As expected, the Washington University women’s volleyball rolled to their 14th consecutive UAA conference championship last weekend in Cleveland. The Bears racked up five wins in two days and closed the tournament by beating seventh-ranked Emory 30-19, 30-10, 30-21.
After the tournament, senior Rebecca Rotello, sophomore Colleen Winter, and junior Amy Brand were named to the all-UAA first team, while junior Katie Quinn received second team honors and junior Cindy McPeak earned honorable mention.
The Bears finished the regular season with a 37-1 record, ranking second in Division III to California St. Hayward, and sent a statement to the rest of the teams with their dominating performance.
“We had a lot injuries and were real tired, so I didn’t know what to expect,” said head coach Rich Luenemann, who along with his staff was named 2002 UAA Coaching Staff of the Year. “But we came out against Emory and played our best match of the year. They were the seventh-ranked team, and we beat them badly. Our team was firing on all cylinders and all phases of our game were connecting well.”
Some more great news for WU arrived Sunday night, as it was selected to play host to the Central Regional of the Division III Tournament. Of the 48 teams that make the tournament, eight sites are selected based on performance and economic factors to host regional sections consisting of six teams each.
As the top seed, the Bears get a bye in the first round and will face the winner of St. Olaf and Maryville on Friday. Despite being the second ranked team in the country, there was still a chance that WU would be denied a regional. However, the Bears were eventually selected to host the section which also includes Nebraska Wesleyan, Wartburg, and Fontbonne.
After the regionals, four more quarterfinal sites are chosen, and then those winners advance to the Final Four. Since the NCAA does not re-seed the teams after regionals, the competition in the Final Four is sometimes only slightly more difficult than in the early rounds.
“I wish it was different, but the committee has to consider lots of economic factors, such as cost and distance of travel, when they make the seedings,” said Luenemann. “We’d like to be treated the same as Division I, but we’ll be excited no matter where or who we play.”
The Bears have a lengthy history in tournament play, ranking third all-time with 51 wins and 10 Final Four appearances. They are also making their 16th consecutive appearance, and went 6-0 against the teams in the Central Regional during the season, including a win over second-seeded Wartburg.
WU kicked off the UAA tournament on Friday by sweeping three matches from Rochester, Brandeis, and New York University without losing a game. The Bears completely controlled the first game of the Rochester match, as they only gave up nine points. Rotello also moved into second place on the all time WU assist chart, and sophomore Ishi Ballew recorded a career high 16 kills.
The Bears then won both of their matches on Saturday to take the championship and move to 182-3 all time in UAA play. The victories also gave them an automatic bid to the Division III tournament
WU had a tougher time against Carnegie Mellon, pulling out a 30-27, 27-30, 30-22, 30-19 win. Winter racked up 18 kills and 21 digs, and Rotello came up just short of getting a triple-double in assists, digs, and kills. The Bears had only lost one match to Carnegie Mellon in their history, and had never lost to Emory.
With the team’s current strong play and the top UAA coaching staff, the Bears will be favored in their quest to bring a record eighth championship home to Washington University.