St. John's University Athletics
2000 Volleyball Preview
8/28/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
This past off season, St. John's added two new players, which will add depth to an already strong team. Persico-Smith hopes that this increased depth, combined with the experience of last year, will translate into success on the court this fall.
A position by position look at the 2000 Red Storm:
Setters
The Red Storm have two players to turn to at the setter position - sophomore Emily Blosser (Pataskala, OH) and freshman Robyn Kurasaki (Milliani, HI). Blosser had a strong rookie campaign for St. John's. In 86 games, she collected 16 kills, 287 assists, 20 service aces and 99 digs. Persico-Smith also expects the very talented Kurasaki to come in and compete for playing time. Both Blosser and Kurasaki have a great understanding of the game. They will be looked upon to control the pace of the game and lead their teammates both on and off the court. Outside Hitters Persico-Smith's club returns a number of key veterans at the outside hitter position which should provide the foundation for the Red Storm's offense in 2000.
Heading this list is senior tri-captain Olga Roudovski (Brooklyn, NY), last year's team MVP. Roudovski once again led the team offensively, with a team high 410 kills. In 106 games, she collected 224 digs (fourth on the team), 24 total blocks, 17 service aces, and had a .236 hitting percentage. The 410 kills in a season was second most in school history. She was named to the SJU Classic All-Tournament Team, the Nike Classic All-Tournament Team and the Fairfield Classic All-Tournament Team. In addition, she was named BIG EAST Player of the Week for the week ending 10/20/99. Roudovski currently ranks third on SJU's career list with 987 kills. Senior tri-captain Stephanie Luehr (Wood River, NE) will be looked upon to provide defense and leadership for the Red Storm. She collected 133 digs in 95 games last season. Off the court, Luehr was named to the President's Society, which is the highest award given to SJU students. Juniors Kristy Mercein (East Meadow, NY) and Sterie Varghese (Elmont, NY) both provide the Red Storm with strong defense. Mercein was second on the team with 297 digs and added 159 kills and 16 service aces in 108 games. Varghese saw action in 86 games, and collected 30 kills, 14 service aces and 153 digs. Sophomore Tiffany Holder (Sebastopal, CA) should see an increased role with the Red Storm this year. In 27 games, she collected 13 kills, six service aces, three assists and 25 digs as a freshman. On the right side, St. John's will look to senior tri-captain Amanda Berg (Dekalb, IL). Berg has great size at 6-0 for both hitting and blocking and should also see time as a middle. In 98 games, she collected 206 kills (third on the team), 88 total blocks (second on the team), 88 digs and 27 assists. Like Luehr, Berg was named to the President's Society. Berg is a well rounded player and will be looked upon to bring experience and leadership to the team. Freshman Roslyn Dang (Honolulu, HI) will have the opportunity to compete for playing time and should see action right away.
Middle Blockers
Including Berg, Persico-Smith will have four players to provide the force in the middle this season. Senior Aleeza Miller (Los Angeles, CA) will be looked upon to provide both offense and defense out of the middle for St. John's. Miller collected 190 kills, 97 total blocks and had an amazing .306 hitting percentage last year. Sophomore Meaghan Creedon (Rohnert Park, CA) played in 35 games as a freshman for the Red Storm. For the season, she collected 44 kills, four assists, 11 digs and 20 total blocks. After red-shirting the season due to injury, Persico-Smith will have the services of sophomore Christie Brough (Scottsdale, AZ). At the SJU Athletic Awards Dinner, Brough received the Kathleen Murphy Meehan Award, which is presented to a member of the volleyball team who exhibits leadership, integrity, sportsmanship and dedication for whom this award is named after. The 2000 Schedule
The 2000 Red Storm will take on a very challenging schedule. St. John's will open its season on Sept. 1, on the road at the Central Connecticut State Tournament. Also competing in the tournament will be Texas - El Paso and Holy Cross.
The team will then return home to take on St. Peter's College on Sept. 5. This year's SJU Classic will take place on Sept. 8-9. The field will consist of St. Francis, Manhattan and Princeton.
After its home tournament, St. John's will hit the road again and compete in the Wagner College Tournament and then the Dartmouth College Tournament. The Wagner College Tournament will be a good test for the Red Storm as they will face Duquesne, Lehigh and host Wagner. Along with St. John's and Dartmouth, Maine and Quinnipiac will round out this year's field at the Dartmouth College Tournament.
All four tournaments will prepare St. John's for its always competitive BIG EAST schedule. If all goes well, St. John's should once again be among the elite in the BIG EAST and make the 2000 conference tournament.
