News
Briefly
Calendar of Events
Commentary
Opinions
Sports
Diversions
World News
Login
Letter Submission
Search
Archive
Publishing Policy
Classifieds
Mail Subscriptions
St. Cloud State University
College Publisher
Home
>
Sports
Volleyball breaks .500 with WSU sweep
By Drew Sandholm
Published:
Thursday, September 18, 2003
The SCSU women's volleyball team picked up their fourth win in the last five games Tuesday night when they swept the Winona State Warriors 30-24, 30-24 and 30-25 at the McCown gymnasium in Winona.
The Huskies' team captain and arguably their most influential player, Kari Turkowski, expected nothing less.
"I think we had decided to go down there and kick their butts," she said. "We weren't going to sit around and play five games. We know that if we have a good mentality, we'll win. That's why things are coming around now."
The Warriors did put up a fight. With 12 kills from the Warriors' Britta Hoffman, Molly Horihan and Keri Kreuze, each garnering 11 kills total, WSU made an attempt to stop the Huskies, but SCSU quickly disposed of them in those three short matches.
The short and sweet series gives thanks to middle hitter Angie Mayers and outsider hitter Jane Backes, who led the Huskies with 11 kills to pound the weak Warriors.
Backes, a returning senior, missed last weekend's tournament in Omaha due to a severe migraine. However, her performance Tuesday night proved a healthy recovery and evidenced a great comeback from those few missed days.
It's not surprising Backes was able to recover for WSU. After all, it was only a year ago, Sept. 13, that she garnered her career high of 16 kills in a win over the Warriors.
Turkowski had mixed reactions to Backes' quick return Tuesday night. She said it was nice to have the opportunity for other players to step up in Backes' absence and since her senior teammate had only one day of practice before WSU, Turkowski felt a little reluctant to see her back in her game uniform so soon. All in all though, the Husky captain felt Backes proved herself on the court.
"She saw the court well and put the ball where it needed to go," Turkowski said. "Especially with only one day of practice, I think there were other players more able, but she did the job just fine."
In total, Backes leads the Huskies with 3.50 kills and 3.15 digs a match.
Now with over one third of their schedule under their belt, the remainder of the year proves difficult but within reach. Still, first-year head coach Patricia Mickow didn't fret. The Huskies' coach feels her team has more than ample talent and skill to get the job done.
"We'll be prepared, just like any other match," Mickow said. "We know it will be a good match, but what can I say? I know we're going to win."
No matter what talent SCSU may or may not have, only time will tell the outcome of future games. Next, the Huskies will go on the road to Vermillion, South Dakota to play their 12th away game of the 13 games so far this season against the University of South Dakota Coyotes Sept. 26th at 7 p.m.
Last season, the Coyotes were a mediocre team with a 16-17 record and a 7th place finish while the Huskies finished last season in 9th place. With a 7-6 record, SCSU has their first winning record after 13 games since 1999.
Forum:
No comments have been posted for this story.
Post a comment
Privacy Policy
Network Advertising
Article Syndication
