They say the third time is a charm. In the case of the Wittenberg volleyball team, it was the fourth time. After three previous trips to the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional championship match, the Tigers finally broke through on Saturday by defeating Mount St. Joseph 3-0 (30-26, 30-18, 30-24).
The Tigers advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals for the first time in school history, and the Tigers now face Wisconsin-Whitewater, champion of the Midwest Regional. The Tigers had previously advanced to the regional championship match on three occasions (1995, 1997 and 2000). Wittenberg picked up the big points at the big moments in the win over Mount St. Joseph, especially when sophomore outside hitter Monica McDonald (Newark, Ohio/Catholic) was on serve. In the decisive third game, in particular, McDonald's jump serve wreaked havoc as the Tigers went on three different three-point runs at key moments. The Tigers, the No. 1 seed and third-ranked team in the nation in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, got 21 kills from McDonald. They also picked up 52 assists from sophomore setter Sarah Yuskewich (Columbus, Ohio/Watterson), as well as four digs, three block assists and a crucial solo block during the last of the aforementioned three-point runs in the third game. In addition, senior outside hitter Teresa Murphy (Blacklick, Ohio/Newark Catholic) had 11 kills and a game-high 25 digs.
The Tigers also came on strong at the right times on Friday to capture a semifinal round victory over No. 4 seed Ohio Northern, 3-0 (30-25, 30-26, 30-24). Wittenberg, which avenged a loss to Ohio Northern in this round of last year's NCAA Division III tournament, got an outstanding performance from Yuskewich, who distributed 50 assists and 20 digs to the Tigers' cause. Her primary offensive target was McDonald, who pounded 16 kills to lead both teams. Joining McDonald in double digits offensively were Murphy with 13 kills, junior Lindsay Nelson (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) with 11 and senior middle hitterTiffany Keller (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) with 10. Three players reached double figures in digs, including sophomore Emilie Schmid's (Canton, Ohio/Massillon Jackson) 20 and Murphy's 14.
This Just In: Sarah Yuskewich was named NCAC Player of the Year and Connie Surowicz garnered Coach of the Year honors for a third time in balloting conducted by the coaches. Yuskewich was an honorable mention selection a year ago, and she was joined on the first team in 2002 by Tiffany Keller and Monica McDonald. Teresa Murphy, who was on the first team the last three years, was squeezed off in 2002 and received second team honors.
