5 blocks), Missy Evans (13 kills, 7 digs), Emily Wofford (10 kills, 10 blocks) and Katie Zukowski (50 assists, 6 digs, 2 blocks). Attendance: 128.

October 5, 2001: Nanooks Stage Comeback

The UAF Nanooks (7-4, 4-2) took over third place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference by defeating the Central Washington Wildcats (9-7, 5-3) by scores of 25-30, 15-30, 30-21, 30-26, 15-13. The Wildcats hit very well in the first and second games and recorded a fine .372 hitting percentage, to the Nanooks respectable .200, while going up two games to none. After the intermission the hitting cooled off and the Nanooks took over. In winning the final three games, and the match, the Nanooks hit .191 percent while holding the Wildcats to .088. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (20 kills, 8 digs, 2 blocks), Tara Hollenbeck (17 kills, .382, 4 blocks), Jenny Medl (43 assists, 2 aces, 10 digs), Jamie Schanback (14 digs, 6 aces), Candice Smith (8 kills, .412, 7 blocks), Carlin Smith (8 kills, .538, 6 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (6 kills, .545, 5 digs) and Caitlin Kennedy (13 digs). The Wildcats were led by Carolyn Mires (17 kills, 10 digs, 5 aces), Katie Orgill (15 kills, .316, 17 digs, 3 aces), Kate Reome (53 assists, 19 digs, 3 blocks), Tess Weigel (12 kills, .348, 12 digs, 2 blocks) and Cerena Laurance (10 kills). Attendance: 200.

September 29, 2001: Nanooks Drop Match

The UAF Nanooks (6-4, 3-2) were defeated by the Seattle Pacific University Falcons (12-3, 5-2) by scores of 32-30, 25-30, 25-30, 15-30. It was a tough weekend for the Nanooks, who have been fighting illnesses since returning from their last road trip, as they lost two key conference matches. The Nanooks played well in the first game to notch the win but then were unable to stay with the Falcons. The biggest problem for the Nanooks was their serve receiving as they committed twice their normal number of serve receive errors (13) and were not able to run their offense effectively as they were kept off-balance by a combination of tuff Falcon serving and poor Nanook receiving. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (15 kills, 13 digs), Tara Hollenbeck, who moved into 6th on the Nanook career kills lists with 737 (14 kills, 7 digs), Mallory Bergstrom (12 kills, 9 digs, 2 blocks), Jenny Medl (47 assists, 7 digs), Carlin Smith (5 kills, 4 blocks) and Candice Smith (5 kills, 3 blocks). The Falcons were led by Cathleen Price (17 kills, 15 digs, 5 blocks, 2 aces), Leah Wiiest (12 kills, 13 digs, 4 blocks), Monica Abrahamson (11 kills, 14 digs, 3 aces, 2 blocks), Katy Higgins (46 assists) and Carri Colvin (9 kills, 15 digs, 5 assists). Attendance: 329.

September 28, 2001: Nanooks Lose Heartbreaker

The UAF Nanooks (6-3, 3-1) lost a heartbreaker to the Western Washington Vikings (11-3, 5-0) by scores of 30-26, 30-23, 33-35, 20-30, 11-15. The Nanooks seemed unbeatable in the first two games as they dominated every aspect of the games and appeared on their way to a sweep. After the intermission, though, the Vikings came out in game three and took an early lead. The Nanooks were able to stage a rally and finally get into the lead at 20-19. The Nanooks and Vikings played sideout ball from that point on as the game went far into extra points with the Vikings finally pulling out the 35-33 victory. The Nanooks seemed to run out of gas in game four but came back strong in the fifth game until, with the game tied 8-8, the Vikings got a run of four points to take a 12-8 lead, after which they exchanged points with the Nanooks until they gained the victory. On the bright side, Tara Hollenbeck moved past Jenny Kirst, into second, on the Nanooks' career blocks list with a total of 288 blocks. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (19 kills, 3 aces, 15 digs, 8 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (15 kills, 17 digs), Jeny Medl (45 assists, 2 aces, 25 digs, 4 blocks), Tara Hollenbeck (8 kills, 14 digs, 6 blocks), Candice Smith (8 kills, 3 blocks) and Carlin Smith (6 kills, 11 blocks). The Vikings were led by Shannon Rowland (17 kills, 21 digs, 3 blocks), Rachelle Cooper (16 kills, 7 digs), Liz Bishop (65 assists, 21 digs), Kirsten Mann (15 kills, 3 blocks), Meghan Evoy (12 kills) and Annamarie Thornton (11 kills, 14 digs). Attendance: 676.

September 24, 2001: UAF Nanooks Finish Long Road Trip With Win

The UAF Nanooks (6-2, 3-0) finished a very long road trip with a win over the Northwest Nazarene Crusaders (6-5, 2-4) by scores of 30-28, 30-25, 28-30, 30-26. Game one was very tight and tied at 27-27 before Tara Hollenbeck and Angel Fairbanks put the game away for the Nanooks. The Crusaders led all of game two and had a 19-13 lead until the Nanooks staged a comeback and tied the game at 24-24 and then cruised to the win. The third game was close throughout and was tied at 26-26 and 28-28 when the Crusaders scored the final two points to deprive the Nanooks of a sweep. In game four the Nanooks took a commanding 27-18 lead and then played sideout ball to notch the win. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (25 kills, 12 digs), Jamie Schanback (15 kills, 17 digs), Jenny Medl (57 assists) and Kimber Jones (14 digs). The Nanooks now have three very important conference wins on the road and return to the Patty Center this Friday and Saturday nights for matches against conference powers Western Washington and Seattle Pacific.

September 22, 2001: Nanooks Continue Road Trip With Another Win

The UAF Nanooks (5-2, 2-0) remained undefeated on the road by scoring a victory over Western Oregon University (6-6, 3-2) by scores of 30-27, 24-30, 21-30, 30-27, 15-13. Tara Hollenbeck led the Nanooks with 15 kills, .321 hitting percentage, 12 digs, 5 blocks and 4 aces. Angel Fairbanks had 18 kills and 17 digs, Jamie Schanback had 10 kills and 20 digs, Candice Smith had 6 kills, 4 blocks and Carlin Smith added 7 blocks in the winning effort.

September 20, 2001: Nanooks Win First Great Northwest Athletic Conference Match

The UAF Nanooks (4-2, 1-0) defeated the Humboldt State Lumberjacks (3-10) by scores of 30-23, 28-30, 30-26, 30-28 after a grueling trip to Arcata, Calif. The Nanooks spent Wednesday night in Seattle, then arrived at Seattle Tacoma International Airport at 4:00am for what they thought would be an easy trip to Arcata. However, after a quick stop in Portland, Ore their flight was diverted to Medford, Ore due to fog in Arcata. In Medford they had to rent a van to complete the trip, which wound up being a 5 1/2 hour drive. The Nanooks arrived in Arcata at 9:00pm, got practically no pre-game practice, hadn't eaten since noon and began play at 9:45pm. After nearly 2 hrs of play the Nanooks left the court with a victory and a chance to get some rest before traveling back north to play Western Oregon (Monmouth, Ore.) on Saturday at 7:00pm. The Nanooks continued their tough serving game - scoring 12 aces (4 by Caitlin Kennedy). Jenny Medl dished out 47 assists, mostly to Angel Fairbanks (22 kills), Carlin Smith (12 kills and a .524 hitting percentage) and Jamie Schanback (11 kills). Medl and Schanback each had 16 digs and Tara Hollenbeck had 9 blocks as well.

September 15, 2001: Schedule Change

Due to the terrorist attacks of September 11th, the matches against Northwest Nazarene and Seattle were postponed. The match against Northwest Nazarene will now be held on September 24th. This roadtrip will be a tour of the Pacific Northwest as the Nanooks will play Humboldt St in Arcata, CA on the 20th, then will play Western Oregon in Monmouth, OR on the 22nd before moving on to play Northwest Nazaren in Nampa, ID on the 24th. The match against Seattle University has not yet been rescheduled.

September 12, 2001: Matches Postponed

Due to the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, DC the matches that were scheduled for September 13th and 15th against Northwest Nazarene and Seattle have been postponed by the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. No date has yet been set for the rematches.

September 11, 2001: Angel Fairbanks Named Conference Co-Player of the Week

After being selected to the Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament all-tournament team, the Nanook's Angel Fairbanks was named as a co-player of the week for the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. Fairbanks had 52 kills, 30 digs and 5 blocks while leading the Nanooks to a 2-1 record, against Division I teams, over the weekend.

September 9, 2001: All-Tournament Team

Eastern Illinois' Leslie Przekwas was selected as the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Przekwas was a dominating force in the front row as she had 31 kills, with just 8 errors, while hitting at a .411 percentage for the tournament and also gathering a tournament high 16 blocks. Eastern Illinois' Erica Gerth joined her teammate on the all-tournament team after finishing the tournament with 36 kills, a .321 hitting percentage and 27 digs. Maine player, Carmen Gabriel, was also placed on the all-tournament team after having a 29 kill, 24 dig and 13 block performance. Navy was represented on the all-tournament team by Jessica Van Norman, who finished with 18 kills, 72 assists, 21 digs and 4 blocks.

The Nanooks placed three players on the all-tournament team. Jenny Medl had a tournament high 135 assists along with 5 aces, 27 digs and 5 blocks to earn her spot. Angel Fairbanks was selected after hitting a tournament high 52 kills along with 30 digs and 5 blocks. Rounding out the all-tournament team is Jamie Schanback, who finished with 28 kills, 34 digs and 4 blocks.

September 9, 2001: Eastern Illinois Wins Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament

The UAF Nanooks (3-2) put up a tough fight but fell short as the Eastern Illinois Panthers (4-2) defeated the Nanooks by scores of 24-30, 30-28, 19-30, 28-30 to finish as the champions of the Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament. It was a very evenly played match with the biggest difference being that the Panthers were able to generate a slightly more effective offense as a result of a better passing game. This allowed the Panther setter to dish out sets more effectively than the Nanook setter, Jenny Medl, who had to frequently scramble around the court to get to the ball. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (21 kills, 10 digs, l 2 blocks), Jenny Medl (52 assists, 3 aces, 5 digs, 2 blocks), Carlin Smith (9 kills, 2 blocks), Tara Hollenbeck (9 kills, 5 blocks) and Jamie Schanback (7 kills, 14 digs). The Panthers were led by Erica Gerth (17 kills, 6 digs), Karen Liss (14 kills, 8 digs, 2 blocks), Lindsay Perkins (47 assists, 6 digs), Leslie Przekwas (8 kills, 2 aces, 5 blocks), Marcia Hahn (6 kills, 7 digs, 2 blocks) and Carrie Stevens (6 kills, 2 aces, 14 digs, 3 blocks). Attendance: 557.

In the first match of the evening the Maine Black Bears (2-4) overpowered the Naval Academy Midshipmen (2-5) to finish the tournament in third place. The Black Bears won the match by scores of 30-26, 28-30, 20-25, 20-23. The Black Bears were led by Leah Voss (19 kills, 3 aces, 18 digs), Cheryl Elliot (49 assists, 5 aces, 7 digs, 4 blocks), Carmen Gabriel (12 kills, 8 digs, 6 blocks) and Claire Poliquin (12 kills, 7 blocks).

September 8, 2001: UAF Nanooks, Eastern Illinois Panthers Continue Winning Way

The UAF Nanooks (3-1) dominated the Midshipmen of the Naval Academy (2-4) by scores of 30-18, 30-20, 30-25 to win their second match of the Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament. The Nanook serving game was, in large part, responsible for the win as the Midshipmen were kept off balance throughout the entire match. The Nanooks will play against the Eastern Illinois Panthers Sunday evening at 8pm for the championship. The Nanooks were led by Jamie Schanback (12 kills, 9 digs, 2 saves), Angel Fairbanks (12 kills, 8 digs), Jenny Medl (40 assists, 11 dives) and Tara Hollenbeck (8 kills, 6 digs). The Midshipman were led by Jessica Van Norman (7 kills, 17 assists 4 digs), Erica McElroy (6 kills, 12 digs) and Christina Knutsen (4 kills, 12 digs). Attendance: 549.

In the first match of the evening the Eastern Illinois Panthers (3-2) defeated Maine Black Bears (1-4) by scores of 30-15, 30-29, 33-31) to set up Sunday night's championship match with the UAF Nanooks. Throughout the evening the Black Bears were able to take large leads but the Panthers were to rally each time in order to take the match. The Panthers were led by Leslie Przekwas (12 kills, 4 blocks), Erica Gerth (10 kills, 7 digs), Karen Liss (8 kills, 12 digs, 3 blocks) and Lindsey Perkins (28 assists). The Black Bears were led by Leah Voss (33 assists, 10 kills), 2 aces and 2 blocks.)

September 7, 2001: UAF Nanooks, Eastern Illinois Panthers Win in Nanook Classic Tournament

The UAF Nanooks (2-1) defeated the Maine Black Bears (2-2) in a five game match by scores of 30-28, 30-13, 25-30, 17-30, 15-12 in the second game of the Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament. The Nanooks rallied for the 30-28 victory in the first game, after falling behind early, but in the second game they walked away with a 30-13 win after the Black Bears seemed to just fall apart as the Nanooks hit at a very respectable .375 while the Black Bears had a poor -.258 hitting percentage. After the intermission the Black Bears played much better and the Nanooks had a rough time getting any momentum going as they again fell far behind and their late rally came up short resulting in a 25-30 loss. In the fourth game it looked like the Nanooks had run out of energy as they hit a poor -.167 while the Black Bears picked it up and had a good .269 hitting percentage as they took the 15-30 win. In the final game of the match the Nanooks took a respectable lead early on but the Black Bears regrouped to make it close as the Nanooks took the match with a 15-12 victory. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (19 kills, 12 digs, 2 blocks), Tara Hollebeck (10 kills, 5 digs), Jenny Medl (43 assists, 11 digs, 2 blocks), Jamie Schanback (9 kills, 11 digs), Mallory Bergstrom (11 digs, 2 blocks) and Candice Smith (4 blocks). The Black Bears were led by Adrienne Poplawski (12 kills, 9 digs, 2 blocks), Leah Voss (11 kills, 2 aces, 11 digs, 3 blocks), Carmen Gabriel (10 kills, 5 digs, 4 blocks), Cheryl Elliot (41 assists, 3 aces, 5 digs) and Marina Ivankovic (8 kills, 13 digs, 7 blocks). Attendance: 504.

In the first game of the evening the Eastern Illinois Panthers (2-2) defeated the Naval Academy Midshipmen (2-3) by scores of 30-15, 30-22, 30-22. In the first two games the Midshipmen took substantial leads early in the game only to see the Panthers rally to take the wins. In the third game the Panthers never trailed as they took an 18-11 lead and then played side-out ball to take the 30-22 win. The Panthers were led by Leslie Przekwas (11 kills, 4 digs, 7 blocks), Erica Gerth (9 kills, 14 digs), Karen Liss (9 kills, 6 digs), Carrie Stevens (5 kills, 2 aces, 6 digs, 5 blocks), Lindsey Perkins (20 assists) and Rebecca Ooyen (17 assists). The Midshipmen were led by Christina Knutsen (6 kills, 5 digs, 2 blocks), Erica McElroy (5 kills, 12 digs, 4 blocks), Kristin Davidson (5 kills, 5 blocks) and Jessica VanNorman (20 assists, 2 blocks).

September 1, 2001: UAF Nanooks Defeat Nanook Alumni

In their last tune-up prior to hosting next weekend's Nanook Classic Volleyball Tournament the UAF Nanooks (1-1) defeated the UAF Alumni in an exhibition match by scores of 30-20, 30-22, 30-17. The Nanooks used the match to try a variety of lineups and to rest some players with minor, early season injuries. The Nanooks were led by Tara Hollenbeck (9 kills, 4 aces), Mallory Bergstrom (6 kills, 4 digs), Jenny Medl (21 assists, 2 aces, 2 digs), Carlin Smith (5 kills, 5 blocks), Victoria Kilgore (12 assists, 4 digs), Tina Peterson (4 kills, 2 aces, 3 digs), Candice Smith (4 kills, 3 blocks) and Michelle Hanson (2 kills, 4 digs). The Alumni were led by Monica 'Bundshuh' Taylor (5 kills, 4 digs), Tanya 'Piatanova' Lott (4 kills, 2 blocks), Felicia DeHeus (7 assists, 2 digs), Patty 'Zanazzo' Linnell (2 kills, 5 digs), Ruth 'Peterson' Pomeroy (3 kills, 3 digs) and Sovanny 'Kon' Ebbesen (5 digs). Attendance: 143.

August 28, 2001: Nanooks Can't Overcome Errors

The UAF Nanooks (1-1) were defeated by the Cal State Stanislaus Warriors (2-2) by scores of 28-30, 21-30, 30-28, 26-30 in an error plagued match. The Nanook defensive play kept them in the match with a whopping 94 digs and 16 blocks but the offense faultered as the Nanooks committed 50 hitting, 15 serving and 12 serve receive errors while having a low 0.000 hitting percentage. The Warriors also struggled through an evening of poor hitting as they hit a -0.012 percent but their defense also played well getting 77 digs and 14 blocks, while their tough serving kept the Nanooks from getting good passes to the setter time and time again. On the bright side, Tara Hollenbeck put away 20 kills to give her 654 for her career which puts into 9th place on the Nanook career kills list. The Nanooks were led by Tara Hollenbeck (20 kills, 6 digs, 4 blocks), Jenny Medl (40 assists, 20 digs, 3 blocks), Angel Fairbanks (12 kills, 9 digs, 3 blocks), Jamie Schanback (8 kills, 21 digs, 2 aces, 2 blocks), Candice Smith (4 kills, 4 digs, 7 blocks), Caitlin Kennedy (11 digs) and Michelle Hanson (10 digs). The Warriors were led by Jackie Coudert (13 kills, 12 digs, 3 aces, 3 blocks), Tara Hillis (21 assists, 9 digs, 2 blocks), Angie Iwansky (16 digs, 3 aces, 2 blocks), Sarah Barnett (5 kills, 15 digs, 3 aces, 4 blocks) and Stacie Reyes (4 kills, 11 digs, 8 blocks). Attendance: 175.

August 27, 2001: Nanooks Win First Regular Season Match

The UAF Nanooks (1-0) got off to an erratic start but came away with a win over the Cal State Stanislaus Warriors (1-2) by scores of 30-25, 25-30, 31-29, 30-23. The Nanooks displayed some typical first match jitters as they mixed periods of brilliant play with stretches of sloppy play but never caved in as they combined a tough serving game with solid defense to notch the victory. The Nanooks were led by Angel Fairbanks (12 kills, 18 digs, 2 aces, 2 blocks), Jenny Medl (43 aassists, 11 digs, 2 aces), Jamie Schanback (11 kills, 13 digs, 3 aces, 5 blocks), Tara Hollenbeck (10 kills, 7 digs, 3 blocks), Mallory Bergstrom (7 kills, 9 digs, 2 blocks) and Candice Smith (4 kills, 6 blocks). The Warriors were led by Jackie Coudert (10 kills, 12 digs, 3 blocks), Tara Hillis (23 assists, 10 digs, 2 aces, 4 blocks), Sarah Barnett (7 kills, 16 digs), Angie Iwansky (5 kills, 11 digs, 3 blocks) and Alicia Devin (4 kills, 8 blocks).

August 25, 2001: Nanooks Begin Season With Win

The UAF Nanooks began their 2001 season with a four game exhibition win over the Fairbanks Flyers (a team made up of recent collegiate players). The Nanooks won the match by scores of 32-34, 30-24, 30-19, 30-25. The match had a very new appearance as this year the NCAA has switched to rally point scoring, to 30 points, for the first four games. The fifth game remains a rally point game to 15. Adding to the new appearance is the addition of six new players to the eight who return from last season. This group of athletes just might be the most talented volleyball team in UAF history and will challenge for the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship. The Nanooks were led by Tara (Hemphill) Hollenbeck (10 kills, 4 digs, 4 blocks), Jenny Medl (22 assists, 3 kills, 2 digs), Mallory Bergstrom (8 kills), Jamie Schanback (6 kills, 2 aces, 2 digs) and Candice Smith (4 kills, 2 digs, 8 blocks). The Flyers were led by UAF assistant coach Bev Krupa (15 kills, 2 assists, 3 aces, 2 digs, 2 blocks), Jennie Olson (7 kills, 2 aces), Sabrina English (5 kills, 2 assists, 3 digs), Jenny Kirst (4 kills, 5 assists, 5 blocks) and Carrie Belden (4 kills, 5 assists, 3 digs, 5 blocks).

August 22, 2001: Krupa Named As Assistant Coach

Former West Valley High School and Purdue University standout, Bev Krupa, has been selected as the new assistant volleyball coach. Krupa graduated from West Valley in 1995 after being selected as an all-state athlete in five different sports during her junior and senior years. At Purdue, Krupa was the team captain and was named to the Academic All-Big 10 team in her senior year. She was selected to try out for the U.S. national team and was twice voted the Most Valuable Player at the U.S. Open National Volleyball Championships.

August 17, 2001: Nanooks Picked Fourth In Conference

In the first poll of the first season of the newly formed Great Northwest Athletic Conference the UAF Nanooks were picked to finish fourth in the ten team conference. The Nanooks, who finished last season with a 15-8 record received 64 points. Picked ahead of UAF are Seattle Pacific, who was picked number one on the ballots of eight of the coaches, Western Washington and Central Washington.

August 9, 2001: Nanooks Return to Court (by Amy Miller, Staff Writer, Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)

Last year, a shortage of bodies meant they couldn't even hold practice matches against each other. This season, they've got three full squads.... Wednesday was the first day of practice for the University of Alaska Fairbanks volleyball team, and coach Phil Shoemaker is looking at a very different team than the one that finished off last year.... No less than 18 players suited up for fitness testing on Tuesday and practice Wednesday. Ten are new to the team.... "I think the options available to us are very exciting and I think we can progress greatly as a result with the mixture of returning and new players," Shoemaker said.... "I truly never expected to have 18 players," Shoemaker said. "Twelve to 14 was much more what I had in mind, but I'm definitely not complaining."... Shoemaker said he was particularly pleased with the team's fitness level coming into the beginning of the season. All eight returners are in far better shape than they were at the end of last season, Shoemaker said.... An off-season fitness competition within the team is to thank for that, he said. While Shoemaker said he hadn't crunched the actual numbers yet, a big improvement was clear. He said the results indicate a lot of motivation on the players' parts...."Once they're away from us we can't force (conditioning) on them," Shoemaker said. "They've got to have the personal drive to do it themselves.... "You obviously can't tell a lot as far as the whole season in the first two days, but if my memory serves correctly, we're certainly a step ahead."... Among the new faces on this season's squad are several local women, some of whom will be freshman at UAF and others who have returned to Fairbanks after a year away.... Lathrop graduate Ashley Hemphill is an outside hitter who has been compared to UAF's former leader, Stephanie Grindel.... "I believe her development will be fast and possibly amazing," Shoemaker said.... Lathrop's Victoria Kilgore will bring her skill as a setter and relentless server to the Nanooks. Shoemaker said he thinks he'll "have a tough time remembering she's 'only' a freshman."... Tina Peterson, another North Pole graduate, and Jennifer Pace, a West Valley graduate, are joining the team as sophomores. Pace is a setter and Peterson is an outside hitter.... Among the returners are hard-hitting Angel Fairbanks, newly-married Tara Hollenbeck (Hemphill), setter Kimber Jones, Caitlin Kennedy, Jen Medl and Jamie Schanback.... UAF finished last season, Shoemaker's first with the team, with a 15-8 overall record and an 8-6 mark in the Pacific West Conference, which gave them a tie for third.... The Nanooks are playing in a new conference this season, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. The conference includes many of the same schools that played in the Pac West, but excludes the dominating Hawaiian teams that consistently took the league championships in the past.... UAF is still looking for another new face. The Nanooks' former assistant coach, Kevin Raap, took a position as UAF's associate athletic director this summer, leaving the team searching for a new assistant.... For now, that void is being filled by West Valley grad and former Purdue University standout Bev Krupa.... UAF opens its season with an exhibition match against the Fairbanks Flyers Aug. 25. A pair of non-conference matchups with California State University-Stanislaus Aug. 27-28 is followed by the Nanook Classic. The invitational, slated for Sept. 7-9, will feature NCAA Division I heavy-hitters Eastern Illinois, Navy and Maine.