St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Tops Marist 3-0 in Season Opener
8/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 28, 2005
Queens, NY - The St. John's Red Storm women's volleyball team opened the 2005 season with a 3-0 win against Marist today at McCann Center in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Sophomore LaToya Blunt (Vacaville, Ca.) led the Storm with eight kills. Junior Alena Putintseva (Almaty, Kazakhstan) totaled 18 attacks and freshman Casie Brooks (Victorville, Ca.) who saw action in all three games, led the team in assists and service aces with 18 and 5, respectively.
The Red Storm began strong and held onto the lead during the first game, winning 30-18 and hitting.321. The Red Foxes took a 4-1 lead at the beginning of the second game but the team's early efforts were not enough to hold back the Storm. With the strong foundation provided by middle hitter Cailtin Rimgaila (Trooper, Pa.) and middle blocker Shameka Mitchell (Lakeland, Fl.), The Red Storm bounced back to take the lead once again, winning the second game 30-24.
The largest margin the Red Storm had over the Red Foxes, 15-5, came during the third game. Though the lead diminished, the Red Storm held on with a reaching dig by Lisa Tedder (Coos Bay, Ore.), which found her falling over the bench. The Red Storm continued its domination of the game, closing it one hour and 25 minutes later with a third game result of 30-21.
Playing her first game for the Red Storm, Mitchell posted 14 total attacks. Rimgaila was a strong presence at the net with seven key kills. Freshmen Hui Ping Huang (Shanghai, China) and Kathleen Yee (Honolulu, Hawaii) also saw time in all three games. Huang tallied 11 total attacks and libero Yee led the team in defensive digs with 13.
The Red Foxes, who lost to Buffalo 3-0 earlier today, left the game with a total of 96 attacks and 32 digs. Senior Sally Hanson led the defense for the Red Foxes with 11 digs and junior Stefanie Miksch posted 20 total attacks while freshmen Kelsey Schaefer led the team in kills with eight.
The Red Storm returns to action on Tuesday, Aug. 30 at Stony Brook. First serve is at 7 p.m.
