November 11, 2007

Volleyball Wins Fifth RMAC Tournament Title

Lopers Overcome Slow Start to Beat UCCS; Christen, Werner Big off the Bench

      Kearney, Neb. – Tournament MVP Nikki Scott had a match-high 21 kills and Erica Burson added 20 to help the Nebraska-Kearney volleyball team beat Colorado-Colorado Springs 3-1 (-28, 24-30, -17, -25) in the RMAC Tournament finals Sunday afternoon in Kearney.

      UNK (31-4) sees its win streak grow to 17 straight and secures a fifth RMAC tournament title in the process. The Lopers also won this event in 1995, 1999, 2004 and 2005.

      A veteran Mountain Lions team, which swept UNK back in September, falls to 20-11 on the year.

      The tournament win likely means the Lopers will host the Southwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament next weekend (Nov. 16-18). The 64-team NCAA field will be announced Monday morning at 8:00 a.m. at www.ncaasports.com.

      Early on, it didn't seem like UNK would have to worry about hosting next weekend. The Lopers had eight attack errors, six being unforced, and saw Springs jump out to leads of 18-11 and 23-17 in game one.

      Scott (Broken Bow) started a 7-1 Loper run with a kill and solo block. UNK tied the game at 24 on a kill from Scott and then grabbed the lead back, 27-26, when Burson smashed home a kill.

      A UNK service error allowed Springs to tie things at 28 but the Lions returned the favor with their own service miscue. An unforced hitting error by Springs gave UNK a 1-0 lead in the match.

      However, the Lopers cold hitting continued in the second game -- 11 errors and a .130 attack percentage -- as the Lions had five team blocks. Senior Diane Sheldon had five kills and three blocks to help Springs lead from start to finish.

      Things returned to normal for UNK over the final two games as the team committed only eight total errors. The Lopers were at .412 (15-1-34) in game three and then .271 (20-7-48) in the fourth set.

      The Lopers dominated game three, leading 20-9 at one point, but the fourth set featured 11 ties and three lead changes.

      Ahead 22-20, UNK went on a 5-3 run that included kills from Burson and sophomore Emily Christen and a solo block from sophomore Shannon Clausen (Beatrice). Down four, Springs wouldn't get closer then three points the rest of the way.

      Christen (Anselmo) was in the game due to an injury suffered by starting middle Jeri Walkowiak (Grand Island). The first-team All-RMAC selection injured her finger while trying to block Sheldon early in the fourth set and didn't return.

      UNK finished at a respectable .245 attack percentage and registered 10 more kills then Springs. The Lopers won the dig game by eight, 80-72, but Springs had one more team block, 11-10.

      Scott reached her kill total in 31 swings and had only one error to hit a sizzling .645. For the weekend, she averaged 5.00 kills per game and hit .506. The 21 kills is one shy of her career high, set earlier this year in a four game win over Adams State.

      Burson swung a team-high 59 times and hit .203 for the match. Also on the outside, freshman Kelsey Werner (Grand Island) came up with another solid effort off the bench, having 11 kills, five digs and three blocks.

      This is only the second time all year Werner has reached double figures in kills in a match (13, at Western New Mexico).

      Before leaving, Walkowiak had eight kills and a team-high four blocks. Christen came up big in the fourth set, having four kills in five swings (.800 attack pct.). Finally, libero Kelli Wemhoff (Humphrey) had a match-high 25 digs, putting her at 611 for the season.

      Sheldon led Springs with 17 kills and a .256 attack percentage with fellow senior Brooke Akers at 15 kills and seven blocks. Also, Heidi Fehringer had 12 kills and four blocks.

2007 All-Tournament Team

Nikki Scott, UNK (MVP)

Erica Burson, UNK

Cola Svec, UNK

Brooke Akers, UCCS

Diane Sheldon, UCCS

Andrea Tuck, Adams State

Alzie Auelua, Western New Mexico

Pictured below are Scott-Christen-Burson-Werner-Svec