As Atlantic 10 Conference play gets underway, the volleyball team has one thing on its mind: a championship. And, for the second straight season, the Bills are picked to capture it.
To sweeten the deal, the A-10 Tournament will be held at Chaifetz Arena this season.
“It’s an honor, and we’re so proud of it,” head coach Anne Kordes said. “No question, what we want is to win the A-10. But what we talk about each day is the upcoming matches. We have to make sure we’re putting ourselves in position to win the tournament.”
Junior setter Whitney Roth, who was a freshman when Saint Louis University won the A-10 Championship in 2006, agrees that her team will have to play well, and each person will have to contribute in order to become champions in 2008.
“We all have to play as a team,” Roth said. “It’s important for every person to perform their role. If every person is on their game in every match, we’re hard to beat. Whether its offense, or defense, or being a leader, every person needs to play their role.”
The Bills started conference play last weekend 2-0, trumping both Charlotte and George Washington at the Chaifetz Pavilion. Junior Sally Warning earned her first A-10 Player of the Week title, joining junior Sammi McCloud and Roth, who have earned the same recognition this season.
Last year, SLU’s season ended on a sour note with a loss to Xavier in the A-10 Tournament, finishing third in the conference. The team is seeking its second-ever NCAA Tournament berth this year, a feat it last achieved in 2006.
Preseason polls, as voted on by the head coaches of the A-10 Conference, selected SLU to win the West Division. David Reed, a contributor to ESPN.com and specialist in A-10 women’s volleyball, said SLU is headed for the championship if the team can stay steady.
“Based on what it has done the first month of the season, I think Saint Louis is the team to beat in the A-10 this year,” Reed said. “The victory over Stanford shows that SLU can be competitive with the top programs in the country. And playing the conference tournament on its home court is a huge advantage. I expect the A-10 will come down to Saint Louis and Dayton.
“Once you get past Saint Louis and Dayton, there really?isn’t a program that will have an impact on the national scene. George Washington and Xavier are two teams capable of pulling off an upset in the conference.”
Kordes said she doesn’t think the preseason pick will be a hindrance to success.
“There’s that little bit of intimidation when you play someone. Some teams will be like, ‘We’re playing the No. 1 team,’ while others will say, ‘We got nothing to lose.'”
SLU’s run at the A-10 title will be lead by juniors Roth, Bridget Fonke, McCloud, Whitney Behrens and sophomore Megan Boken. Roth and McCloud were named to the A-10 All-Championship Team in 2007, and Roth was also named A-10 Setter of the Year.
Kordes expects the road to the A-10 and NCAA Tournaments to be rough.
“We are going to have to be more consistent,” Kordes said. “I think at times we look like a top 25 program, and sometimes we look like any team can beat us. That has nothing to do with our passion, our fire, our desire-we have it all. Our execution, sometimes, is very inconsistent, and that’s definitely, on paper, where we have to improve.”
Looking ahead to the end of October, SLU plays consecutive games against A-10 rivals Dayton and Xavier. A win against both would likely secure the Bills the top spot in the conference heading into the A-10 Tournament.
“No question, [a key match will be] when we play Dayton,” Kordes said. “We’re pretty even right now, and now we’re in conference, so I’m sure we’ll be pretty even until we meet each other. I’m looking forward to it.”
After last year’s bitter end to the season, the team will accept nothing less than a Championship win and an appearance at the NCAA tournament.
“It’s in their brains,” Kordes said. “Without an A-10 championship and getting into the NCAA tourney, they won’t be satisfied.”
