LADY PACER VOLLEYBALL RELEASES 2007 SCHEDULE
DEFENDING PBC CHAMPS CHRISTEN NEW FACILITY ON SEPTEMBER 4

AIKEN, S.C.--USC Aiken head volleyball coach Will Condon released his 2007 schedule on Friday afternoon. A pair of matches versus Division I foes, a tough Peach Belt Conference slate, and 11 home contests in the brand new USCA Convocation Center highlight the 31-game schedule. Following one of the most successful seasons in the program’s history, the Lady Pacers will be seeking their second-straight NCAA Division II Tournament berth. Click here for complete 2007 schedule.

Condon, the school’s all-time winningest coach with a 135-95 mark in seven seasons, will make his team wait just a bit to break-in their new 3,600-seat arena as the Lady Pacers open the year with eight-straight away from the friendly confines. Both tournaments, however, will be in familiar territory, hosted by conference schools Augusta State and Francis Marion.

After four matches at the Jaguar Classic on August 24-25, USCA will clash with Glenville State, West Georgia, Catawba, and Lenoir-Rhyne in the Francis Marion Invitational on August 31 to September 1.

On September 4, USC Aiken Athletics will begin a new era as the Lady Pacers host Newberry College at 7:00 PM in the first-ever collegiate event held in the state-of-the-art Convocation Center. The volleyball program hopes to continue its winning ways at home after a 9-2 record in 2006 closed out a 127-60 (.680) all-time mark in 16 NCAA seasons at “The Courthouse.”

Following the home opener with the Indians on Sept. 4, the Lady Pacers will host the USC Aiken Invitational on September 7-8 with contests scheduled against Mount Olive, Converse, and Wingate, the first of a home and away series with the 2006 NCAA Tournament participants.

With the four-game homestand complete, USC Aiken will hit the highway for 11 of their next 12 matches. Kicking off the crucial road-swing is a September 14 clash at archrival Augusta State. The match will serve as the Peach Belt Conference opener for the defending regular season and tournament champions.

Another weekend tournament, this time at Anderson University, precludes the October 2 showdown with a pair of Division I teams in Charleston, S.C. In a tri-match format, the Lady Pacers will square off against The Citadel at 3:00 PM followed by Savannah State at 5:00 PM.

Two days later, USC Aiken returns home to host Fayetteville State on October 4 at 6:00 PM in the Lady Pacers’ only home contest in a 42-day span.

Back out on the road, USCA will play league matches at Armstrong Atlantic State, Francis Marion, and UNC Pembroke from October 6 to 13 as the team will have played the first half of their 2007 conference schedule away from home.

An October 17 match at Wingate University caps off the road-swing as the Lady Pacers host Tusculum on October 20 at 5:30 PM to finish out the regular season with five of six at the Convocation Center. UNC Pembroke and Francis Marion come to town for the weekend of October 26-27 while Lander visits Aiken for a Halloween match-up at 7:00 PM. On November 2-3, Augusta State and Armstrong Atlantic State close out the Lady Pacers’ inaugural season in the new facility. Saturday’s 3:00 PM match with the Pirates will also serve as “Senior Day” for six Lady Pacers.

Seeking to defend their 2006 PBC Tournament title, USC Aiken will participate in the 2007 edition on November 9-10 in Greenwood, S.C.

USC Aiken finished 28-7 last season, the most wins since 1997 and tied for the fifth-most in the 29-year history of the program. The seven losses is the second fewest in school history, bettered only by the 1978 squad while the .800 winning percentage is also the second best all-time.

With a 10-2 conference mark, the Lady Pacers shared the PBC regular season championship with Francis Marion and Armstrong Atlantic State. With a perfect run through the PBC Tournament, however, it was USCA securing the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Condon, the 2006 PBC Coach of the Year, welcomes back nine of 13 letterwinners from last season including four starters highlighted by two-time All-Conference standout and Player-of-the-Year candidate Mandy Gerolstein.

In 15 years of PBC volleyball competition, the Lady Pacers have won five PBC Championships (1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 2006) and four PBC Tournament Titles (1991, 1992, 1996, 2006). The five regular season titles are the most by any current conference school.