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DOGS HEAD TO THE DERBY CITY FOR CARDINAL CLASSIC
Samford continues its season this weekend at the Cardinal Classic, hosted by the University of Louisville in Louisville, Ky.  The Bulldogs see their first action at the KFC Yum! Center against the Marshall Thundering Herd on Friday, Aug. 31 at 5 p.m. ET.  The following day, Samford squares off against Duke at 1:30 p.m. ET and then Louisville at 7:30 p.m. ET in the tournament finale.

SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Marshall (3-0, 0-0 CUSA) - The Thundering Herd started their season off with a perfect 3-0 record, defeating Wright State, IUPUI and Miami (OH) to win the Thunder Invite.  Senior outside hitter Katy Schad was named the Tournament MVP thanks to 50 kills, 44 digs and double-doubles in all three matches.  Middles Lauren Legge and Sacha Byous-McConnell were also named to the All-Tournament Team, while sophomore setter Sammie Bane was named the Conference USA Setter of the Week.

Duke (3-0, 0-0 ACC) - The Blue Devils opened the season by hosting the Duke Invitational, where they swept William & Mary, Fairfield and UW-Milwaukee to jump to a 3-0 record.  Freshman outside hitter Emily Sklar was named the ACC Freshman of the Week after tallying 33 kills and 28 digs with a .333 hitting percentage over the weekend.  Duke was chosen to finish fourth in the ACC in the preseason poll, with senior Christiana Gray and junior Ali McCurdy named to the Preseason All-Conference Team.

Louisville (3-1, 0-0 BIG EAST) - The Cardinals are coming off a big upset win Wednesday, as they defeated in-state rival and 10th-ranked Kentucky, 3-1.  It was the first time they had defeated a top-ten opponent since 2004.  In the season opening Active Ankle Challenge, Louisville defeated Western Kentucky and Morehead State before falling to second-ranked Penn State in the finale.  The Cardinals are the preseason favorites to win the Big East this season after winning its first ever title last season, while senior outside hitter Lola Arslanbekova is tabbed as the BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year.

MIAMI PROVES CHALLENGING FOR BULLDOGS ON OPENING WEEKEND
Against a slate of tough opponents, the Bulldogs fell 0-3 in the opening weekend at the Hurricane Invitational, hosted by the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla.  Samford opened its season against Rutgers and, through the first two sets, Rutgers held the slight edge and pulled ahead 2-0 behind identical 25-23 victories.  Samford fought back and won set three, 28-26, and then evened the match up with a decisive 25-16 win in set four.  Samford held the 8-6 edge halfway through the final frame, but the Scarlet Knights fought back to eventually win 15-11 and take the match.

The following day, Samford opened action against the Rebels of Ole Miss in another close contest.  Ole Miss took the first set, 25-20, and were looking for another up 21-18 in set two.  The Bulldogs responded with four consecutive points to pull ahead 22-21 and the teams battled back to even at 24-24.  A Rebel attack error gave Samford possession and Lauren Hutchinson secured the 26-24 win with a solo block.  Samford almost fought back in set four, down 24-23, but a close Bulldog attack error gave Ole Miss the 25-23 set win and the 3-1 match win.

In the tournament finale, Samford squared off against host team Miami.  The Bulldogs came out firing, jumping ahead to a 25-20 win in the opening set.  The Hurricanes rebounded from that point on however, as the Bulldogs did not break the 20-point mark in any of the next three frames as Miami came back for a 3-1 victory.

COMING HOME AGAIN
Besides providing Samford with national-level competition in the preseason, these opening weekends also provide multiple Bulldogs a chance to play in front of a hometown crowd.  Last weekend was a homecoming for redshirt juinor Taylor Chao, who is a Miami native.  This weekend will be a similar return for two seniors.  Senior setter Casey Garvey is from Louisville while senior libero Alexis Bauer is from just across the Ohio River in nearby Floyd Knobs, Ind.

UP NEXT
Samford will play its first home match of the 2012 season on Wednesday, Sept. 5, hosting North Alabama at 7 p.m. CT.  The following weekend, Samford heads to Atlanta, Ga., for the Georgia State Tournament where they will face Georgia State on Friday, Sept. 7 (7 p.m. ET) and then South Alabama (10 a.m. ET) and Mercer (5 p.m. ET) the following day.