Sept. 26, 2005

COMMERCE - Head coach Gwen Weatherford called it "definitely a first." The Texas A&M University-Commerce women's volleyball match was postponed in the fourth game when power in the Field House went out, causing everyone from fans to officials to exit.

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"It was bad timing as far I was concerned," Weatherford said of the power outage, just some of the grief caused as weather bands from Hurricane Rita reached Commerce. "Right now were looking to build confidence as a team, and we needed to get back on the court."

It's fitting that the Lions will be taking on Henderson State (Ark.) on Tuesday. It was Sept. 6 that the Lions saw their home opener with a 3-2 win over the Lady Reddies, for which Tuesday will be payback of sorts. A&M-Commerce secured it's fifth win of the season, but didn't play up to their potential against very touch nationally ranked opponents at the St. Edward's tournament in Austin.

Four Lions reached double figures in kills in their first meeting. Jane Latu led the way with 17 kills, while Colleen Favaro, Brittany Williams, and Jennifer Hill each landed 10. Alicia Capparelli put down 48 assists. Williams and Jackie Orr shared the game high in digs with 18. Tosha Spain added the final touches with two critical kills that gave the Lions the lead in the fifth game.

For the Lions, Tuesday takes the form of a confidence builder, a major theme as Lone Star Conference North Division play heats up.

"As a coaching staff, we believe in just how good the girls can be," Weatherford said. "On the sideline or in the stands, it's easy to see just how good they are. Now we need the girls to understand just how talented they are.

"We are playing really good ball at this point of the season," she said. "There is no reason for them to doubt themselves; we are a much better team than we were four weeks ago, but now we need to build up confidence. They are a very talented group of girls. Now, they have to believe it."

Coach Weatherford said the Lions will need to match HSU's intensity, and that begins in practice. "We need to continue creating a challenging environment in order to build confidence. That is No. 1. And we need to reinforce them as we make progress or redirect their focus."

THE LADY REDDIES

Henderson State is coming off a string of victories, including a pair of 3-1 Gulf South Conference wins over Southern Arkansas and Arkansas-Monticello. HSU continues its attack with Kathy Hass (10.49 assists per game) and Britnee James (4.59 kills per game). In their meeting with the Lions, James added 19 kills as Hass came away with 51 assists, both game highs.

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