Senior Whitney Roth and head coach Anne Kordes have a lot in common. Both attended Assumption High School in Louisville, Ky., both were coached as setters by Kordes’ father and both have gained recognition for excellence at the net.
Perhaps most importantly, both are headed to the NCAA Tournament this weekend.
After taking the Atlantic 10 Conference regular season and tournament championships, the team (28-4) enters the tournament as the No. 13 seed. Its first match is tonight in Lexington, Ky., against Alabama A&M (12-14).
“We’re very excited, and I’m very pleased,” Kordes said. “We earned respect this time with the seed. It’s what our team needs to have an opportunity to get some momentum going.”
As if momentum isn’t already swinging in favor of the Bills. The team hasn’t lost a game in 73 days, winning 20 matches straight. The team went unbeaten in conference and has the highest NCAA ranking in the program’s history.
“It’s a big achievement for our team,” Roth said. “And, I’m so excited. I think we all are. I think the Sweet 16 is in our reach. It’s basically get past the first round, and the sky’s the limit for this team.”
Roth, two-time A-10 Setter of the Year, is not a stranger to pressure situations. At Assumption, she was one of the top setters in the nation, leading her team to a 43-0 record her senior year and winning two state championships.
At SLU, she is the first player in the program’s history to surpass 4,000 career assists. Her average of 11.22 assists per set ranks 19th in the nation this season, and she was the first Billiken ever to receive the Setter of the Year honor.
“She’s the quarterback of this team,” Kordes said. “She leads the team and runs a great offense. You know, one of her downsides is she’s short. But man, she can get to the ball. It’s a huge plus for us.”
The Billikens have reached the NCAA Tournament before. In 2006, they earned bid after winning the A-10 Tournament and faced ranked Purdue in the first round. They dropped that match 3-0 in straight sets.
“We’re not going to be just satisfied with going,” Roth said. “It’s nice to be in the tournament because that means we’re in the same league as 64 other top teams, but, of course, we want to win.”
Roth and the Billikens believe that part of their success this year, and a key component to winning in the NCAA, will be team chemistry. It’s a factor that Kordes said she takes seriously, and she even recruits with it in consideration.
“All the teams have been playing together all season, but we’re still excited about being together and playing volleyball with each other each day,” Roth said.
Libero Whitney Behrens agrees with that assessment.
“There’s always those tough times in the season when you don’t feel like coming to practice or working hard. But there’s always one person to say ‘Hey, come on, let’s go,’ and we just have that great team chemistry.”
Roth said the Billikens will have to be sharp this weekend if they hope to nab their first tournament wins. She will focus on her job so that her teammates can play their best.
“I need to put my hitters in the best position to hit well; that’s my number-one focus,” Roth said. “We have amazing hitters, so if I put the ball at the right spot, I know they’ll put it down.”
Should the Billikens win tonight, they will face the winner of Michigan (24-8) and Kentucky (26-5) tomorrow.
