MATCH INFORMATION
MATCH #19: Cornell vs. Columbia
MATCH TIME: Saturday, Oct. 20, 2012; 2:00 p.m.
MATCH SITE: Newman Arena (Ithaca, N.Y.)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads, 46-9
LAST MEETING: Columbia won, 3-0, Sept. 22, 2012
2012 RECORDS: Cornell (6-12, 2-5 Ivy); Columbia (8-8, 3-4 Ivy)
Live Stats: CornellBigRed.com
Live Video: CornellBigRed.com

ITHACA, N.Y. – The Big Red volleyball team will begin the second round of Ivy League action when it welcomes Columbia to Newman Arena on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 2 p.m. The game will also be part of the Side-Out Foundation's Dig Pink® National Breast Cancer Awareness Rally. Cornell will be selling t-shirts and wristbands at the game to raise money for the cause and fans can donate online to help the Ivy League reach its goal of $5,000. Live stats and live video will be available for the contest at CornellBigRed.com.  

THE SERIES VS. COLUMBIA: Cornell has dominated the series with Columbia, owning a 46-9 record vs. the Lions all-time. However, Columbia has won three straight and the teams split their matches during the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

SCOUTING THE LIONS: After jumping out to an early 7-4 record, Columbia has lost four of its last five outings to even its record to 8-8 on the year and 3-4 in the Ivy League. The Lions are led by Heather Braunagel, who ranks first in the Ivy League and 22nd in the nation with a .394 hitting percentage. She is joined by Megan Gaughn, a well-rounded player that's averaging a team-high 2.31 kills per set to go along with 2.37 digs per set. Columbia has used three different setters throughout the season, with Colleen Brennan leading the squad with 6.31 assists per set, while libero Molly Winger has a team-high 3.84 digs per set.

LAST TIME VS. COLUMBIA: The Big Red fell in straight sets to Columbia, 25-19, 25-15, 25-22, on Sept. 22 at Levien Gymnasium in New York City. In her first ever Ivy League contest, Breanna Wong led Cornell as the only Big Red player to record double-digit kills. She finished the game with an outstanding .346 hitting percentage with 13 kills and just four errors on 26 attempts. Kelly Marble added in nine kills and a team-high 10 digs, while setter Kelly Reinke handed out 32 assists and nine digs. Rachel D'Epagnier continued to be a steady presence on the offense with five kills and no errors on 11 attempts for a .455 hitting percentage and Janel Forte was also solid with six kills and just two errors on 13 attempts. In the end, Cornell could not overcome its errors, hitting just .143 as a team, and finishing with 10 service errors and seven blocking errors. Columbia used a balanced offense, with very few errors, to earn the victory. The Lions hit .329, posting just seven hitting errors, to go along with four service errors and zero blocking errors on the day. Denise Dearman (8-1-11), Heather Braunagel (7-1-9) and Megan Gaughn (7-1-24) went a combined 22-3-44 for a .477 hitting percentage. Setters Colleen Brennan and Taylor Voss registered 16 and 12 assists, respectively and Molly Winger finished with a game-high 12 digs.

THE HEAD COACH: Cornell head coach Melissa Batie-Smoose is in her first season at Cornell (6-12, .333) ... Batie-Smoose became the 10th coach in Cornell volleyball history in April 2012 ... She has a 93-74 (.557) record as a head coach, including a mark of 81-43 (.653) at Savannah College of Art & Design.

WINNING WAYS: With seven games left on the schedule, the Big Red has already posted one more win than it had last season (5) and is just one victory away from giving the senior class its best record in a Cornell uniform.

YOU'VE BEEN SERVED: The Big Red ranks first in the Ivy League and 20th in the nation in service aces with 1.60 per set. Kelly Marble also leads the conference and ranks 27th in the country with 0.43 per set. In all, Cornell has three players ranked in the top 10 of the Ivy League with Marble joined by Kelly Reinke (3rd – .035) and Rachel D'Epagnier (5th – 0.31).

IN THE RANKINGS: In addition to the team's outstanding serving, several Big Red players are ranked among the top 10 in several other categories in the Ivy League.
*Rachel D'Epagnier – seventh in hitting percentage (.308)
*Kelly Marble – sixth in kills per set (2.93)
*Breanna Wong – seventh in kills per set (2.89)
*Kelly Reinke – second in assists per set (9.29)
*Rachel D'Epagnier – fourth in blocks per set (1.05)
FRESHMAN FIRST: For most of the season, freshman Breanna Wong has led the Big Red in kills per set. She recently slipped to second place with 2.89 kills per set, but if she manages to finish the season with the most kills on the team she will be just the fourth Cornell freshman since 1987 to achieve that feat, joining Debbie Quibell (2000), Liz Bishop (2006) and Deveney Pula (2009).

DIG IT!: Sierra Young's 31 digs vs. Binghamton on Oct. 9 was a personal best and also ranks 17th all-time in Cornell history for individual digs in a match.

DID YOU KNOW??:
* Sierra Young is part of Cornell's Sustainable Design group, which is working to create affordable housing in the form of a 30-house cooperative in Nicaragua.
* Breanna Wong has two different size feet. Her left foot is a women's size 9, while her right foot is a 10.5.
* Ana Vanjak is fluent in five languages (Croatian, German, English, Spanish, Latin) and working on a sixth (French).
* Brittany Kalepa was part of the Kamehameha School's Children's Choir, which recorded music for Disney's Lilo & Stitch.
* Rachel D'Epagnier runs Cornell's chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and took a sports mission to Costa Rica this past summer to teach volleyball.
* Senior setter Lucy Zheng has published two research articles and is working on a third.

FIRST WIN: Head coach Melissa Batie-Smoose earned her first win with the Big Red in a 3-2 triumph over Bucknell on Sept. 7 at Fordham's Rose Hill Classic. There was plenty to like in the victory, including the team's tenacious attack. The Big Red rallied from an 0-2 deficit for the second time in the span of six hours to force a fifth set, but this time was able to close out the win after dropping a 3-2 contest in the morning session to the host Rams.

ALL-TOURNEY TEAM:
* Rachel D'Epagnier was named to the Omni Hotel Colorado Volleyball Classic All-Tournament Team. Over the course of the weekend, the junior middle blocker averaged 1.67 kills per set, while hitting a team-best .375. She also added 11 total blocks (four solo, seven assisted).
* Kelly Reinke was named to Fordham's Rose Hill All-Tournament Team. Through four games, the sophomore setter averaged 8.06 assists per set to go along with 2.28 digs per set. She also collected seven service aces and eight block assists.
* Rachel D'Epagnier was named “Best Blocker” at the Temple Invitational, while Kelly Marble earned “Best Server” honors.

SEASON OPENERS: Cornell is 27-13-1 all-time in season openers. Since 1995, the Big Red is an impressive 14-4 in the first match of the season.

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN: Brittany Fox '14, Kelly Marble '14 and Kelly Reinke '15 have been named captains for the 2012 season.

FRESH FACES: The Big Red adds four freshmen to the team this season - Brittany-Ann Kalepa (Honolulu, Hawaii), Shannon O'Brien (Naperville, Ill.), Brittany Ward (Friendswood, Texas) and Breanna Wong (Highlands Ranch, Colo.). The group consists of two defensive specialists, a middle/outside hitter, and a rightside/outside hitter. The incoming class also draws from four different states, with the group representing Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois and Texas.

KIDS IN THE HALL: Jaimee Reynolds '02, who played both volleyball and women's lacrosse at Cornell, has been selected for induction into the Cornell University Athletic Hall of Fame at the 36th annual ceremonies to be held Friday, Nov. 2 on the Cornell campus. The first four-time All-American in women's lacrosse and the third in any women's sport at Cornell, Reynolds was one of three finalists for national player of the year as a senior. Reynolds also lettered four times in volleyball and her 1,023 assists at setter in 2001 ranks among the top 10 marks in school history. She was the NCAA New York Woman of the Year and one of 10 finalists for NCAA Woman of the Year in 2002 and was a Honda Award finalist that same season.

UP NEXT: The Big Red hits the road next weekend for a pair of games at Brown and Yale on Friday, Oct. 26 and Saturday, Oct. 27, respectively. Cornell will face Brown at 7 p.m., and the Bulldogs at 5 p.m.