Volleyball starts strong, focuses on NCAA tourney

By Margo Consul

After a strong finish in 2007, the Santa Clara women's volleyball team has high expectations for this season.

The Broncos finished with an overall record of 19-2 last season and tied for the West Coast Conference title with the University of San Diego. Both teams finished with a record of 11-3 in WCC play.

One of the Broncos' goals for this season is to come out on top against rival San Diego.

"San Diego is a definite rivalry, they are really good," said junior outside hitter Nina Sevastopolous. "We compete with them all the time and every game is good. It's never a sweep and we always try our hardest to prepare."

"We spend a lot of hours in the gym and we want to get to the NCAA tournament," Sevastopolous added.

The Broncos are well on their way to achieving their goal of another conference title and advancing far into the NCAA tournament during the 2008-09 season. They hold a record of 8-3 and their tough play is already making a big impression.

With the team's victory over UC Santa Barbara, head coach Jon Wallace earned his 200th win.

With Wallace at the helm, the Broncos have compiled a 201-80 overall record and a 98-28 record in WCC play.

Santa Clara will be looking to seniors Brittany Lowe and Anna Cmaylo for their experience and leadership this season.

Lowe joined the 1,000-dig club after the Broncos' win over Long Beach State last Friday night. She leads the team in kills and points this season.

The outside hitter also leads the team in solo blocks, and has 11 aces and 11 total blocks. Lowe is now ninth overall in Santa Clara history in kills at 1,216, seventh in attempts at 3,145 and eighth in aces with 119.

Cmaylo has had an impressive start as well. After redshirting last season due to a season-ending injury, the middle back has already earned a new match-high 12 kills on September 16.

Cmaylo posted 25 kills, two aces, 15 digs and 16 total blocks for the Broncos to earn all-tournament honors at the Stanford Invitational on Sept. 13.

Her efforts are paying off as she leads the team with 33 total blocks.

"We have a really good team this year," Sevastopolous said. "We have a lot of good freshmen this year."

One such freshman is Libby Morrison, a defensive specialist. The Portland native has 82 digs this season.

"She is a feisty little player. She is really fast around the court and is really good at digging," Sevastopolous said.

Tanya Schmidt, another standout freshman, has already made a name for herself at the net. The middle back has racked up 73 kills, 30 total blocks and 11 digs.

"I'm so grateful that the coaches are giving me this opportunity to start this year," Schmidt said.

"I'm really looking forward to this season," she added. "The girls on the team make an effort to make the freshmen feel comfortable so I love it here at Santa Clara. I'm excited for this season and the next four years."

The team's personal goals are to have great team chemistry, to have fun on and off the court and to win every match they play.

"We have high expectations," Sevastopoulos said. "We set our goals high because we work really hard and really want to do our best."

Contact Margo Consul at (408) 551-1918 or mconsul@scu.edu.