With the OU football team in its final stages of preparation before it begins a run toward yet another conference title, the volleyball squad has its own piece of history in mind: another winning season and a record third-consecutive NCAA Tournament birth.

Coming off a successful 2007 campaign, which saw the Sooners finish 22-10 and advance to postseason play for the second time under fifth-year head coach Santiago Restrepo, the Sooners have their work cut out for them if they intend on adding another chapter to the OU history books.

This year’s squad will roll out its youngest roster in Restrepo’s tenure in Norman. At the all-important setter position, the team will be introducing freshman Brianne Barker.

The team features only one senior — defensive specialist Lacy Barnes. Barnes will need to be one of OU’s anchors, along with junior outside hitter Bridget Laplante and sophomore middle blocker Francie Ekwerekwu, who was a preseason All-Big 12 selection.

With such a young squad, Restrepo said it is going to be very important that the players bond quickly.

“[Chemistry] is very crucial for us,” Restrepo said. “For us, we may be starting one, two, three or four freshman, so the chemistry part of it has to be pretty fast and we don’t have much time to do the team bonding and all the stuff you need to for the team to flow as a machine.”

In a freshman class plucked entirely from Texas, no incoming recruit has more accolades than Barker. She was recently a recipient of the Andi Collins Award, which recognizes the nation’s best high school senior setter.

The Amarillo, Texas, native was also named the Texas Gatorade Player of the Year and an American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American.

“I think [Barker] is definitely getting better,” Restrepo said. “She’s getting better in the aspect of connecting with the players and being able to be a bit more vocal and energetic.”

Beyond Barker taking the reins of the most important position on the court, it will be crucial for the squad as a whole to hit the ground running once the season commences, as the team’s non-conference schedule is anything but a cakewalk.

The Sooners’ campaign launches in Norman this Friday, with the two-day Sooner Legends Nike Invitational tournament, held at the Howard McCasland Field House. In that tournament, the women meet three 2007 NCAA Tournament teams.

But Restrepo doesn’t have the team looking ahead to any one particular match. The only thing the coach has his players focused on is the task that lies right in front of them.

“We’ve got our eyes on one match at a time, one game at a time and one point at a time,” Restrepo said.

With the season close to beginning, the Sooners are on the outside of the national rankings. Despite that, the goal remains the same: make the NCAA Tournament. And Restrepo wants people

“We’re looking forward to everybody here in Sooner Land coming out and supporting our volleyball program,” Restrepo said. “We think you’ll be pretty amazed with what we have.”