Washington U. Sweeps Rhodes to Capture Bears Classic Title

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St. Louis, Mo., October, 31, 2009 – The No. 3 Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team picked up a 3-0 (25-13, 28-26, 25-13) victory over Rhodes College on Saturday, Oct. 31, at the WU Field House in St. Louis, Mo., to finish in first place at the Bears Classic Tournament. Washington U. concluded tournament play with a 3-0 record and a perfect 9-0 set record.

The Bears landed three student-athletes on the six-player Bears Classic All-Tournament Team: senior middle hitter Erin Albers, freshman setter Marilee Fisher and freshman libero Kelly Pang.

As she has been doing all season, Albers was the Bears’ offensive leader over the weekend. She finished the tournament with a team-high 39 kills, an average of 4.33 per set, while hitting .459. She also averaged 1.00 blocks per set, tallying two solo blocks and seven block assists. Fisher averaged 11.7 assists per set, and recorded 10 kills, 11 digs and five block assists. Pang continued her spectacular defensive season, racking up 50 digs over the weekend, an average of 5.56 per set, to bring her team-leading season tally to 516. She now sits just 91 digs shy of setting a new Washington University single-season record.

Behind four kills from both Albers and freshman Drew Hargrave, Washington U. grabbed the first set from Rhodes, 25-13. The second set win was not nearly as easy, with Washington University needing to erase a seven-point deficit to grab a narrow two-point win.

Rhodes’ large second-set lead was thanks in large part to a number of Washington University errors.  As Rhodes built a 15-11 lead, 11 of their points resulted directly from a variety of Washington University errors, and the Lynx went on to lead 18-11. Washington University steadily chipped away at the Rhodes advantage, scoring four-straight points to pull within three, 18-15, and using another 4-0 run to tie the set at 23-23.

The two teams battled back and forth over the next several points, with neither squad able to put the match out of reach. Finally, with the score tied at 26-26, a kill from Albers gave Washington U. set point, and a Rhodes attack error on the ensuing point resulted in the two-point WU win.

The third set played out more like the first, with Washington University hitting .412 as a team and grabbing a 12-point win. Once again it was Hargrave and Albers pacing the offense, tallying five kills apiece, and Fisher tallied 15 assists in the final set. Albers (14), Hargrave (10) and sophomore middle hitter Lauren Budde (10) each finished with double-digit kills against Rhodes. Pang paced the defense with 17 digs, Budde was not far behind with 16 and senior Laura Brazeal chipped in with nine.

Washington U. (25-3) returns to action on Friday, Nov. 6, when it heads to Chicago, Ill., for the 2009 University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship tournament. The Bears are the defending UAA Champions and earned the No. 1 seed for this year’s championship after posting a 7-0 record in conference round robin play. Washington U. opens UAA Championship pool play on Friday against the University of Rochester at 12 p.m., and Case Western Reserve University at 2 p.m.

Volleyball Celebrates Senior Day with Pair of Wins on Friday

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St. Louis, Mo., October, 30, 2009 – The No. 3 Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team picked up a pair of 3-0 victories over Virginia Wesleyan College (25-12, 25-20, 25-16) and Culver-Stockton College (25-21, 25-11, 25-16) on Friday night at the Bears Classic Tournament in St. Louis, Mo.

Prior to the match with Culver-Stockton, Washington U. honored its two senior student-athletes who are playing in the final home tournament of their careers, middle hitter Erin Albers and defensive specialist Laura Brazeal. Over the past four seasons, Albers and Brazeal have helped Washington University compile an overall record of 127-17 (.882), in addition to a pair of University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships, three NCAA Tournament appearances and the 2007 NCAA Division III National Championship.

Both seniors were at the top of their game on Friday, as Albers recorded double digit kills in each of the Bears’ wins and Brazeal tied for the team lead with 12 digs in the win over Culver-Stockton.

It was a pair of underclassmen, sophomore middle hitter Lauren Budde and freshman right side Madeleine Shroyer that helped WU put away Culver-Stockton in the opening set of that match. While Albers finished the opening frame with eight kills, it was a double block from Budde and Shroyer that broke a 16-16 tie, and a kill from Budde that gave Washington U. an 18-16 lead. Another Budde kill, with an assist from Shroyer, put the Red and Green in front by three, 20-17, and in command of the set.

Albers added four more kills in the Bears’ 14-point win in the second set, and strong serving and blocking propelled Washington U. to a win in the third. WU stumbled to start the final set, trailing 5-0 before a 6-0 run capped off by a Kelly Pang ace notched the score at 6-6.

The Bears went on to pull away thanks to four aces, four total blocks and three kills from freshman setter Meg Buker. Budde had four block assists in the third set alone, while junior Jennifer Varriano and freshman Drew Hargrave chipped in with two apiece. Budde ended the match with seven block assists, one off her career high of eight, and the Bears blocked down 10 shots as a team. Albers paced the offense with 13 kills while hitting .455, and Budde added 10 kills.

Four kills from Albers, a pair of aces from Brazeal and an early 7-1 lead resulted in a 25-12 opening set victory for the Red and Green against Virginia Wesleyan. The Marlins proved to be a more difficult out in the second, coming back from an early 6-1 deficit to tie the frame at 7-7 and eventually build an 11-8 lead.

Still trailing in the second by three points, 13-10, Washington U. began what would turn into a 9-0 run that shifted the momentum back in its favor. Sophomore outside hitter Kristen Thomas registered a kill that put the Bears back in front, 14-13, and the long run concluded as freshman setter Marilee Fisher scored on a setter dump.

Budde had five kills and Shroyer partnered with Albers and Budde on blocks to help WU pick up a 25-16 win in the third set. Albers hit .500 against Virginia Wesleyan, converting 12 of her 22 attacks to just one error, and Fisher was efficient around the net with six kills on 11 attempts. Pang paced the defense with 21 digs, and Budde had a double-double with 13 digs and 10 kills.

Washington U. (24-3) returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 31, for the conclusion of the Bears Classic at the WU Field House in St. Louis, Mo. The Bears will take on Rhodes College at 10 a.m.