Volleyball Team to Face Millersville in PSAC Quarterfinals; Top-Seeded Lock Haven Awaits Winner
November 11, 2005

EDINBORO, PA … The Edinboro University volleyball team turned a run of 17 wins in 19 matches into a berth in the PSAC Championships. The Fighting Scots, under first-year coach Missy Soboleski, ended the regular season with a 24-14 record. More importantly, Edinboro captured a five-game match with Indiana(Pa.) last Saturday to secure the third and final PSAC West playoff berth.

Kutztown is hosting the PSAC Championships, scheduled for Friday, November 11 and Saturday, November 12. Edinboro faces Millersville, the number two seed in the East, on Friday at 10 a.m. The Marauders were 15-15 overall and 6-4 in the Eastern Division. The second quarterfinal begins at 12:30 p.m., with California(Pa.) (30-2, 8-2), the West’s number two seed, opposing West Chester (20-13, 6-4), the number three seed out of the East.

The semifinals are set for later in the day, with the Edinboro-Millersville winner facing the top seed in the West, Lock Haven, at 5:00 p.m. The Lady Eagles are 29-4 overall and a perfect 10-0 in league play, and are ranked 17th in the AVCA Top 25. Host Kutztown (21-11, 7-3), the number one seed in the East, opposes the California(Pa.)-West Chester winner at 7:30 p.m. The championship match is scheduled for Saturday at 3:00 p.m.

“During the early portion of our season, we were searching for the appropriate roles for our players,” pointed out Soboleski. “Once we established those roles, the team started to taste success, and with that, gained confidence. That confidence has carried us to where we are today.

“We have had exceptional senior leadership throughout the season,” she continued. “They have exhibited a high standard for the rest of the team to emulate. The discipline, dedication and leadership of our seniors has had a major impact in the success of our team.”

Struggling with a 7-12 record and the losers of their first four league matches, the Fighting Scots hardly looked like a playoff contender. But since the end of September, when they won all four of their matches in the Clarion Invitational, the Fighting Scots have lost only to Lock Haven and California(Pa.), running off win streaks of eight, four, and five matches.

Edinboro and Millersville faced each other in the PSAC Crossover at Edinboro on October 8. The Fighting Scots swept the Marauders in three games, 30-18, 30-24, and 30-25.

The Fighting Scots are led by their middle hitter tandem of Alicia Knouff (Louisville, OH/ Louisville) and Jenna Newman (Reno, NV/Coronado). Knouff, a 6’1” senior, leads the team with 450 kills, the fifth-highest season total in school history. She ranks third on the team with a hitting percentage of .327. In addition, Knouff has team-highs of 27 block solos and 104 block assists. She has 47 service aces, tied for second on the team. For her career, Knouff ranks fourth in block solos (67) and

fifth in block assists (244). Newman, a 5’11” sophomore, has 434 kills, the seventh-highest season total, and a .339 hitting percentage, second on the team. She is also second to Knouff in block solos (19) and block assists (79).

A year ago Ashley Cottengim (Fairport, NY/Fairport) was thrown into the lineup at setter when Renee Kam went down with an injury. She struggled at times, but when Kam’s sister Mallory, quit the team this year, Cottengim was ready to step in. The 5’8” junior has 1,147 assists, the eighth-highest season total, ranks fourth on the team in digs (322), and is tied with Knouff with 47 service aces.

Two other seniors have played large roles. Tiffany Trgovac (Irvine, CA/Irvine), a 5’9” outside hitter, ranks third in kills with 224, and is second in digs with 375. Michelle Bator (West Middlesex, PA/West Middlesex), a 5’7” libero, leads the team with 530 digs. That figure ranks fourth all-time. Junior Amelia Robinson (Amherst, OH/Marion L. Steele) set the school record for service aces this season with 82. The 5’6” outside hitter also has 332 digs, third on the team.

Until failing to make the PSAC playoffs last year, Edinboro had been a dominant force in PSAC volleyball circles. The Fighting Scots have won nine PSAC titles and had reached the PSAC title match in an incredible 17 straight seasons until failing to make the PSAC playoffs last year.

Following this weekend’s PSAC Championships, the Fighting Scots will likely participate in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional next weekend. Edinboro is currently ranked third in the region, with the top eight teams receiving bids.