Georgia Begins 2018 Season Friday at Stegeman

Georgia (0-0)
hosting the Benson Hospitality Invitational
Dates: Aug. 24-25, 2018
Match Times:
     Friday, 7 p.m. – vs. Coastal Carolina
     Saturday, 12:30 p.m. – vs. Furman
     Saturday, 7:30 p.m. – vs. Illinois State
Location: Athens, Ga.
Arena: Stegeman Coliseum

Media Information
Streaming Video: SEC Network+
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Twitter Updates: @UGAvolleyball

First Serve
Georgia volleyball opens the 2018 season this weekend at Stegeman Coliseum. The Bulldogs are hosting Coastal Carolina, Furman, and Illinois State in the Benson Hospitality Invitational.

Georgia opens tournament play at 7 p.m. Friday evening against Coastal Carolina. The Bulldogs will face Furman (12:30 p.m.) and Illinois State (7:30 p.m.) on Saturday.

Follow the Bulldogs
• All three of Georgia's matches will be streamed live on the SEC Network+ via ESPN.com and the ESPN app.
• Live stats will be available for all matches of the Benson Hospitality Invitational. Links can be found on the volleyball schedule on GeorgiaDogs.com.
• Twitter updates will be available all season long on the official Twitter page of Georgia volleyball, @UGAvolleyball.

This Weekend's Promotions
Friday, Aug. 24 vs. Coastal Carolina
• First 500 fans receive a free Georgia volleyball t-shirt
• Tailgate games will be set up on the concourse and outside the coliseum
• Student "Enter to Win" Raffle – prizes include tailgate chairs and table, cooler, and giant jenga
Saturday, Aug. 25 vs. Furman
• First 250 students receive free pizza
• Balloon artist and face painter on concourse
Saturday, August 25 vs. Illinois State
• First 250 students receive free 'Beach Party' tank top and sunglasses
• Post-match autographs

BULLDOGS BULLETIN
Series Histories
Coastal Carolina
• Georgia leads the all-time series 2-0
• The first meeting was in Athens in 2006; the last in 2010
• The Bulldogs swept the Chanticleers in both meetings
Furman
• Georgia leads the all-time series 11-0
• The last meeting came in 2013, Georgia won the match in three sets
• Furman was one of Georgia's first opponents ever in the program history in 1978; UGA won 2-0
Illinois State
• Georgia leads the all-time series 2-1
• UGA lost the first-ever meeting in 1990 at Illinois State in five sets
• The last meeting was in 2002; Georgia won in five

A Look at What's Ahead
The Bulldogs will trek west to Irvine, California for the UCI/Adidas Invitational. Georgia will take on hosts UC Irvine, Texas Tech, and Cal State Bakersfield in week two of the season.

SEC Preseason Poll
The Bulldogs were picked to finish in the top four of the Southeastern Conference, garnering 105 points in voting by the league's head coaches. 2017 co-champion Kentucky, picking up eight first-place votes and 140 points, has been chosen to win the league in 2018. The Bulldogs were picked tied with LSU with 105 points.

Ceasar Tabbed Preseason All-SEC
Sophomore T'ara Ceasar was voted Preseason All-SEC by the league's head coaches. As a freshman, she was an All-SEC and All-Freshman Team pick, becoming the first All-SEC freshman Bulldog since Jasmine Eatmon in 2012. She became the first in Georgia history to receive seven SEC weekly honors in one season, breaking the previous record of two by a freshman Bulldog. Ceasar was named to the 2017 AVCA All-Southeast Region Team, finishing the season as the highest-ranked freshman nationally in kills (4.14) and points per set (4.79).

Breaking Down the Roster
Georgia returns five starters plus a libero in 2018. In all, 11 letterwinners return. The squad features Preseason All-SEC outside hitter T'ara Ceasar and AVCA All-Southeast Region honorable mention setter Meghan Donovan. A strong sophomore class featuring Ceasar, Rachel Ritchie, and Kendall Glover look to help guide Georgia to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2013. New to the roster in 2018 is a trio of true freshmen in middle blocker Sage Naves (Agoura Hills, Calif.), outside Kayla Rivera (Ventura, Calif.), and opposite Mallory Hernandez (Fishers, Ind.).

2018 Schedule at a Glance
The 29-match schedule will feature 12 contests in Athens, set to be played in Stegeman Coliseum. SEC play begins at Stegeman on Sept. 21 when Georgia hosts LSU. The 2018 schedule features four teams that finished in the AVCA final top 25: #2 Florida, #6 Kentucky, #19 Colorado, and #20 Missouri. Six teams on Georgia's schedule competed in the 2017 NCAA Tournament. Georgia will conclude the regular season with four-straight matches at home beginning Nov. 15 against Auburn.

Ceasar, Ritchie Compete Internationally
Sophomores T'ara Ceasar and Rachel Ritchie each competed internationally over the summer. Ceasar was one of 12 student-athletes who competed for the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team in China over the summer. The USA went 4-1. Ritchie played for Bring It Promotions (BIP) in the Binh Dien Tournament in Vietnam. The USA finished second after dropping a five-set championship match.

Georgia Volleyball Cited in APR Recognition
Georgia Volleyball was one of four Bulldog varsity sports teams publicly recognized by the NCAA for outstanding achievement in the annual NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) report. The recognition honors teams that scored in the top ten percent of all teams across the country in each sport.

Georgia Finished in Top Four of SEC in Every Offensive Category
The Georgia offense placed itself in the top four of every offensive category in 2017, including hitting percentage, assists, kills, and service aces. The conference rankings featured Georgia at the top in service aces with a 1.57 average, highlighted by T'ara Ceasar who led the team in service aces in 12 matches last season.

The Bulldogs were fourth at .243 in hitting percentage. In kills, Georgia boasted a third-place position (13.75), fueled by outside hitters Ceasar and Rachel Ritchie at third and fourth in the individual rankings. Meghan Donovan headlined the Georgia assists, providing her own third-place spot with 10.95 per match, bringing Georgia to its fourth position as a team 12.91 assists per set.

Black in His First Season
In his first season at Georgia, head coach Tom Black placed 22 W's in the win column. Of the six head coaches before him, he topped five of them in their first season. Jim Iams guided the Bulldogs to a 30-4 season in his first year at the helm (1989). Georgia also appeared in the NIVC that season.

Last Season in Non-Conference play
Georgia went 10-3 in non-conference play in 2017, which included three tournaments. After opening the season 4-0 at home, Meghan Donovan and Kendall Glover headlined the Bobcat Invitational at Ohio. The next weekend, Georgia was crowned tournament champions at the Wildcat Invitational at Davidson, with Glover and Rachel Ritchie being named respective Tournament MVP and All-Tournament.

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Players Mentioned

Meghan Donovan

Kendall Glover

Mallory Hernandez

Sage Powell

Rachel Ritchie

Kayla Rivera