Marquette University Athletics
Marquette Volleyball Cruises to Seventh Straight Win
11/14/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
CHICAGO, Ill.--
The Marquette Volleyball team wrapped up its regular season Friday night, with a resounding 30-21, 30-13, 30-24 victory at DePaul. The Golden Eagles finished their regular season with a record of 12-15, 8-5 in C-USA. DePaul dropped to 11-19, 3-10 in C-USA.
The Golden Eagles were paced by a trio of double-digit attackers. Senior Ann Lopata and junior Erin Freer each tallied 14 kills, while sophomore Theresa Coughlin chipped in 12 finishes. Freer recorded her team-leading 13th double-double of the season, as she also swept up 12 digs. Leading the defensive effort was sophomore Caitie O?Brien, who notched 13 digs. Head Coach Pati Rolf commented on the team defense, ?They showed up sharp and alert. It was probably the best defensive passing game they?ve put together in a while.?
Marquette?s offense dominated the match, as the Golden Eagles racked up a 59-34 advantage in kills, while hitting at prolific rate of .325. The Blue Demons struggled early to mount any attack, hitting .l67 and .079 in first two frames, before waking up to hit a respectable .200 in game three. For the match DePaul hit .150.
While Marquette?s victory can be chalked up to a combination of solid individual performances, the Blue Demons had trouble finding someone to step up. DePaul?s best response was senior Janet Cotter, who led the team with nine kills. True to the Blue Demons? trend, however, was a balanced team defense, as no individual picked up more than five digs. On the whole, the team had 34 digs for the match, to go with eight team blocks.
Marquette enters the C-USA Championship riding a seven-match win streak. The streak is tied for the fourth-longest in program history. The 2003 Golden Eagles can also lay claim to the best C-USA campaign in Marquette?s nine-year run with the conference. The 8-5 record is good for a .615 winning percentage. The program?s previous best had been a 9-7 slate (in 1999 and 2001).
Marquette now awaits the end of league play on Saturday, before learning its seeding and schedule in the C-USA Championship, to be held next weekend in New Orleans, La. The Golden Eagles will have no worse than a sixth-seed, but may slide up to a number five seed, depending on how the weekend goes for C-USA foes Memphis and Tulane.
