The Virginia volleyball team will travel to College Station, Texas this weekend at the Texas A&M Invitational to start its season against three opponents who will each pose their own challenge to the Cavaliers. The Cavaliers open the tournament this afternoon at 1:30 against NCAA tournament regular Northern Iowa.\n"I think we're ready to finally play someone besides ourselves," senior outside hitter Lauren Dickson said.\nNorthern Iowa could provide the opposition the Cavaliers have been looking for to gauge their progress coming out of the preseason.\n"We're excited to get some quality competition right away," Virginia coach Lee Maes said.\nThe Panthers went 25-9 in 2008, capturing their third consecutive trip to the postseason NCAA tournament. The team returns five starters, including junior libero Ellie Blankenship. Blankenship is the seventh ranked libero in the nation and finished the 2008 season with 676 digs.\nNot only is the Panthers' defensive specialist strong, but so is their sophomore duo of setter Bre Payton and middle blocker Michelle Burow. Both Payton and Burow were selected for the NCAA All-Freshman team last year. Senior outside hitter Shannon Aschoff also could be a presence this season after outstanding performances last year left her with second-team all-conference honors.\nAfter facing a tough Northern Iowa squad, Virginia will test its mettle against Texas A&M and Iona.\n"If we want to be the best, we have to play the best, and we've done that with our scheduling," Maes said.\nTexas A&M will test the Cavaliers with its height and talent. The Aggies boast a squad with more than half of its players measuring 6 feet or taller. This will put Virginia's Dickson and sophomore outside hitter Simone Asque to the test. Asque, coming off her first season at Virginia in 2008, was named to the preseason All-ACC team.\n"There are some expectations of her going from a first year to a second year - to be a different maker and an impact maker," Maes said.\nThe Cavaliers will look to Asque to be a commanding force on offense and as the player most likely to overcome Texas A&M's powerful blocking wall.\nLike Virginia, Texas A&M had a nearly even win-loss record in 2008. The Cavaliers, however, displayed more poise at neutral sites, with a 4-2 record, whereas the Aggies went 1-3 on neutral ground.\nVirginia rounds out its brief stay in Texas by playing Iona. The Gaels earned a fourth seed in the 2008 MAAC Championship last year.\nIn many aspects of the game, the Cavaliers are comparable to Iona, but edge them in the amount of kills per set. Iona's defensive specialists, however, may challenge the Cavaliers' strong hitters, as the Gaels average 18 digs per set. Virginia's senior libero Brittani Rendina, though, also will provide strength on defense for her team. She finished with the fifth-highest season dig total in Virginia history last season, totalling 516.\n"We'd like to go over there and do some damage," Asque said.
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