Nov. 17, 2006

SAINT LOUIS ADVANCES TO A-10 SEMIFINALS WITH 3-0 SWEEP OF FORDHAM

Dayton, OH - In a meeting between two schools making their inaugural trip to the Atlantic 10 Volleyball Championships Saint Louis swept Fordham, 3-0 (30-23, 30-25, 30-25) on Friday at the 25th Annual A-10 Championships at the University of Dayton?s Frericks Center.

With the win, the third-seeded Billikens (20-8) advance to Saturday?s semifinals to meet second-seed Temple (16-13) at 5 p.m. ET. Fordham ended its best season since 1991 with an overall record of 21-15.

SLU was paced by a double-double of 15 kills and 11 digs from A-10 Rookie of the Year Sammi McCloud. McCloud added three service aces and three blocks for the Billikens, which out hit the Rams .213 to .167 overall.

"I was proud of how we played in our first tournament match in two years (since joining the A-10 in 2005)," A-10 Coach of the Year Anne Kordes said. "It was a good win over a Fordham team that was on a roll and had a seven-match winning streak. Sammi (McCloud) did a great job for us and carried our offense."

A-10 First Team pick Tatyana Menshikova hit .379 with 13 kills while A-10 All-Rookie selection Whitney Behrens became the all-time single-season leader in digs at SLU with 17 on the night.

Fordham was led by 11 kills from A-10 Second Team pick Jamee Stimson while A-10 Honorable Mention selection Kealia Ieremia added 29 assists.

Freshman Jolanda Gunning-Snowden hit .368 with nine kills for the Rams in a tightly played match that featured 21 tied scores and nine lead changes.

XAVIER SWEEPS CHARLOTTE IN A-10 FIRST ROUND

Xavier fought off a stiff challenge but swept Charlotte, 3-0 (30-26, 30-28, 30-23) in a first round match of the 25th Annual Atlantic 10 Volleyball Championships on Friday at the University of Dayton's Frericks Center.

With the win, the Musketeers (18-11) advanced to the A-10 Semifinals to take on top-seeded Dayton (21-8) on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Charlotte closed out its season with an overall record of 20-12.

"I thought our kids played hard, as hard as we have all season," said Xavier head coach Floyd Deaton. "It was the best defensive match we have played all season and we had to because Charlotte was a team that made us play our best match. It was a great team effort. Mo (Amanda Ault) and Ben (Rottinghaus) did a great job of getting the girls ready to play."

Three XU players reached double-figures in kills as the Musketeers out hit the 49ers, .306 to .233. A-10 Student-Athlete of the Year Danielle Skrajewski led Xavier with 16 kills while hitting at a .448 clip.

The duo of A-10 First Team pick Astyn Bjorklund and A-10 Second Team selection Jill Quayle had 11 kills each for XU. Bjorklund added two service aces and three blocks while Quayle hit .471 with two blocks.

A-10 Second Team pick Jenn Welsh dished out 36 assists with 10 digs and three blocks as the Musketeers improved to 3-0 all-time against the 49ers.

Charlotte also had three players with at least 10 kills including a double-double from Alma Arroyo. The junior hit .364 to finish with 11 kills and 13 digs for the 49ers.

Lynae Mulder led Charlotte with 13 kills and four blocks while hitting at a .440 pace. Jessica Oldenburg added 10 kills while Carly Romberg contributed a match-high 19 digs for the 49ers in match with 12 tied scores and three lead changes.