The Saint Louis University women’s volleyball team has been on a
streak lately. In winning four of their last five matches, they
have shown teams that they are not a squad that should be taken
lightly. Two of those wins were shutouts, and in the other two the
Billikens only allowed their opponent to win one game. A driving
force behind the success of the Billiken volleyball team has been
junior middle blocker Aida Antanaviciute.

Volleyball enthusiasts will not recall hearing Aida
Antanaviciute’s name last year, or seeing her name in the press
releases for Billiken volleyball. That is because Aida just
transferred to SLU from a junior college, nearby Jefferson College.
Aida spent two years there and was named an All-American last
season. That year she led her team to a 36-9 record, and recorded
an astonishing 556 kills, with a .551 hitting percentage. Before
Aida came to the United States she lived in Lithuania, where she
played competitively.

People question how such a great talent wound up in the blue and
white. Simply stated, it was coach Anne Kordes. Kordes was an
assistant coach at the University of Illinois from 1999-2003. While
at U of I, there was a junior college tournament on-campus, and
that is where Kordes first saw Aida. U of I had little interest in
Aida, because they could only use her talent for two years, and
they needed four-year players.

Then Kordes became the head coach at SLU, remembered Aida and
knew she was the type of player the Billikens needed.

“When I came here, I called Jefferson College to see if Aida had
committed to anyone yet. I knew I had to get her, and I was really
excited when I did,” Kordes said. Kordes and the Billikens have not
looked back since.

Aida has provided a spark both on and off the court for the
volleyball team.

“She is the rock of this year’s team. People follow her lead,
and when she gets excited we all get excited,” said sophomore
Angela Powers.

That energy and excitement has meant wonders to the Billikens,
and will be essential down the stretch run of the season, as they
go for a Conference USA title.

On the court, Aida has played phenomenally. And other people are
taking notice, as she has been named to four all tournament teams,
which coincidentally is the number of tournaments the Billikens
have played in. Aida also earned the MVP of the Fairfield
Invitational Tournament. Aida had 20 kills in the last match
against New Hampshire, paving the way for a sweep of the Wildcats.
That high level of play eases the mind of Billiken teammates.

Powers said, “She is very consistent, and she is our go-to
player, which is what we lacked last year.”

Aida has been enjoying the ride thus far, and prefers playing in
America as opposed to her home country.

“I got bored playing the same people every time. In the U.S., it
is better competition, and there are new players every year,” Aida
told the University News.

Kordes says playing in Lithuania was very beneficial to
Aida.

She had to play top-level competition all the time, and that
helped her become experienced.

Aida’s dominance compares nationally as well, as she is ranked
second in the country in kills per game with a 6.47 average. That
number trails only Ohio State’s Stacey Gordon.

That kind of performance is one of the main reasons that the
Billikens have almost equaled last year’s win total of nine. They
are one win short of that, and they still have 14 matches left to
play.

Off the court, Aida’s personality is magnetic.

Coaches and teammates alike marvel at her sense of humor, as
well as her easy transition to the American lifestyle.

“She is very funny, and the girls really enjoy her personality,”
Kordes said. “It is very funny to watch the girls explain slang to
her, because she knows English very well, just not slang.”

The culture change was not hard for her and she became
acclimated very easily.

After graduation, this criminal justice major hopes to pursue a
job in that field, as well as in coaching volleyball.

“Hopefully, I can work both at the same time, something in
criminal justice, and coaching volleyball somewhere,” Aida
said.

There is no doubt this driven young girl will be successful, in
whatever field she pursues into. Billiken volleyball fans hope it
doesn’t happen anytime soon.