Volleyball Inks Four During Early Signing Period
Dec 2, 2003 | Women's Volleyball
Dec. 2, 2003
NEW ORLEANS, La. - While enjoying its best season in over 15 years, the Tulane University volleyball team took four steps toward getting better as head coach Betsy Becker announced high school standouts Lindsey Karlin, Erin Porter, Sarah Weiland and Angela Wiggins have inked National Letters of Intent with the Green Wave during the early signing period.
The foursome, who will begin their careers at Tulane as freshman during the fall 2004 season, come from four different regions of the country as Karlin is from Tampa, Fla., Porter hails from Sacramento, Calif., Weiland calls Pflugerville, Texas home, and Angela Wiggins signed with Tulane from , Colo.
"The members of this year's signing class will continue to elevate our level of play to where we need to be in order to compete for a Conference USA Championship," Becker said. "They all had prolific high school and club careers, and now they have an opportunity to continue that success here. More importantly, they're not just great athletes, but also great students. They fit the model of student-athlete we have here at Tulane University."
Karlin signed with Tulane after lettering three seasons at Tampa Prep where she helped the Terrapins to a combined 67-25 record, including a 28-4 record as a sophomore when the squad won the state 2A championship and finished the year ranked 25th in the nation. During her final prep season, Karlin tallied 291 digs and 32 aces in 93 games as Tampa Prep won the District 11-2A Championship and advanced to the Region 3 Class 2A finals.
She earned All-Bay Conference honors as a junior, earned a spot on the Tampa Bay Invitational All-Tournament team as a senior, and was voted team captain in each of her final two prep seasons. For her career, Karlin posted 776 digs and 79 aces in 247 games.
Porter comes to the Green Wave after a successful three-year varsity career at St. Francis High where she helped the Lady Troubadours earn a regional championship as a freshman, finish eighth in the state as a sophomore and win the Delta League title as a junior. As a junior, she earned first-team All-Delta League honors as St. Francis went 31-9 overall and 17-1 in league play.
At the club level, Porter played for Delta Valley 17 in 2003 and helped the squad finish second in the Los Angeles Southern California Qualifier in the Open Division and qualify for the 17U open Far Western. In 20002, she helped Delta Valley 16 Blue earn the bronze medal at the Junior Olympics. She also competed in the NCVA 18-year old Power League season where she helped the team finish seventh.
Weiland, meanwhile, was a three-year varsity starter at Pflugerville High where she earned back-to-back first-team All-District 14-5A honors as a junior and senior. During her final prep season, she tallied 279 kills, 250 digs, 50 aces and 81 blocks in helping the Panthers to a 19-13 record.
She also played one season of club volleyball for Austin Juniors, one of the most prominent club organizations in all of Texas.
Rounding out the Green Wave signees, Wiggins joins the Green Wave program after four varsity seasons at Lewis Palmer High where she helped lead the team to the state tournament all four years, including the state title as a sophomore, a runner-up finish as a freshman and a pair of Final Four appearances in her final two years. She was named state tournament MVP in 2002 and to the all-tournament team in from 2001-03.
As a senior, Wiggins posted 295 kills, 210 digs, 54 aces and 105 blocks. At the club level, she played for Colorado Juniors in 2002 and helped the squad win the RMR Region and claimed RMR All-Region honors.
The four signees will join a 2004 Green Wave squad that will return eight letterwinners - including four starters - from the 25-7 2003 squad, including first-team All-Conference USA honoree Deva Fowler and second-team all-league outside hitter Anastasia Kenon. Also expected back next season are setters Katie Case and Kelli Dickson, right-side hitter Iman Houston, defensive specialist Dina Lossi, outside hitter Lindsey Norman and middle blocker Sara Thorson.
