Press Release

AUGUST 18, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: RUDY YOVICH. SID
260-481-6646

Mastodons Second in Pre-Season Poll

Greeley, CO- The University of Northern Colorado volleyball team received 12 first place votes and was picked as the 2004 Division I Women's Volleyball Independent favorite in a vote of coaches and sports information directors.

The Bears were 32-2 in 2003 and return four starters and 10 letterwinners from that team that won the Division I Independent Championship tournament held in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

IPFW received the other two first-place votes and was picked second; the Mastodons return five starters from last year’s team, including Offensive Player of the Year, Fabiana Souza, and Setter of the Year, Lindi Bankowski.

IPFW was followed by Texas-Pan American who returns 12 letterwinners and five starters from a 19-15 squad of a season ago. UTPA narrowly edged first-year Division I program North Dakota State who was 25-9 and made the NCAA Tournament in their final year of Division II play in 2003.

Utah Valley State was picked fifth overall and return four starters from last year’s first-year Division I squad that was 10-14. Another first-year Division I program, South Dakota State, was picked sixth while Texas A&M-Corpus Christi was picked seventh.

Team	Pts.	2003 Record
1. Northern Colorado (12)	72	32-2
2. IPFW (2)	60	22-10
3. Texas-Pan American	44	19-15
4. North Dakota State	42	25-9
5. Utah Valley State	34	10-14
6. South Dakota State	26	13-19
7. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi	16	14-24

Fourteen total votes were cast by coaches and sports information directors. Voters could not vote for their own team. Six points were awarded for a first-place vote, five for second, etc. Number of first-place votes indicated in parenthesis.

~Dons~