Senior Middle Hitter Lauren Budde Named D3VB National Player of the Week

St. Louis, Mo., September 12, 2011 – Senior middle hitter Lauren Budde of the second-ranked Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team was named the D3VB Player of the Week, it was announced Monday by the website.

Budde received the national accolade for her role in helping lead the Bears to a 4-0 record at the WU/Asics National Invitational last Friday-Saturday in St. Louis, Mo. Washington U. swept all four of its opponents at the tournament, picking up victories over No. 6 Christopher Newport University, No. 8 Carthage College, No. 20 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and Ohio Northern University.

Budde was spectacular playing as a six-rotation middle hitter throughout the weekend. She finished the four matches with a team-high 54 kills (4.50 per set) while hitting .441 with 38 digs, six aces and five total blocks.

Budde had double-digit kills in all four matches and recorded three double-doubles, finishing with at least 10 digs in the Bears’ three wins over ranked opponents. She hit .667 with 15 kills against Ohio Northern, had 13 kills and 11 digs against Carthage and scored on 14 of her 18 swings against Wisconsin-Whitewater, without committing a single attack error.

Entering this week, Budde has 968-career kills and 939-career digs, needing just 32 kills and 61 digs to reach the 1,000 milestone in each category.

Washington U. (10-0) will hit the road for the first time this season when it returns to action next weekend for the Molten Colorado College Invitational, to be held Friday-Saturday, Sept. 16-17, in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The Bears will battle three teams ranked in the top-15 of the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 Poll at the Molten Colorado College Invite, starting with No. 9 Juniata College on Friday at 5 p.m. (MT) and No. 13 Colorado College at 7 p.m. (MT).