 Billikens Strive to Keep Streak Alive vs. SEMO, Duquesne
Oct. 14, 2008
This Week: After traveling to the East Coast for its first Atlantic 10 Conference road matches, Saint Louis will stay close to home for a pair of mid-week contests. The Billikens, who have won their last seven matches, take on Southeast Missouri State in Cape Girardeau at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 15. SLU (15-4, 6-0 A-10), which is off to its best start since the 1999 squad won 16 of its first 19 matches, hosts conference foe Duquesne on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Chaifetz Pavilion. Last Time Out: SLU was put to the test in its first two A-10 road contests last weekend. After splitting the first two sets at Rhode Island, the Bills won two straight sets to defeat the Rams 3-1 last Friday. Less than 24 hours later, Fordham gave Saint Louis everything it could handle, including its first five-set match, in a 3-2 come-from-behind SLU victory. The last time the Billikens started the conference slate with a 6-0 record (2006), they went on to tie for first in the regular-season league race. About the Billikens: SLU has won 10 of its last 11 matches, including seven straight. The Bills' only loss during that stretch was at top-ranked Penn State on Sept. 20. Junior outside hitter Bridget Fonke and junior right-side hitter Sammi McCloud are a formidable tandem with 3.35 kills per set each. Meanwhile, junior setter Whitney Roth runs a balanced offense with 10.97 assists per set. Junior middle blocker Sally Warning (1.04 blocks per set) provides the Billikens with a strong presence at the net, while junior libero Whitney Behrens (3.28 digs per set) is Saint Louis' top back-row defender.
Bills Earn RPI Ranking: Saint Louis is ranked No. 12 in the latest NCAA Women's Volleyball RPI, which is through matches of Oct. 12. The RPI is based on the win percentage of SLU, its opponents and the teams SLU's opponents have played. The Billikens are the only A-10 school in the top 50, with Dayton coming in at No. 57. The next update to the RPI is scheduled for Oct. 28. Scouting the Redhawks: Southeast Missouri State (7-7) returns five starters and the libero from last year's team that went 20-12 overall, 15-5 to tie for first in the Ohio Valley Conference. Sophomore outside hitter Claire Keaton paces the Redhawks with 3.27 kills per set, while junior Sarah Barth and senior Alyssa Aston share the setting duties with 8.41 and 6.40 assists per set, respectively. Junior Molly Davis is SEMO's top back-row defender with 4.48 digs per set, while sophomore middle blocker Emily Hughes is the squad's top stopper at the net with 0.76 blocks per set. Head coach Renata Nowacki is 59-53 in her fourth season in Cape Girardeau. SLU leads the series 18-14. Scouting the Dukes: Duquesne (14-7, 3-3 A-10) has already won more matches than it did all last season. In 2007, the Dukes finished with a 10-9 overall record and a 2-10 A-10 ledger. Junior outside hitter Jessica Artman leads the team with 3.04 kills per set, while junior Chelsea Tillotson has run the offense the majority of the time with 9.08 assists per set. Sophomore libero Amy Palko records a team-high 3.38 digs per set, while rookie middle blocker Liz Homan is Duquesne's top defender at the net with 0.89 blocks per set. Steve Opperman is 145-173 in his 11th season with the Dukes. His overall record is 264-289. The Bills lead the series 4-2. On Cloud Nine: Junior right-side hitter Sammi McCloud, who is hitting at a .399 clip in her last six matches, earned A-10 co-Player of the Week honors on Oct. 13 after leading the Bills with 4.78 kills and 2.6 digs per set vs. Rhode Island and Fordham. The accolade was her second of the season and the third of her career. McCloud, who has shifted over to replace an injured Lauren Christman the last seven matches, has thrived in the middle-blocker position. In the last six matches, McCloud has four double-digit kill efforts, is averaging 3.5 blocks per match and her hitting percentage has dipped below .360 only once. She hit at a career-best .516 clip at Rhode Island on Oct. 10 and registered a career-high 25 kills at Fordham less than 24 hours later. On Sept. 28, McCloud tied her career high with seven blocks against George Washington. Incarnate Word Play: SEMO's Claire Keaton and SLU's Whitney Behrens were teammates on the Incarnate Word Academy volleyball team. The pair was coached by current Billiken graduate assistant Lisa Orlet. Following the Action: The SEMO match will be video streamed free of charge at www.KFVS12.com. All Billiken home matches will be video streamed live on the Internet via Billiken All-Access at www.slubillikens.com. Subscriptions are available for $79.95 annually or $9.95 a month. In addition to the matches, fans can view player interviews, highlights and the Anne Kordes Show at no charge. GameTracker will again be available for all matches free of charge. Ticket Information: Tickets for all volleyball home matches at Chaifetz Pavilion may be purchased at the gate, by phone at (314) 977-4SLU or online at www.slubillikens.com. Prices for single-match tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth. Groups of 20 or more receive discounted tickets for $3 apiece. Students with a valid SLU ID card receive free admission. Conference Call: The Billikens are 33-12 (.721) in Atlantic 10 Conference regular-season matches, including an 18-4 mark at home. Dayton (three times) and Xavier are the only league members to claim wins on the Bills' home court since Saint Louis joined the league prior to the 2005 campaign. SLU has finished third or better each season it has been in the league. On Alert: After guiding Saint Louis to wins over Charlotte and George Washington to open the league slate, junior middle blocker Sally Warning was named A-10 Co-Player of the Week on Sept. 29. It is the first such accolade of her career. Warning hit .535 with 3.86 kills and 1.57 blocks per set in the two A-10 matches. Leaders of the Pack: A pair of Billiken juniors lead the league in various statistical categories. Whitney Roth ranks first in the A-10 with 10.97 assists per set, while Bridget Fonke leads the league with 0.46 service aces per set. SLU leads the conference with 12.70 assists, 13.77 kills and 1.49 service aces per set. SLU Surging: The start of A-10 play brought with it the resurgence of SLU's blocking front as it is averaging 2.39 blocks per set in conference matches. Sally Warning leads the charge with 1.17 blocks per set, while Megan Boken trails with 0.91 and Sammi McCloud adds 0.87. The Billikens have hit better than .300 in four of their last seven matches, including a season-high .394 clip vs. La Salle. SLU is hitting .274 in A-10 matches compared to .155 by its foes. Polling Place: SLU finished just outside the CBS College Sports Network/AVCA Coaches Top 25 Poll for the seventh straight week. The Billikens earned 55 votes in the latest poll after picking up a program-best 134 on Sept. 8 following their win over No. 3 Stanford. Schedule Strength: Seven of Saint Louis' 2008 opponents received votes in this week's CBS College Sports Network/AVCA Coaches Top 25 Poll. Reigning national champion Penn State earned top billing, Stanford earned a No. 4 ranking, and Illinois and Purdue followed in 17th and 21st, respectively. Billiken foes Middle Tennessee State, Utah and Northern Iowa also received votes in the poll. Ranked Foes: The Bills have already faced four ranked teams, the most they have ever played in a season. Saint Louis is 1-3 against those teams. Behr-ing Down: Junior libero Whitney Behrens has moved up to fifth on Saint Louis' career digs chart (1,173). She has turned in double-digit digs in 12 of 18 matches played this season and needs 39 to move into fourth place. Phenomenal Fonke: Junior outside hitter Bridget Fonke has posted double-digit kills in all but four matches this season. She recorded a season-high 20 against Charlotte on Sept. 26. Fonke has a team-best six double-doubles in 2008. Head Coach Anne Kordes: Head coach Anne Kordes is in her fifth season at Saint Louis with an 89-53 (.627) career ledger. The 1998 Louisville graduate enjoyed her winningest campaign as a head coach in 2007 when the Bills racked up 23 victories. In 2006, Kordes guided SLU to its first NCAA Volleyball Tournament appearance after her squad captured its first A-10 Championship crown and tied for the A-10 regular-season title for the first time since joining the league. Kordes, the 2006 A-10 Coach of the Year, is joined on the sideline by assistant coach Kyle Walton, volunteer assistant Corey Arbini and graduate assistant Lisa Orlet. Roth Reigns Supreme: Setter Whitney Roth picked up her first Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Week honor on Sept. 22 after leading the Billikens to a 2-1 record at the Penn State Classic. The junior neared a triple-double in the tournament opener against New Hampshire with 43 assists, 11 digs and six kills. Then against Yale, Roth had a team-high 14 digs to go with 33 assists, four kills and one block. She posted 15 assists, four kills and two digs against top-ranked Penn State in the tournament finale. More McLovin' for McCloud: After helping Saint Louis upset No. 3 Stanford in the final match of the Billiken Invitational, junior right-side hitter Sammi McCloud was recognized as the Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week in addition to being named the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Week. She averaged a team-best 4.08 kills per set en route to her second straight All-Tournament accolade. McCloud turned in a match- and team season-high 19 kills in the Billikens' 3-1 win over No. 3 Stanford. She completed a double-double with a season-best 14 digs. It is the second time in her career that McCloud has been named A-10 Player of the Week, and she is the third Billiken to be named AVCA National Player of the Week. Colleen Hunter earned the accolade on Oct. 16, 2000, and Stephanie Feulner was named National Player of the Week on Oct. 9, 1995. Come One, Come All: An on-campus record 2,152 fans witnessed Saint Louis' 3-1 win over No. 3 Stanford on Sept. 6 at Chaifetz Arena. One night earlier, the third-largest crowd in program history (1,016) attended the Billikens' match against No. 19 Illinois. One for the Ages: When Saint Louis defeated No. 3 Stanford 3-1 in the final match of the Billiken Invitational on Sept. 6, it marked just the second time in program history that the Bills had defeated a ranked opponent. Saint Louis is 2-19 all-time against ranked teams. SLU's victory also marked the first time since Sept. 2, 2006, that the Cardinal lost to an opponent outside the top 10. The Billikens' win over No. 3 Stanford is the biggest victory by an A-10 team since former league member Penn State defeated top-ranked Pacific 3-2 on Sept. 22, 1984, in Kingston, R.I. Whitney Squared: Juniors Whitney Behrens and Whitney Roth are keeping a blog this season, a feature available only on www.slubillikens.com. It provides a behind-the-scenes look at the Billiken volleyball team and is updated periodically. SLU To Host 2008 A-10 Championship: Chaifetz Pavilion will be the site of the 2008 Atlantic 10 Volleyball Championship. The top six teams in the final A-10 regular-season standings will gather in St. Louis to compete for the league's tournament championship and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. First-round action is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 21, followed by the semifinals Nov. 22 and the title match Nov. 23. |
|
