McPhee Center, 09/04-09/05/09
Posted: 09/06/09

The differences between this season’s and last season’s WIAC champion volleyball team go beyond the roster, which has seven new faces. The team this year has been able to jump out to a fast start, something last year’s team couldn’t do.

The Blugolds hosted the Labor Day Classic – a weekend tournament that featured five different teams playing four games each – and won all four matches they played. The four wins this weekend, coupled with the two wins in the season opener in Stevens Point Tuesday, improve the team’s overall record to 6-0. In comparison, one year ago the Blugolds found themselves at 3-3, and the team would eventually fall to 4-5 before rebounding to share the conference championship with UW-Oshkosh.

“We’re a whole new team this year, and our strength of schedule is a little bit different too,” senior Lindsey Smith said. “We’re set on being the best team we can be.”

The Blugolds, ranked No. 20 in the nation, opened the tournament with a pair of sweeps against St. Scholastica and UW-Stout on the first day. In the second game against St. Scholastica, the Blugolds found themselves trailing 24-21 but eventually rallied to win, with a final score of 27-25.

Sophomore Liz Amici and junior Emily Zupon both recorded 10 kills, and junior Amanda Lessner led the team with 27 assists against St. Scholastica. In the second match, Amici’s eight kills led the team, while Smith added 10 digs. Lessner once again led the team in assists, this time with 19, while freshman Emily Neave added 16.

“For the past several years our defense has been pretty good, and we’re just really strong defensively,” Smith said. “On top of that, I think we ran the fastest offense at the tournament this weekend.”

Day two of the tournament started off on the same note for the Blugolds, who swept Judson University (Ill.), with all three victories coming by the score of 25-15. Zupon once again led the team in kills, with 10.

Eau Claire then took on Gustavus Adolphus (Minn.), ranked No. 21 in the nation, in the final match of the tournament. The Blugolds won the first game 25-18 but lost the next two, both by the score of 25-23. However, Eau Claire bounced back, taking the fourth game 25-19. The fifth and final game of the match was a landslide victory for Eau Claire: 15-3.

“They were also the ones who knocked us out of the first round of the NCAA tournament last year,” Smith said. “But I think there was more pressure coming from the fact that we didn’t want to lose on our home court.”

Junior Blair Murphy led the way for the Blugolds with 18 kills against Gustavus Adolphus, while senior Kristen Moore also reached double digits with 12.

The Blugolds will take their 6-0 record to Minneapolis next weekend when they compete in the Augsburg Tournament.