On the heels of back-to-back Big East championship appearances, the Pitt volleyball squad will… On the heels of back-to-back Big East championship appearances, the Pitt volleyball squad will rely on key veterans in 2005 while seeking a third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament.

A year ago, the Panthers finished with a 21-11 record overall and an 8-2 record in Big East conference play while trying to defend their 2003 Big East title. After a loss to the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame in the conference championship game, which was played on the Panthers’ home court, Pitt fell two more times before earning an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament. Pitt dropped its first game to the Ohio Bobcats to end the season.

Eight players are returning from last season. Among them are seniors Megan McGrane and Gini Ullery, both of whom had a large impact on the team’s success last year, and figure to do so again in 2005.

McGrane has been a standout on the court and has rewritten the Pitt volleyball record books. She currently holds the records for most career digs (1,803) in just three seasons and most digs in a season (713) and will enter this year as one of the top liberos in the nation. She was selected to represent the Big East on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and was chosen for the NCAA’s Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects Sports Committee.

McGrane has been a key to Pitt’s winning seasons the past three years, and this upcoming one will be no different. Her acrobatic digs and sheer determination to succeed will help to drive the rest of her teammates to their peak performances.

Ullery, a fifth-year senior, will also hold Pitt’s success in the palms of her hands — literally. As a strong outside hitter, she has been one of the conference’s top players. After suffering a season-ending ACL injury in 2003, Ullery came back strong last year, leading the team in kills, compiling 549 on the season and earning an all-Big East first-team selection.

Along with these top seniors, other returning players will help fill in the gaps for the Panthers this year. Diana Andreyko was selected, along with McGrane and Ullery, as an all-Big East preseason team member. Andreyko is the reigning Big East and Northeast Region Rookie of the Year. She finished second behind Ullery in kills last year with 413.

Andreyko, a Pittsburgh native, made an immediate impact on the team a year ago. Though a freshman, she played with the poise and composure of an upperclassman. With one year of college play behind her, this season will be a telling one for the young athlete.

Azadeh Boroumand has what some may call a thankless job, yet she never ceases to show up and get it done. Boroumand is the team’s primary setter and has placed ball after ball right along the net in perfect spiking position for the Panther hitters over the last two seasons. A year ago, she complied a team-leading 1,336 assists, averaging more than 12 per game.

The veterans aren’t the only players Pitt will be expecting things from in 2005. Six newcomers will make their way to the Fitzgerald Field House this fall. Joining the Panthers are Allie Cherven, Monica Macellari, Jessica Moses, Stephanie Ross, Melissa Stadelman and Nicole Taurence. The six freshmen will replace five departing seniors that helped the team to its first at-large selection into the tournament following a second-place finish in the Big East in 2004.

Each incoming freshman brings the possibility of contributing significantly to the team this year, and with such a big freshman class, the element of surprise will also be on the Panthers’ side.

Pitt’s bid for another successful season under head coach Chris Beerman won’t be met easily, however, as a daunting schedule appears before the Panthers. Seven of the 29 regular-season matches come against opponents who joined Pitt in the NCAA Tournament a year ago. What’s more, five of the seven made it past the first round.

The Panthers’ season is set to start Aug. 26 and 27, as the team travels to Delaware for the Delaware Invitational. In addition to the host Blue Hens, Pitt will face San Francisco and New Hampshire. In early September, the Panthers will travel to Tallahassee for the Florida State Invitational, where they will meet South Carolina, Mercer and the host Seminoles.

Upon returning home to start regular-season play, Pitt will be greeted by a new Big East Conference. Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and South Florida will be competing for the first time as members of the Big East.

Pitt will travel across town to take on Duquesne before returning home for the Pittsburgh Invitational on Sept. 9 and 10. Marquette and DePaul will travel to Pittsburgh for the first time during the regular season for two of the Panthers’ 12 home games. Last season, Pitt went a strong 11-2 at home, including a 4-0 record in conference games played at the Fitzgerald Field House.

The defending Big East Champion and preseason favorite, Notre Dame, will arrive for a showdown Nov. 6, Pitt’s final regular-season home game. The Panthers are sitting at third in preseason polls, with newcomer Louisville between them and the Irish.

Editor’s Note: Head coach Chris Beerman could not be reached for comment on this preview.