Knights Fall to California ( Pa.) in NCAA Volleyball Tournament

November 18, 2004

LOCK HAVEN, PA—The Knights were able to tie the match up after two games but could not pull off the upset over No. 2 seed California University of Pennsylvania in the first round of the Atlantic Regional in the 2004 NCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball Championship Thursday at host Lock Haven University. No. 7 seed St. Andrews lost 3-1 (30-27, 27-30, 30-18, 30-22) to the Vulcan’s in their opening match of their first-ever trip in the national tournament.

The Knights did not let the new experience bother them as they jumped out to an early 11-4 lead in the first game of the match. The Vulcan’s fought back with 13-4 run to take a 17-16 lead. California continued to lead but a Tirzah Armenta ( Phoenix, AZ) kill cut the St. Andrews deficit to two at 28-26. The Vulcan’s escaped with two of the final three points to take the lead after the first game.

Just like the first game SAPC took control early in the second with a 13-5 lead. A kill by Kim Harper ( Boca Raton, FL) extended the Knights lead to 18-9. California would close the gap but St. Andrews held on with a three-point win to tie the match up a 1-1.

The third game started out close with both teams deadlocked at 12-12 before the Vulcan’s would go on a 15-4 run to take the commanding 27-16 lead and cruise to the 12 point victory.

St. Andrews tried to tie the match back up in the fourth game. A Nicki Bateman ( Liberty, NC) kill put the Knights up 14-12. However, the Vulcan’s would run off the next 11 points to take the powerful 23-14 lead. SAPC would take eight of the final 15 points but it was not enough as California would win the game 30-22 and advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Armenta led the Knights with 17 kills and 11 digs. Sara Smith (Thompson Station, TN) tallied 13 kills and Harper provided 36 assists and 15 digs. Jessica Burkart ( Puyallup, WA) had a team-high 20 digs.

The Knights could not stop Vulcan Katie Barker, who ripped a game-high 32 kills on 62 attempts for a .468 hitting percentage. Five different California players reached double digits in digs.

St. Andrews finished its season with a 16-13 record while the Vulcan’s improved to 27-6. It was a great experience for the Knights that they will look to build on next year.

Knights Volleyball Headed to the ‘Big Dance’

November 15, 2004

LAURINBURG, NC—The St. Andrews Presbyterian College volleyball team received its first-ever bid to the NCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball Championships. The Knights enter the tournament as the No. 7 seed in the Atlantic Regional and will play No. 2 seed California University of Pennsylvania on Thursday afternoon at 2:30 p.m.

The Knights enter the ‘Big Dance’, aka the NCAA Championship Tournament, with a 16-12 overall record while the Vulcan’s of California (Pa.) have a 26-6 record. The Atlantic Regional is hosted by No. 1 seed Lock Haven University in Lock Haven, Pa.

SAPC finished the regular season ranked seventh in the Atlantic Region and was ranked as high as sixth during the year.

St. Andrews ended the regular season with a 14-4 Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference record, tying a team-high record in CVAC wins. The Knights entered the conference tournament, which was hosted by SAPC this weekend, as the No. 3 seed. The Knights defeated No. 6 seed Coker in three straight games before being upset by No. 7 seed Barton in a thrilling five-game semifinal match.

“We are very excited to have the opportunity to play in the national tournament and its something that I’m very proud of,” said St. Andrews Head Coach Bill Rude. “The team has worked hard and it’s a huge step in the right direction for our program.”

“Making the tournament says a lot about our players who have worked extremely hard and never quit when the times got tough,” continued Rude. “We won a lot of big games that we needed to win.”

“We would have never made it without the help of so many people that worked so hard for us including the student-athletes, my assistants (Ben Briney and Hal Clifton) and our alumni. I would also like to thank everyone who has supported our team including the fans, Carl Ullrich (Athletic Director) and Howard Reichner (Faculty Athletic Representative).

“When I came back to St. Andrews in March of 2003, many people told me that this was not the place to be and I wouldn’t be able to win here,” explained Rude. “However, making the tournament proves these people wrong and that we are moving in the right direction.”

Continuing with a smile on his face Rude said, “Our players have sacrificed a lot to compete at this level, but they are gladly willing to make it to be successful. We are some of the lucky that get to experience something as great as competing in the NCAA tournament. Its something that you cannot buy; it’s something you have to pay for with hard work and sweat.”

The Knights will be one of three CVAC schools participating in the Atlantic Regional. It’s the first time in conference history that three CVAC schools have made the NCAA tournament. No. 5 seed Lees-McRae qualified after winning the CVAC Tournament on Sunday and No. 6 seed Mount Olive received an at-large bid with SAPC.

November 12, 2004

THOMASVILLE, NC—Tirzah Armenta of St. Andrews Presbyterian College was selected the 2004 CVAC Volleyball Freshman of the Year by the conference head coaches on Friday night at the Honors Banquet during this weekend’s tournament hosted by SAPC.

Armenta, Jessica Burkart and Kim Harper were also named to the CVAC All-Conference list. Armenta, a freshman outside hitter from Phoenix, AZ, averaged a double-double for the Knights with 15.44 kills/match and 12.32 digs/match. Armenta led St. Andrews with 386 kills and ranked fifth in the CVAC with 4.329 kills/game. Armenta finished the regular season with a .246 hitting percentage, 308 digs, 20 solo blocks and 19 assisted blocks. Along with being named the CVAC Freshman of the Year, Armenta was selected to the CVAC First Team All-Conference. Armenta also was a CVAC Player of the Week this year.

For the second straight year sophomore setter Kim Harper made the CVAC Honorable Mention Team averaging 11.9 assists/game. The Boca Raton, FL, native led the Knights with 1115 assists and played in every game for St. Andrews this season. Heading into the last week of the season Harper ranked third in the CVAC in assists per game. Harper also led the Knights with 44 service aces.

Freshman Jessica Burkart served as the Knights libero this season and was recognized by the CVAC by making the Honorable Mention Team averaging 4.459 digs/game. The Puyallup, WA, native led the Knights with 379 digs and ranked fifth in the CVAC in digs per game.

Knights Volleyball Advances to CVAC Semifinals

November 13, 2004

LAURINBURG, NC—In the quarterfinals of the 2004 CVAC Volleyball Tournament No. 3 seed St. Andrews Presbyterian College defeated No. 6 seed Coker College 3-0 (30-28, 30-25, 30-24) Saturday morning Harris Court on the campus of St. Andrews.

The Knights improved to 16-11 and will play No. 7 seed Barton Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. in Harris Court. The Cobras fell to 16-15.

Statistical Leaders for St. Andrews:
Nicki Bateman – 12 kills, .423 hitting percentage, 2 solo blocks, 1 assisted block
Kim Harper – 15 digs, 37 assists, 3 service aces
Tirzah Armenta – 14 kills, 5 service aces, 4 digs, 1 solo block, 1 assisted block
Jessica Burkart – 15 digs
Sara Smith – 8 kills, 8 digs, 1 service ace
Jesi Bewley – 8 kills, 2 digs, 1 service ace, 1 solo block
Lauren McManus – 12 digs, 3 kills, 3 assists

Statistical Leaders for Coker:
Andrea Manuel – 10 kills, 23 digs
Tara Nelson – 14 digs, 37 assists
Jessica Norton – 3 assisted blocks, 2 service aces
Courtney Barton – 5 assisted blocks, 1 solo block
Megan Haupt – 10 kills
Margaret Madison – 9 kills

November 9, 2004

LAURINBURG, NC—After losing the first two games on ‘Senior Night’ the St. Andrews volleyball team rallied to force a fifth game before falling to visiting Newberry College Tuesday in Harris Court. With the 30-21, 30-21, 24-30, 27-30, 15-13 victory the Indians finish the regular season with a 10-18 record while the Knights conclude regular season play with a 15-11 mark.

Newberry looked to be in complete control of the match taking early leads in the first two games and coasting to nine-point wins in both sets. St. Andrews responded with their best game in the third jumping out to an 18-10 lead and holding on for a 30-24 win. The Knights used the momentum to take a 15-10 lead in the fourth but the Indians fought back with five straight points to tie the game up at 15-15. The set remained close with everything tied at 27-27 but SAPC scored the next three points to square the match up at 2-2.

The Indians grabbed the early 6-4 lead in the deciding game. The Knights rebounded with the next six points to take a commanding 10-6 advantage. However, Newberry would supply the final run out scoring St. Andrews 9-3 down the stretch to take the match.

Nicki Bateman (Liberty, NC), the only senior for the Knights, finished her regular season career with 15 kills, four solo blocks, two digs and a service ace. Tirzah Armenta (Phoenix, AZ) chipped in with another double-double including 20 digs and 18 kills. Jesi Bewley (Cincinnati, OH) had 16 digs and 10 kills and Sara Smith (Thompson Station, TN) contributed with 15 digs and 14 kills. Kim Harper (Boca Raton, FL) had 46 assists, 16 digs, seven kills and two aces.

St. Andrews will begin hosting the Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference Volleyball Tournament on Friday afternoon. The Knights enter the tournament as the No. 3 seed and will take on No. 6 Coker College on Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m.

November 4, 2004

LAURINBURG, NC—Tirzah Armenta (Phoenix, AZ) tallied her 16th double-double of the season leading the St. Andrews volleyball team to a 3-1 victory over Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference rival Belmont Abbey in Harris Court on Thursday. The 30-18, 27-30, 30-23, 30-26 win improved the Knights to 15-10 overall and 14-4 in the CVAC while the Crusaders fell to 5-19 and 4-12.

SAPC jumped out to an early 13-7 lead in the first game and cruised to their easiest set win of the night, 30-18. Belmont Abbey responded in the second game grapping an11-8 lead and holding off the Knights for the close 30-27 win.

The Knights came out hot in the third game scoring the first five points and carrying the momentum to the 30-23 game win. St. Andrews looked confident at the start of the fourth game taking a 9-6 lead but the Crusaders storm back to take a 17-13 advantage. BAC maintained the lead up until 25-23, when the Knights surged ahead with seven of the last eight points to take the game and the match.

Armenta led St. Andrews with 17 kills and tied Nicki Bateman (Liberty, NC) for the team-lead with 20 kills. Setter Kim Harper (Boca Raton, FL) recorded 59 assists, eight digs and a .556 hitting percentage. Sara Smith (Thompson Station, TN) and Jesi Bewley (Cincinnati, OH) finished with double digit kills at 10 each. Smith also had 10 digs while Jessica Burkart (Puyallup, WA) made 15 digs.

The Crusaders were led by Sarah Halligan’s (Yuma, AZ) 18 kills and 22 digs. Lydia Johnson (Charleston, SC) chipped in with 22 assists, 11 digs and two service aces. Peggy Ploeger (Storm Lake, IA) had five blocks. Ploeger and Latoya Gordon (Clinton, MD) had 11 kills apiece and Mallory Adkins (Penhook, VA) contributed with 13 assists and three blocks.

The Knights tied their most conference victories in the CVAC era with 14. St. Andrews raps up the regular season hosting non-conference Newberry on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The Knights enter the CVAC Tournament as the No. 3 seed and will play at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 13th (CVAC Tournament hosted by St. Andrews).

November 2, 2004

PEMBROKE, NC—On a night when both offenses struggled, senior Natalie Niesborella anchored a UNCP defense with a game-high 23 digs, leading the Pembroke volleyball squad to a 3-1 win over visiting St. Andrews in the Jones Center on Tuesday night (14-30, 30-27, 30-26, 30-25). The Lady Braves have now won two out of their last three games and stand at 8-20 on the season. SAPC falls to 14-10 overall.

St. Andrews dominated game one, and UNCP struggled to find a spark in the 30-14 loss. The Knights recorded a .255 hitting percentage to Pembroke's -.049 for the game.

The Lady Braves, however, bounced back to take game two behind the impressive serving of junior Kelly Parker. Tied at one game apiece, UNCP cruised to victories in games three and four, receiving a much needed lift from sophomore Rachelle Milbank, who came off the bench to tally eight kills and three service aces.

Tirzah Armenta paced the Knights with a game-high 15 kills and 12 digs. Jessica Bewley finished with 13 kills, while setter Kim Harper tallied 41 assists on the night. Defensively, Jessica Burkart recorded 24 digs.

For UNCP, senior Stacy Norton notched a team-high 14 kills, while Parker finished with 11. Jenn Paroda recorded yet another double-double with 40 assists and 16 digs.

SAPC will wrap up their CVAC regular season on Thursday when the Knights host Belmont Abbey at 6:30 p.m. Thursday’s game is a rescheduled game from earlier in the year.