University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Celebrating 90 Years – The Start of a Bulldog Volleyball Dynasty
08.22.2017 | General, Women's Volleyball
The UNC Asheville volleyball team was recently picked to finish in seventh place in the Big South Preseason Poll. Those preseason polls are not always very accurate.
Bulldog volleyball teams have had a tradition of making Big South polls look foolish and it began in 1990.
Lisa Rhodes was in her second season as head coach and her first Bulldog team showed some promise but finished with a 9-22 record.
Rhodes worked hard in recruiting and found the right players for what she was trying to accomplish. She looked everywhere for players but found two key recruits by just answering the phone.
One of those phone calls came from a volleyball prospect in Florida who had just moved to Marion, N.C. from the Sunshine State. She had some family in McDowell County and wanted to continue her volleyball career.
Ilona Fekete left a message for Coach Rhodes. She returned the call and liked what she heard.
"I called Ilona and I didn't know anything about her," stated Rhodes. "I asked her to tell me about herself and her volleyball background. Ilona told me that her height was 6-3. I stopped her and asked her to repeat that. When she confirmed she was 6-3, I wanted to know a lot more."
Rhodes didn't have a lot of scholarship money left but she found $500 for Fekete. It was money well-invested.
The Pembroke Pines, Fla. native would go on to become the first dominant player in Big South history. She would lead the nation in blocks in 1990, become Big South Player of the Year and rewrite the league and Asheville record book.
Another phone call came from a player from Cincinnati who was relocating to Asheville. Her name was Gina Golkiewicz. She was an outside hitter who wanted to resume her volleyball career.
Rhodes gave her a chance as well. Golkiewicz would be one of the greatest outside hitters in school history and her records still stand more than 25 years later.
Asheville needed a setter, and Rhodes was able to get one in a more conventional way. Danielle Meyer would be recruited to Asheville by Rhodes and the Arlington Hts. Ill. product would enjoy a Hall of Fame career for the Bulldog program.
Nobody knew about these talented players when they came to their first preseason workouts under Coach Rhodes in the summer of 1990. The preseason polls had the Bulldogs to finish in seventh place out of eight teams.
And it looked like the experts might be right when the season first started. A very tough non-conference schedule started the Bulldogs at 0-6.
Asheville's first win was in its conference opener and it was an impressive one. The Bulldogs won at Radford for the first time ever as the Bulldogs downed the Lady Highlanders in five sets.
The Bulldogs may have been 1-6 at this point but more importantly, they were 1-0 in league play. Asheville made it 2-0 with another statement win against league newcomer Davidson. The Wildcats were the preseason pick to win the Big South and brought a talented team to Justice Center. Asheville won 3-1 to improve to 2-0.
This young Bulldog team was doing well in conference play but was up-and-down in non-conference matches. Rhodes was trying to build a team with eight new players and only five returnees. And there were some injuries along the way.
Asheville would lose to Mars Hill and Milligan but whipped league foes Augusta, Campbell, Coastal Carolina and Winthrop in three games as it went to 6-0 in conference action. The wins over Coastal Carolina and Winthrop were the program's first ever over those schools.
The Bulldogs would finish the conference season at Charleston Southern. The Buc program was the defending league champ and had been the top program in the early days of the Big South, winning titles in 1986 and 1988. Asheville had never even taken a game off CSU in the previous three seasons.
Rhodes' charges were ready as they bounced the Bucs in three sets to complete the regular season unbeaten at 7-0. No Big South team had ever accomplished an unbeaten mark in conference action which was not bad for a team picked to finish in seventh place.
Fekete would be named Big South Player of the Year, but she would be the only Bulldog to be honored in postseason honors. The league coaches who voted on the preseason poll apparently didn't like to be proven wrong. Rhodes would not get Coach of the Year in one of the greatest injustices ever in league voting history.
Asheville would return to Charleston for the Big South Tournament. After winning their first-ever tournament match when they downed Augusta 3-0, the Bulldogs would face a red-hot Radford team in the semifinals. Asheville would fall 3-1 as a late Bulldog comeback would come up just short.
It was a tough end to a memorable season but the loss would only fuel the Bulldogs for the future. Fekete and Golkiewicz would only lose one more conference match over the next two years as the Bulldog dynasty in volleyball would take full shape in 1991 and 1992. Asheville would win the next two BSC championships, going 21-1 against league foes.
So even though this year's Big South Volleyball poll has the Bulldogs picked seventh, Asheville may have the Big South right where it wants.
**In celebration of UNC Asheville's 90th anniversary, Hall of Famer Mike Gore will look back on important moments in athletics department history over the course of the 2017-18 athletic year**
Bulldog volleyball teams have had a tradition of making Big South polls look foolish and it began in 1990.
Lisa Rhodes was in her second season as head coach and her first Bulldog team showed some promise but finished with a 9-22 record.
Rhodes worked hard in recruiting and found the right players for what she was trying to accomplish. She looked everywhere for players but found two key recruits by just answering the phone.
One of those phone calls came from a volleyball prospect in Florida who had just moved to Marion, N.C. from the Sunshine State. She had some family in McDowell County and wanted to continue her volleyball career.
Ilona Fekete left a message for Coach Rhodes. She returned the call and liked what she heard.
"I called Ilona and I didn't know anything about her," stated Rhodes. "I asked her to tell me about herself and her volleyball background. Ilona told me that her height was 6-3. I stopped her and asked her to repeat that. When she confirmed she was 6-3, I wanted to know a lot more."
Rhodes didn't have a lot of scholarship money left but she found $500 for Fekete. It was money well-invested.
The Pembroke Pines, Fla. native would go on to become the first dominant player in Big South history. She would lead the nation in blocks in 1990, become Big South Player of the Year and rewrite the league and Asheville record book.
Another phone call came from a player from Cincinnati who was relocating to Asheville. Her name was Gina Golkiewicz. She was an outside hitter who wanted to resume her volleyball career.
Rhodes gave her a chance as well. Golkiewicz would be one of the greatest outside hitters in school history and her records still stand more than 25 years later.
Asheville needed a setter, and Rhodes was able to get one in a more conventional way. Danielle Meyer would be recruited to Asheville by Rhodes and the Arlington Hts. Ill. product would enjoy a Hall of Fame career for the Bulldog program.
Nobody knew about these talented players when they came to their first preseason workouts under Coach Rhodes in the summer of 1990. The preseason polls had the Bulldogs to finish in seventh place out of eight teams.
And it looked like the experts might be right when the season first started. A very tough non-conference schedule started the Bulldogs at 0-6.
Asheville's first win was in its conference opener and it was an impressive one. The Bulldogs won at Radford for the first time ever as the Bulldogs downed the Lady Highlanders in five sets.
The Bulldogs may have been 1-6 at this point but more importantly, they were 1-0 in league play. Asheville made it 2-0 with another statement win against league newcomer Davidson. The Wildcats were the preseason pick to win the Big South and brought a talented team to Justice Center. Asheville won 3-1 to improve to 2-0.
This young Bulldog team was doing well in conference play but was up-and-down in non-conference matches. Rhodes was trying to build a team with eight new players and only five returnees. And there were some injuries along the way.
Asheville would lose to Mars Hill and Milligan but whipped league foes Augusta, Campbell, Coastal Carolina and Winthrop in three games as it went to 6-0 in conference action. The wins over Coastal Carolina and Winthrop were the program's first ever over those schools.
The Bulldogs would finish the conference season at Charleston Southern. The Buc program was the defending league champ and had been the top program in the early days of the Big South, winning titles in 1986 and 1988. Asheville had never even taken a game off CSU in the previous three seasons.
Rhodes' charges were ready as they bounced the Bucs in three sets to complete the regular season unbeaten at 7-0. No Big South team had ever accomplished an unbeaten mark in conference action which was not bad for a team picked to finish in seventh place.
Fekete would be named Big South Player of the Year, but she would be the only Bulldog to be honored in postseason honors. The league coaches who voted on the preseason poll apparently didn't like to be proven wrong. Rhodes would not get Coach of the Year in one of the greatest injustices ever in league voting history.
Asheville would return to Charleston for the Big South Tournament. After winning their first-ever tournament match when they downed Augusta 3-0, the Bulldogs would face a red-hot Radford team in the semifinals. Asheville would fall 3-1 as a late Bulldog comeback would come up just short.
It was a tough end to a memorable season but the loss would only fuel the Bulldogs for the future. Fekete and Golkiewicz would only lose one more conference match over the next two years as the Bulldog dynasty in volleyball would take full shape in 1991 and 1992. Asheville would win the next two BSC championships, going 21-1 against league foes.
So even though this year's Big South Volleyball poll has the Bulldogs picked seventh, Asheville may have the Big South right where it wants.
**In celebration of UNC Asheville's 90th anniversary, Hall of Famer Mike Gore will look back on important moments in athletics department history over the course of the 2017-18 athletic year**
Monday, November 06
Monday, November 06
Monday, October 30
Monday, October 30