It was a great home opener for the Washington University volleyball team, and an even better one for sophomore setter Kara Liefer.

The Bears stormed through the Washington University Midwest Invitational at the Field House to a 4-0 record, and placed three players on the All-Tournament team. In the final match, the Bears defeated a game Illinois Wesleyan squad 3-1 after sweeping past their other three opponents. The team beat Fontbonne earlier on Saturday, and made quick work of Milliken and Southwestern on Friday.

The biggest ingredient in the Bears’ success was Liefer’s play. She controlled the action with deft, well-placed passes and kept the other teams off balance. After the team lost Rebecca Rotello to graduation, Liefer’s big performance was much needed and provided a major confidence boost, and she was rewarded by being named to the All-Tournament team along with Cindy McPeak and Amy Brand.

“Kara Liefer came of age,” head coach Rich Luenemann said. “She just had a big tournament; what a coming-out party. I told her before the matches that I had a feeling she would make the All-Tournament team. She exhibited exceptional court control out there, and she is going to become a dynamic setter.”

In addition , the Bears also got a magnificent performance from McPeak. She showed off her powerful serve throughout the tournament, but it was never more evident than during the match against Southwestern.

The Bears took the first two games, but they fell behind 11-12 in the third. Then McPeak took over. The Bears won the next 12 points, an astounding seven of which came on aces by McPeak. She tied a career high in that department and also added nine kills and eight digs for the match.

The Bears went on to win that game 30-16, putting the finishing touches on a day in which they allowed more than 24 points in one game. After falling from the top spot in the polls to fourth place after losing to Elmhurst, the dominating display at their home tournament should enable the Bears to reclaim some of that lost ground.

The only game the Bears lost came in the final match against Illinois Wesleyan. After blazing to a win in the first game, the team came out sloppy for the second game, and made several critical errors that led to an 11-23 deficit. The Bears dropped the game 23-30, but any thought that they were reverting to their earlier season play was quickly squashed.

Coming out on fire for the third game, the Bears crushed the Titans of 30-12. Illinois Wesleyan made some runs in the fourth and final game, but it wasn’t enough to topple the Bears, who rolled to a 30-18 victory.

A highlight of the tournament for the Bears was their improved consistency. It wasn’t to the level that Luenemann would prefer, but it was significantly better than when the team suffered their only loss of the season to Elmhurst.

“I saw a big improvement in our play,” Luenemann said, “and if we had done the same thing against Elmhurst, we would be undefeated right now. Our emphasis coming in was to maintain an aggressive mentality for every point. Also, certainly our serving was a big key; that did an excellent job of taking the other teams out of their offense.”

The three All-Tournament selections are one indication of the Bears’ great team play, but are by no means the entire explanation. Katie Quinn had nine kills against Southwestern, and recorded a .750 hitting percentage against Milliken, which included a 5-for-5 performance in the first game. Colleen Winter had 14 kills and 12 digs in the match against Fontbonne, and also chipped in 11 kills against Milliken. In addition, the Bears got impressive play from sophomores Nicole Hodgman and Heidi Pfeiffer who, along with Liefer, have to make Luenemann feel good about the future of the program.

“I did think the All-Tournament selections were well-deserved,” Luenemann said, “but we definitely could have had more, because a lot of our players were deserving. We got flashes of brilliance from everyone.”

Despite the great tournament, Luenemann is still looking for a little more from his team.

“My only concern was the lulls that we sometimes experienced. We tend to get complacent after starting real well, and let teams win a game or several consecutive points. In practice, the team has been dwelling on keeping concentration up and staying focused, so that we don’t give up points in bunches very often.”

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