Volleyball News Releases
May named to all-tournament team at Wheaton Invitational
MOUNT VERNON - The Cornell College volleyball team dusted away five more opponents and celebrated a perfect week by capturing the team title at the Wheaton Invitational.
The surging Rams (14-3 overall) extended their winning streak to eight matches, the longest such string in head coach Jeff Meeker's eight years on the Hilltop. Cornell, enjoying its best start to a season in more than 20 years, tops the Iowa Conference with its 14 wins and .824 winning percentage.
Cornell improved to 2-1 in the IIAC with a convincing 25-17, 25-13, 25-16 sweep of Dubuque Sept. 23 in Mount Vernon. The Rams surrendered only two sets over the weekend in four wins at the Wheaton Invitational in Wheaton, Ill. Cornell scored wins Friday over Wheaton (25-14, 21-25, 25-19, 25-22) and Edgewood (25-18, 25-19, 23-25, 25-15) and posted sweeps Saturday against Benedictine (27-25, 30-28, 25-19) and Rockford (25-4, 25-13, 25-14).
The Rams joined UW-Eau Claire and North Central with 4-0 records at Wheaton. Cornell was declared the team champion based on tiebreakers criteria.
"It was a great week for our team," Meeker said. "The win over Dubuque was our best team performance of the season. The tournament victory was another important step forward, as our goal is to stay focused on making improvement every time out."
Freshman middle hitter Morgan May (Dubuque/Wahlert) was named to the all-tournament team at Wheaton. She posted 2.4 kills per set with a .333 hitting percentage in the tournament. May tied her career high with 11 kills in the Wheaton match.
"It was a great reward for Morgan to receive all-tournament honors. She played great volleyball all week, providing a solid block and smart hitting," Meeker said. "The Wheaton win was big for us. They are a good team, but we simply had too much firepower for them."
The Rams had several other stellar individual performances at the tournament. Laura Dudgeon (Bettendorf/Bettendorf) averaged 4.0 kills and collected a team-high 14 blocks. Alissa Benjamin (Lakewood, Colo./D'Evelyn) provided 30 kills and 13 blocks. Hannah Boehmer (Riverside/Mid-Prairie) doled out 10.3 assists per set. Caiti Hladky (Fort Lupton, Colo./Valley) finished with 69 digs.
Cornell fired 33 aces in the tournament, 13 of them coming from senior defensive specialist CJ Ronhovde (Elmwood, Neb./Elmwood-Murdock). Ronhovde connected for seven aces against Wheaton, one shy of the school's single-match record. Sophomore Brittney Bishop (Highlandville, Mo./Spokane) was equally impressive against Rockford, serving 19 consecutive points with five aces in the 25-4 Set 1 victory.
The Rams overpowered Dubuque for its 10th 3-0 sweep of the season. Cornell recorded a sparkling .459 hitting percentage, committing only seven errors in 74 attack attempts. Dudgeon was nearly perfect from the front row with 14 kills on 18 attacks for a .778 hitting percentage. Kristin Paczosa (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) and May added eight and seven kills, respectively.
Coming up - Tuesday, Sept. 29, at Central, Pella, 6 p.m. (JV), 7:30 p.m. (varsity); Friday, Oct. 2, at IIAC-MIAC Border Battle, Northfield, Minn., vs. Saint Mary's, 4 p.m., vs. Augsburg, 8 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 2, at IIAC-MIAC Border Battle, Northfield, Minn., vs. St. Olaf, 9:30 a.m., vs. Carleton, 11:30 a.m.; Tuesday, Oct. 6, vs. Luther, Small Multi-Sport Center, Mount Vernon, 6 p.m. (JV), 7:30 p.m. (varsity).
Match with the Dutch - The Rams hit the road for a key conference match with perennial power Central (12-3, 1-1) Tuesday in Pella. Cornell lost to the Dutch twice in four sets last year, including a first-round exit in the 2008 IIAC Tournament. The Rams have never beaten Central since joining the IIAC in 1997, a span of 16 matches.
"We are looking forward to going to Pella," Meeker said. "They are a solid team and playing good volleyball. We are playing with a lot of confidence and I expect our team to play very well."
Border Battle - Cornell will face four quality teams this weekend in the annual IIAC-MIAC Border Battle. The Northfield, Minn., section fields last year's No. 5-8 place teams from each conference. The Rams' four opponents all entered the week with winning records - Saint Mary's (11-5), Augsburg (10-6), St. Olaf (14-2) and Carleton (9-3). St. Olaf received votes in the AVCA Top 25 Poll.
The Rams finished 1-3 in last year's competition, held in Mount Vernon.
"The Border Battle will be a great test for us," Meeker said. "This will give us another opportunity to raise over level of play."
JV off to 8-1 start - After an 8-0 start to the season, Cornell's junior varsity team was dealt its first loss Thursday, 3-2, to St. Ambrose. The Rams won their first eight matches without surrendering a set. Cornell went 4-0 in winning the Augustana Tournament Sept. 19, highlighted by a sweep over Loras in the championship match.
