Jana Matiasovska

Class:
Junior
High School:
Jan Papanek
Hometown:
Bratislava, Slovakia

2007: (Pronounced YAH-nuh matt-ee-uh-SHOWV-ska) Jana finally got to showcase her talents after redshirting her first year, and missing the final 13 matches in 2006 due to surgery on both her ankles. She earned All-Ameritas Players Classic Honors in Nebraska, All-HAL Wahine Classic Honors in Hawai'i and made the Second Team All-BIG EAST. In the BIG EAST Tournament, she had 11 kills and a block against Syracuse and 12 kills and three blocks against Notre Dame. She had nine kills and two blocks against St. John's in the championship. In the NCAAs, she had 11 kills and two blocks against Middle Tennessee. Against Ohio, she recorded 15 kills adn three blocks. She has 18 matches with double digit kills with a career-high of 25 against Duke. She had 21 versus New Mexico State. She hit .455 (12-2-22) against Coastal Carolina. In conference play, her highest hitting percentage was .435 against Syracuse. She recorded four aces in three matches (Coastal Carolina, Tennessee Tech and Morehead State) and lead the team in that category. She had a career-high 11 digs and eight blocks against Marquette.

2006: Jana missed the last 13 matches of the season with ankle problems after being a starter earlier in the year. She had 137 kills in 2006 with a .320 hitting percentage. She had 18 service aces and had her best match against Cal-Poly with 15 kills and six blocks. Her best conference match was against Rutgers with 14 kills and a .667 hitting percentage.

High School: Jana played four years for her club Slavia UK Bratislava for Coach Lubas Bedras. She was on the National Cadet, Junior and Women's National Team for Slovakia. She played in Azerbijian for the World Championship Qualifier. In the summer of 2005, she toured Europe with the Slovakian National Team as a starter.

Personal: Daughter of Igor and Hana Matiasovska. Born July 7, 1987. Major is management.

Favorites: Food: Salmon, pineapple, ice cream; Team: Slovak National Hockey Team; Book: The Godfather, The Catcher in the Rye; Music: The Blackeyed Peas; Class: Economic analysis and forecasting; Hobbies: Reading, hiking, watching movies and sports; TV Shows: Sex and the City, Friends, Scrubs, Desperate Housewives; Movies: Remember the Titans, Happy Feet, Catch Me If You Can, A Beautiful Mind, The Matrix; People with greatest influence on her athletic career: Her parents; Why Jana chose U of L: It was the best combination of education and athletics; If Jana won the lottery, she would use the money: To save the rain forest; What people don't know about her: She would like to complete a 16,300 piece puzzle; Best advice about sports for youngsters: Believe in yourself and never give up.