2010 Tiny L. Laster Memorial Tournament schedule

Opponent websites: Bryant | South Carolina State | Towson | UMES | Wofford

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University volleyball team, under the direction of fourth-year head coach Pedro Gonzalez, will open the 2010 season this Friday and Saturday with the Tiny L. Laster Memorial Tournament in Holland Hall.

Hampton's first game will be at 12 p.m. on Friday, when the Lady Pirates take on Bryant. Hampton will then take on Wofford at 6 p.m. on Friday, before facing Towson at 12 p.m. on Saturday. The Lady Pirates' final game of the tournament will be against MEAC foe Maryland-Eastern Shore at 3 p.m.

South Carolina State and Towson will also be competing.

The Tiny L. Laster Memorial Tournament was actually the Tiny L. Laster Tri-Match last season, as the Lady Pirates swept both matches against Winston-Salem State and the U.S. Naval Academy. Hampton won both matches 3-0 to open last season 2-0.

The Lady Pirates went 9-19 last season, finishing tied for third in the MEAC Northern Division with a 4-6 mark. Hampton just missed its second straight MEAC Tournament bid, losing a three-way tiebreaker scenario with Howard and Morgan State.

Laster was a fixture of Hampton University athletics, coaching the volleyball team from 1994 until 2006. He also coached the softball team since 1989, and from 1988 through 1995 he served as head coach of the women's basketball team.

The volleyball team went 195-233 in Laster's tenure, winning the CIAA Northern Division title in 1994 and making eight consecutive MEAC Tournament appearances from 1996 through 2003.

Laster died in 2007 after a battle with cancer.

For more information on Hampton University volleyball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com. will also be competing.