Sept. 1, 2001
Toledo, Ohio - The Western Kentucky volleyball team finished 2-1 in the Clarion Hotel Westgate Rocket Classic after splitting two matches on Saturday.
After disposing of Cleveland State in three games Friday evening, the Lady Toppers (2-1) opened Saturday's play with a three-game win over Chicago State (30-17, 30-14, 30-26). Senior outside hitters Natalie Furry (Normal, Ill. / Normal Community H.S.) and TaraThomas (Louisville, Ky. / Assumption H.S.) each recorded ten kills in the victory, with Furry tallied the 1,000th kill of her career. Western hit a match-best .440 in the first game with 14 kills on 25 attempts. The Lady Toppers also held the Cougars to a -.021 hitting percentage during the three games.
In the nightcap, Western dropped three close games to the host Rockets (30-28, 30-27, 30-25). Junior setter Sara Noe (Louisville, Ky. / Assumption H.S.) recorded 34 assists in the match, making her only the fourth player in Western history to eclipse the 2,000-career assist mark. Thomas led western with 14 kills, but as a team, WKU hit only .173 for the match, recording 40 kills on 110 swings. Toledo finished 3-0 on the weekend to win the tournament championship.
Senior middle hitter Jessica Willard (Louisville, Ky. / Assumption H.S.), Noe and Thomas, were named to the all-tournament team.
The Lady Toppers return to action Tuesday at 6 p.m. (CDT) when they travel to Lexington, Ky. to take on the University of Kentucky.
- WKU -
