Serving It Up

Head coach Kip Yoshimura is traveling down a very patient road with the Gonzaga women's volleyball team.

Although the team has not made a severe dent in the makeup of the West Coast Conference in recent years, Yoshimura has guided this team to their highest point in over a decade.

1994 was the last time the Gonzaga women's volleyball team had a winning record and Yoshimura (right) and the lady Zags smashed that by going 17-13 last season. They also had their best record in the WCC in 7 years (5-8).

Yoshimura is looking to continue to build on that success but not by shrinking down and playing lesser competition. Today, he released the schedule to the public and it is loaded with competition. The lady Zags will play in four tournaments during the season, including one hosted in Spokane. The three other locations of the tournaments are the University of Montana, University of Washington, and the University of Pittsburgh. The journey back East will only be the second time the lady Zags have played an in-season tournament on the East Coast.

There will be excellent competition at all four of the tournaments Gonzaga is playing in but their schedule really takes off when the conference play begins. The lady Zags will play 14 WCC matches this season, including two with both Santa Clara and Pepperdine, both of which were in the 2007 NCAA tournament.

If last season is any barometer, head coach Yoshimura has the Zags on the right track to another outstanding season. Not only will they get excellent experience playing in four tournaments and against many NCAA tournament teams, but they should have a great chance to compete in the WCC and establish the Gonzaga name for years to come.