The Tigers will face Illinois-Chicago on Thursday before participating in the 2007 Great Lakes Center NCAA Spring Invitational on Saturday.

April 11, 2007

CLEMSON, SC – Five Clemson volleyball players will return to their home state this week as the Tigers will conclude their spring season this week with matches against the Illinois-Chicago Flames and at the 2007 Great Lakes Center NCAA Spring Invitational, hosted by the Sports Performance Volleyball Club. Clemson will face Illinois-Chicago on Thursday at the Flames Athletic Center.

Saturday’s tournament will be held at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, IL. The Tigers are slated to play Bowling Green at 9:00 am and Michigan State at 10:00 am. The rest of the day’s schedule will be determined based on the results of those two matches with teams being divided into three divisions. Additional participating schools include Connecticut, Creighton, Dayton, Georgia Tech, Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, Marquette, Michigan, Mississippi State, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Purdue, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Western Michigan and Wisconsin.

Five current student-athletes hail from the Chicago area, while Jeannette Abbott, Sue Eckman and Leslie Mansfield are also alumnae of the Sports Performance program. Abbott, a 2006 first-team All-ACC honoree, is from Downers Grove, IL, while rising seniors Eckman and Mansfield are natives of St. Charles. Middle hitter Meghan Steiner is from Crystal Lake, and rising sophomore Kelsey Murphy calls New Lenox home.