Megan Owens, Branagan Fuller, Heather Brooks, Christine Vaughen, and Ingrid Hanson-Tuntland are seniors. They came to Carolina from Indiana, California (2), Michigan, and Illinois to earn degrees and to play their favorite sport - VOLLEYBALL! Their time on the Tar Heel court is nearly over, but there are still seven home games at which you can see these women and their peers represent our university.

Their next game is a big game because it is Duke. The winner of this game gets a Carlyle Cup point. So far this fall, Carolina has won the soccer matches (men and women) and the field hockey match. The football game with Duke is coming, but next Friday at 5pm, you can cheer for the volleyball Heels just before Late Night with Roy starts in the Dean Dome. In fact, make it an afternoon with the Tar Heels. The baseball team plays in "the Bosh" at 3pm. Watch most of that game, but leave in time to catch the volleyball game at 5. When that is over, stick around and watch the Tar Heel basketball players (men and women) as they begin practice for the upcoming season! What an afternoon!

After Duke, the Tar Heels have 6 more home games - Wake Forest (Oct 18), Georgia Tech (Oct 30), Clemson (Oct 31), NC State (Nov 3), Virginia (Nov 6) and Virginia Tech (Nov 8). As you see, all of these games are conference games and are, therefore, crucial to our standing in the conference race/championship. You've played volleyball, and I suspect that you've watched volleyball being played, especially during the summer Olympics. No, this isn't beach volleyball where two players in bathing suits play in the sand against two other players. This is 6 Tar Heel women playing for bragging rights (theirs and ours) in the ACC and in the NCAA. You and I can make a huge difference for these young women and their coaches if we'll be there to support them. Their schedule is on tarheelblue.com. Their is no admission charged, and all of the games are in the Dean Dome. Next season, when Carmichael Auditorium is open again, they'll be back there, but for the rest of the 2009 season, you'll find them in the Dome. Nothing is finer than beating the other teams in the conference, and you have the chance to watch them do that in all of their remaining home games!

Candace Wood, Nyree Williams, Krista Gross, Waltiea Rolle, Cierra Robertson-Warren, Tierra Ruffin-Pratt have chosen to play basketball for Coach Hatchell as Tar Heels. They are the new freshmen. Candace is a red-shirt, and her dad is Al Wood - do you know him? Oh, her sister, Martina, is a senior on this team as well. This team opens play on November 5 (less than a month from now) in an exhibition game in the Dean Dome. Did I tell you that Waltiea is 6'6" and Cierra is 6'4"? Oops, I forgot to tell you that Chay Shegog, a 6'5" sophomore, played on a US national team that won a gold medal this summer. This team is TALL. Add to that, some very experienced players from last year, and you'll begin to believe that this team will be very fast, very exciting, and could be very, very successful! If you didn't see them last year, you MUST see them this year and often.

You must know that Carmichael is being renovated which started at the end of the 2006-2007 season. I have heard it described as a state-of-the-art basketball arena. I have also been told that it is the ONLY arena in the country dedicated to women's basketball. It is going to be a magical place to watch our Tar Heels play. The question that remains is when will it open. From a variety of sources, it appears that early January is the most likely opening time, but December continues to be mentioned as a possibility. Personally, I don't think it matters to anyone who is a true Tar Heel fan. There are over 22,000 seats in the Dean Dome and around 8,000 in the new Carmichael. Season tickets are on sale now, and single-game tickets go on sale on October 17. The Heels play 18 games at home including games against Duke, State, and Maryland. If you are interested, they also play in Las Vegas on November 22 and in Myrtle Beach on December 20 (I'm going - great hotel rate for this game at the Breakers). And if you are really adventurous, they play UConn in Storrs, CT, on January 9. Talk about sweet - beating UConn at UConn is amazing! Tickets are very inexpensive so get them now. If you can't afford a full season (time or money), build and buy your own mini-season package. If you have children or grandchildren, buy tickets and take them. You won't find better entertainment for less money. Remember, November 5 is the first game!