Georgetown College's volleyball team is taking its game to the next level this spring, the NCAA Division I level. The Tigers are on a tour of several top tier programs in the area including Morehead State, Xavier and Western Kentucky University to name a few.

Georgetown College volleyball coach Nick Griffin has announced the signing of Ashlee Howe for the upcoming 2013 season. The 6-foot-0 middle-hitter was a two-year starter for Ryle High School and coach Tasha Tanner-Lovins.  

"Ashlee is an exciting addition to our 2013 recruiting class," Griffin said. "Her athleticism, speed and length will give us an important weapon for the future and even greater versatility. She has only begun to scratch the surface of how good she could be." 

Ryle was 55-13 during Howe's time on varsity. The Lady Raiders captured two 33rd District Championships and twice finished as a semi-finalist in the Region 9 tournament. Howe garnered All-Region accolades following her junior season and then capped off her high school career by being named All-District and Honorable Mention All-State.  

Georgetown College volleyball coach Nick Griffin enjoyed his team's success - advancing out of pool-play at the national tournament and finishing with a 36-6 record - for a few days and then has been back hard on the recruiting trail to ensure the high standard is maintained in the coming years.

The fourth-year coach is pleased to announce the signings of Courtney Grafton and Maddie Kunkel.

"Georgetown has always taken great pride in our team defense, and we are fortunate to be adding two of the top liberos from the hotbed in Cincinnati," Griffin said. "Courtney and Maddie bring outstanding athleticism, competitiveness and work ethic, which allow them to contribute early in their careers.

"We envision them combining with current freshman Kristen Schellhaas to form one of the top backcourts in the country."

Sophomores Rachel Eubanks and Caraline Maher continued to be honored for their efforts in the 2012 volleyball season. Both were named to the NAIA All-American teams Monday afternoon as released by the main office in Kansas City, Mo.

Georgetown College volleyball saw its exciting run in the national tournament come to a close Friday afternoon in Sioux City, Iowa. The No. 13 Tigers (36-6) played a very tough Viterbo (38-5) team, but could not come up with enough fire power in the 25-21, 25-16, 25-22 loss.

"We played one of the most complete defensive games that I've seen all year against a top quality opponent," said GC coach Nick Griffin. "Viterbo forced us into a lot of errors and blocked us six times. It is hard to overcome that."

This team of mostly sophomores and freshmen might be the youngest Tiger team to come out of pool-play in the national tournament, and they did it with grit and heart.