Nov. 15, 2002

Final Stats

Hattiesburg, Miss. - The Saint Louis University volleyball team completed the regular season with a 3-2 comeback victory at Southern Miss on Friday. Game scores were 20-30, 30-27, 12-30, 30-26, 15-10. With the win, the Billikens finished Conference USA play in fourth place with a 10-3 record. The victory also pushes the Billikens to the 20-victory plateau for the first time since the 1999 season.

Southern Miss led the entire way in game one. The Billikens closed to 27-20, but the Lady Eagles kept control to win the first game. Southern Miss outhit Saint Louis in percentage, .241 to .100, in the first game.

Colleen Hunter led the Saint Louis comeback to tie the game in game two, 30-27. The Billikens built a seven-point advantage at 25-18, but Southern Miss cut the lead to two. But the Bills held USM at bay to even the match. Hunter used eight kills without an error to lead Saint Louis.

Southern Miss dominated game three en route to a commanding 30-12 win. The Lady Eagles hit .368 while the Billikens managed only a .000. USM led for most of game four, but Saint Louis came back, using a 5-0 run to take a 23-22 lead. The Billikens tallied seven of the game's next 10 points to send the contest to a decisive fifth game.

The Billikens recorded a .353 hitting percentage, while holding the Lady Eagles to just a -.043 hitting percentage to win the match with a 15-10 victory in game five. The Billikens have been outstanding all season in ultimate games and are now 7-2 in matches that go the full distance.

Colleen Hunter recorded 27 kills with nine digs and five blocks. Ashley Hunter finished with 12 kills and a career-high nine digs. Brooke Minniear ended with 18 digs. Setter Beth Middendorf had 37 assists on the night. Nicki Tribble led USM with 19 while Andrea Bush added 17. Setter Crystal Zane ended with 52 assists. The Billikens had 13.0 team blocks to 8.0 for USM.

The win was the 799th career victory for head coach Marilyn Nolen. Her next victory will make her only the third Division I coach to garner 800 wins at four-year institutions.

The Billikens enter the 2002 Healthy Choice Conference USA Tournament with a record of 20-9 overall, 10-3 in C-USA play. Southern Miss is 14-14 overall, 5-7 in C-USA. The Billikens have earned a first-round bye in the tournament and will play in the quarterfinals of the C-USA tourney on Sat., Nov. 23, in Chicago.