The only thing loftier than the commercial jet carrying the Saint Louis University volleyball team down to Tampa, Fla. this weekend might be the spirit of the team itself.
When the Billikens head down to square off against conference powerhouse South Florida, they will put their five-match winning streak on the line against the opposing Bulls’ seven-match winning streak.
Both will be vying for the top spot in the conference as both teams are tied atop the leader-board with undefeated records. This game has all the makings of a thriller.
“This game is the key match to our season to date. They are as mature as us and will be tough to handle,” assistant coach Alan Ursillo said. “We will have to play our best match to beat them.”
The South Florida Bulls are usually a top-flight team in Conference USA, but this is new ground for the Billikens.
The Bills have only beaten South Florida once in 11 meetings, and that was three years ago. Still, there have been very few Billiken teams in the past that have matched this team’s will and resolve, or their record.
“The key to our game is passing. If we pass well, we play well,” Ursillo said.
The Bills are riding high right now with a 14-6 overall record and a 4-0 conference record.
In the match against the Bulls, SLU will face South Florida’s ace outside hitter, Michelle Collier. Collier was the C-USA preseason Player of the Year and thus far has tallied 373 kills for the South Florida Bulls as well as leading the league in service aces, with 40.
“Collier is the most prolific outside hitter in the league. Pound-for-pound she is the best player in the league,” Ursillo said.
Still, the team is confident that they will be able to block Collier a few times and get inside her head, and if they do that, they have a good chance at keeping her at bay.
The Bills were able to extend their season long winning streak to five by holding on to defeat Houston last Saturday night in a five-match marathon.
The Bills dropped the first game in dramatic fashion, taking the Cougars to extra frames before falling 32-30.
They did however bounce back to dominate the second game, 30-27; however, they dropped the third and found themselves in a hole. But, as has been the case a lot lately, the Bills summoned their strength and buckled down to win the fourth game, 30-27 and then take the deciding fifth game, 15-12.
“We played great. It was a war, but we won it,” Ursillo stated.
Hunter led the team with a triple-double, which included 30 kills, 15 digs and 10 blocks. But it was not just a solo effort. Freshman Ashley Hunter continued her emergence as a threat around the net and added 17 kills, and Ember Knobeloch added 15.
Brooke Minniear led the Billikens with an incredible 18 digs, and Missy Werges added 13 of her own.
Indeed every kill, dig, set and block mattered against this Cougar team that would not give up and that showcased a player, Jenny Tanneberger, who tied the C-USA kills record against the Bills that night.
“We just could not stop her. Whatever she did, we just could not stop,” Ursillo stated.
Against Houston, Hunter topped the 2,000-kill mark for her career, becoming only the third player in Conference USA to achieve that mark.
The night before, the Bills dominated Texas Christian University, sweeping the match three games to none.
The Bills took the first game rather easily with a seven-point win, but barely escaped with the second and third games, winning 35-33 and 30-26 respectively.
Game two proved to be the greatest challenge of the outing with the two teams trading points in the final moments of the game, but Colleen Hunter and Ashley Hunter led the Billiken attack to seal the game.
Minniear led the team with 15 digs and had 12 kills. Colleen Hunter had 27 kills, and Ashley Hunter had 13. Beth Middendorf had 44 assists to set the pace for the Bills.
