Amidst the pressure to follow up last season’s historical run with another impressive showing, the University of Redlands volleyball team faced a variety of challenges during the 2007 campaign.  With a relatively young roster, the Bulldogs looked to only two seniors to lead the charge while working to develop the underclassmen for future success.  With hard work and dedication, Redlands put together a 15-15 overall record while placing fourth in the always-competitive Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) with an 8-6 mark.

Competing the first weekend in September, Redlands opened the 2007 campaign against Buena Vista University (IA) and pulled out a solid 3-1 victory.  Freshman outside hitter Jackie Hamilton (Loma Linda, CA) offered her first of many strong showings by knocking down a match-leading 16 kills to go along with a hitting percentage of .342.

After suffering a four-match skid, the Bulldogs rebounded with three wins in a row by defeating Principia College (IL), La Sierra University and Division III rival Chapman University.  Against Principia, senior outside hitter Lori Nakamura (Honolulu, HI) put away a career-best 27 kills en route to tying the school record for a single match.  Sophomore setter Kelina Smith (Kurtistown, HI) also left her mark on the record book by dishing out 68 assists to rank second all-time at Redlands for a single match.

Redlands eventually opened conference action against #9 University of La Verne but came up short in repeating last year’s exciting three-match upset of the Leopards.  Nonetheless, the Bulldogs kept chipping away at the season by earning a solid win over Caltech before taking down non-conference opponent UC Santa Cruz in a grueling five-gamer.  Freshman middle blocker Liz Figeroid (Sacramento, CA) made an impact in only her fifth appearance of the season by supplying 14 kills for a hitting percentage of .361. 

The volleyball team also captured an important Division III victory over Elmhurst College (IL) at the midway point of the season.  Sophomore right-side hitter Jordann Tanner (Vista, CA) provided one of her 11 double-digit kill showings with 14.

In conference, the Bulldogs swept Whittier College, Occidental College and Caltech in both meetings while splitting matches with Pomona-Pitzer Colleges and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges.  Redlands pulled out an exciting five-game win against the Sagehens of Pomona-Pitzer in the second-to-last match of the season.  This hard-fought victory moved the Bulldogs into sole possession of fourth place in the SCIAC standings.  The Bulldogs looked to a career-best performance by senior right-side hitter Cassie McEuen (Mountain View, CA) as she tallied 18 kills while posting eight block assists to lead the team.

Overall, Hamilton ranked first on the team with 284 kills while Tanner followed closely behind with 248.  Tanner earned 26 service aces to bring her two-year total to 51, which puts her within striking distance of the career top-10 list at Redlands.  Both of these players earned All-SCIAC honors, with Hamilton landing on the First Team and Tanner gaining a spot on the Second Team. 

Despite an injury that kept her out of 10 matches, Nakamura knocked down 215 kills during the season to bring her career total to 922, which establishes a new Redlands record.  Defensively, sophomore libero Lauren Harding (Altadena, CA) supplied 452 digs to lead the team while junior libero Dory Baga (Aiea, HI) added 334.  In addition, freshman middle blocker Megan Phillips (Vista, CA) added 63 blocks for the most among the Bulldogs.

With commitment and desire, the Bulldog volleyball team remained true to its goal of competing against the best to become the best.  While taking on numerous regionally-ranked teams, Redlands faced a challenging schedule that demanded its strongest performances every match.  Although they must say goodbye to their two seniors, the Bulldogs remain hopeful and excited about the future of Redlands volleyball.  As the underclass-laden team gained growth throughout this season, the value and rewards of their efforts will prove priceless in the years to come.