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The televised Missouri Valley Conference match
will have a 6 p.m. starting time and was rescheduled from the
previous night.
Either the Panthers or the Redbirds
have won or shared each of the last 19 conference titles and they
rank No. 1 and No. 2 in all-time conference match victories, so it's
easy to see how CSTV made its choice. The Panthers will have a
second appearance Nov. 2 when UNI plays at Nebraska.
Illinois State coach Sharon Dingman
believes CSTV's selection of the matchup says plenty about Illinois
State and Northern Iowa volleyball.
"It's a reflection of the rivalry we
have with Northern Iowa and the strength and tradition of both
programs that we have merited a national 'game of the week'
appearance," said Dingman. "We also think it's a great opportunity
to showcase the strength of the Missouri Valley Conference, and
we're proud to be able to represent our conference on national TV."
The American Volleyball Coaches
Association is a presenting sponsor, and Dingman, an AVCA leader
during her coaching career, sees the potential for CSTV and college
volleyball growing together.
"A national broadcast game of the week
is something the AVCA has worked toward for years," said Dingman.
"We're pleased that it is happening now. Everyone saw how college
basketball's popularity rose with the start and the growth of ESPN.
CSTV and college volleyball could do the same thing."
The televised match on CSTV is another
notch in Illinois State volleyball's substantial electronic media
belt. The 'Birds will have more than a dozen matches broadcast live
on AM 1230, WJBC, the flagship station of the Redbird Radio Network,
and other matches webcast on wjbc.com.
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"Our relationship with WJBC is
fantastic," said Dingman. "Our fans really appreciate the wonderful
job they do. Their coverage of volleyball has been innovative."
The Redbirds began practice Aug. 6 and
start the 2003 season at 7 p.m. Aug. 29 against intrastate rival
Illinois at Redbird Arena in the opening round of the Barker GMC
Classic. The tournament continues the next day with the 'Birds
meeting former Redbird star player Jolene Jordan Hoover's Clemson
team at noon and former NCAA champion Nebraska at 7 p.m.
College Sports Television's
"Sunday Night Spike"
(All
times Eastern)
Sept. 7 -- Florida at Stanford, 6 p.m.
Sept. 14 -- Pepperdine at Pacific, 6
p.m.
Sept. 21 -- Illinois State at Northern
Iowa, 7 p.m.
Sept. 28 -- Hawai'i at Santa Clara, 4
p.m.
Oct. 5 -- Nevada at Hawai'i, 6 p.m.
Oct. 12 -- Sacramento State at Eastern
Washington, 6 p.m.
Oct. 19 -- Texas at Kansas State, 6
p.m.
Oct. 26 -- Santa Clara at Pepperdine, 4
p.m.
Oct. 26 -- Utah at Colorado State, 6
p.m.
Nov. 2 -- Northern Iowa at Nebraska, 6
p.m.
Nov. 9 -- Miami (Fla.) at Notre Dame, 6
p.m.
Nov. 16 -- Best of "Sunday Night
Spike," 6 p.m.
Nov. 23 --
WAC Tournament championship, 6 p.m.
[Illinois
State Athletics news release] |
