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	2012 Position Breakdown
	SETTERS Returning: Kaitlyn Drawe (So.), Caroline Weir (So.) Incoming: Julia Doyle (Fr.) The youngest group of the bunch, Drawe and Weir will have to draw from the time they saw last season and take it to the court in 2012. Doyle, although a freshman, has been noted with great hands and very good location. She has the ability to position the ball and put it in the right place at the right time for the ideal attack. She'll be looked to break into the lineup and add valuable minutes on the court.  ATTACKERS Returning: Morgan Reynolds (Sr.) Keila Rodriguez (Jr.), Tara Dunn (So.) Incoming: Madison Ward (Fr.), Anne Marie Taylor (So. TR) Dunn leads the returning attackers with a rookie performance that saw her record 270 kills. She is joined by a pair of upperclassmen in Reynolds and Rodriguez who recorded 160 and 59 kills, respectively, in 2011. Sallie McLaurin, who recorded 293 kills last season, will also add a presence to this group of attackers. MIDDLE BLOCKERS Returning: Sallie McLaurin (Jr.), Grace Whitley (So.), Incoming: Kierra Holst (Fr.), Summer Cole (Fr.) McLaurin is the Sooners lone returning All-American from last year's 2011 squad after receiving honorable-mention accolades following her sophomore campaign. The 2012 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year is the link to the Sooners defense. Last year she led the team both in hitting percentage (.333) and blocks per set (1.35). The 6'2" junior was the lone Oklahoma player to record 20+ solo blocks on the year at 25 to account for more than a quarter of the Sooners single blocks (74). She is joined by returning letterwinner Grace Whitley who in just 55 sets played last year recorded 35 block assists and eight solo blocks, and freshman Kierra Holst, the tallest member on the team at 6'4".   DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS Returning: Maria Fernanda (Sr.), Mindy Gowen (Jr.), Eden Williams (Jr.) Incoming: Taylor Migliazzo (Fr.) Fernandez has been at the libero position for the last three years and brings with her a wealth of experience and knowledge for the Sooners. She has a strong hold and understanding of the program, where it needs to go and the system that Restrepo runs. The Sooners' key returner on the defense, last-season she recorded a team and program season-high 609 digs to become Oklahoma's career digs leader at 1,624 with her senior year upon her. Gowen and Williams can contribute valuable minutes on the court as the duo recorded 153 and 176 digs, respectively, last season.

NORMAN, Okla.-- They say history has a way of repeating itself, and that's what the 2012 Oklahoma volleyball squad hopes to do this year as the season swiftly approaches.

Last year the Sooners made their mark in program history when the team made its third consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the longest in Crimson and Cream history, and participated in post-season competition for the fifth time in six years.

It is well understood as the players and coaches participate throughout fall camp that the Sooners are in the game of making history, and the goal is to do that again in 2012.

"It's always a goal for our team to make it into the NCAA Tournament at the end of the regular season," explained Sooners' head coach Santiago Restrepo.

"With that said, we understand that it's going to be extremely difficult to obtain that goal, but it is every year. The bright side is that we have the capabilities to make that happen with the team we have assembled this season."

In 2012 the Sooners will look to their returning two starters in Preseason All-Big 12 selections junior Sallie McLaurin (Midwest City, Okla.) and sophomore Tara Dunn (Poth, Texas), as well as senior libero Maria Fernanda (Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico) from last year's 2011 squad (21-12, 8-8) that finished fifth in the Big 12.

Oklahoma will also look to senior Morgan Reynolds (Blue Springs, Mo.) whom Restrepo has tagged an integral part of the team. She brings with her a very strong offensive presence and provides the younger girls with a source of leadership, both on and off the court.

Along with returning veterans, which include 10 previous letterwinners, the Sooners also welcome a group of newcomers. "We added some height with this group, so it's going to help us get a lot more blocks, a lot more touches. They'll provide a very good offensive presence. We have a group of extremely gifted and talented freshmen girls; they're a good group to represent the Sooners."

New to the Crimson and Cream are middle blockers Summer Cole (DeSoto, Texas) and Kierra Holst (Coppell, Texas), setter Julia Doyle (Plymouth, Minn.), libero Taylor Migliazzo (Kansas City, Mo.) and outside hitter Madison Ward (Cache, Okla.).

"We're in a good place right now. We understand that we need to work together as a team. We need to count on every single person on the court to help Oklahoma succeed. We need everyone to come through no matter the moment," remarked Restrepo.

"We have set a pretty high standard for ourselves - you must do that in order to succeed. Every single time we hit the court, we need to continue to raise the level of whoever goes into the match and the level of play we produce."

Those levels will need to be raised with the competition the Sooners are set to face in the coming year.

"I think that every day is a challenge, day-in and day-out. Home or away it doesn't matter who we're playing against, facts are facts, and we have an extremely difficult schedule this year," said Restrepo. We are going to have to bring our `A' game to every single match against every single team."

Oklahoma is slated to face-off against 12 teams that made the 2011 NCAA Championship, including four third round opponents in Texas, Kentucky, Iowa State and Kansas State, as well as two quarterfinalists as Texas and Iowa State each progressed to the Elite Eight.

The Sooners were 6-10 against tournament teams last season which included an upset over eighth-ranked Texas on Sept. 28 in a five-set thriller at Howard McCasland Field House. Of the teams OU faced in 2011 and will see again this year, the Sooners recorded an 11-6 tally last season.

"It's going to be tough. I think that since I have been here it is probably the toughest schedule we have ever slated, especially against non-conference opponents."

The 2012 home slate features 15 matches at McCasland, including two non-conference tournaments.

The Sooners open the season at home with the Nike Invitational Aug. 24-25. All four teams participating in the Invitational - OU, Missouri State, Western Michigan and Tulsa - were 2011 NCAA Tournament participants.

In order to battle through the tough schedule, and keep their goals in sight, The Sooners are going to need a healthy level of competition from each of their four position groups. A breakdown of each position can be found in the adjacent column: