Metro smashes Regis
three-game sweep nets Roadrunners No. 12

By Chris A. Petersen
The Metropolitan

For the second time this season the Metro womenâs volleyball team faced the No. 4 ranked team in the nation, and for the second time this season, it emerged victorious.

The first time Metro had to battle to a fifth game win over then No. 4 Augustana.

This time, against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference powerhouse and cross-town rival Regis, the Roadrunners made it look easy.

Metro set, spiked and slammed its way to a three game sweep of the Rangers, handing them their first conference loss of the year and only their second loss of the season.

ãThat was a big, big win for the team,ä said Metro coach Joan McDermott. ãIt was great for our confidence.ä

Metro wasted no time establishing dominance on its home court. The Roadrunners quickly rallied to a five point lead, which it maintained throughout Game 1.

Regis coach Frank Lavrisha was forced to take a timeout early as he tried to slow Metroâs momentum. However, the timeout proved only momentarily effective as Metro continued to roll, capturing the first game 15-9.

Audra Littou and Michelle Edwards, whose total kills would make a mob hitman envious, once again led Metroâs attack.

Game 2 surged with intensity as Metro was  cheered on by a raucous crowd, which helped the Roadrunners to an 11-2 lead as a bewildered Regis team scrambled to recover.

A late game effort boosted the Rangers to within five, but it was too little, too late as the Roadrunners won 15-7.

In Game 3, it was Metro playing catch-up as Regis took a six-point lead 11-5.

But where the Rangers had previously failed, the Roadrunners flourished. Spurred by the cheers of the season-high crowd of 469, Metro tallied five-straight points to tie the game 11-11.

The crowd even managed a wave to show its support.

Metroâs play proved too much for Regis and the Roadrunners claimed the match 3-0 with a 15-13 win in Game 3.

Still riding high from the Regis victory, the Roadrunners earned another three-game sweep Oct. 15 over conference opponent Colorado School of Mines.

Metro was never really challenged by Mines, taking less than an hour to dispatch the Orediggers.
The win marks the eighth sweep in the past nine matches for the Roadrunners and gave them 13 total for the year.

ãThat is how we like to do it,ä said senior Holly Rice, who finished the first game with Mines with two service aces. ãWin it in three.ä

Rice has struggled with leg injuries this season and doctors told her to take it easy, she said. She might have played her best in the two wins despite the injuries, totaling 11 kills, seven digs and two solo blocks. She excelled in the Mines match with a .421 attack percentage.

Although early in the season the team relied heavily on the talents of a few players, the entire team has begun to flourish.

The increased contributions from Rice, Shannon Ortell, Laurie Anderson and Kelly Young have served to strengthen both the attack and defense.

ãOur success is really because of a team wide effort,ä McDermott said.

Littou and Ortell led the way for the Roadrunners with 23 and 22 kills, respectively. Anderson chipped in with 77 assists in the two games.

Results from the Oct. 16 match with Colorado Christian University were not available at press time.

Metro has eight games remaining in the regular season, and it could finish with its highest ranking in the 90s if the team can march through the schedule undefeated.

That will be a tough challenge considering the Roadrunners must square off with Regis and Nebraska-Kearney near the end of the season.