Aug. 31, 2009
Center Valley, Pa.-- The Army and Bucknell volleyball teams jumped out to a 2-1 start in the 2009 season. The Black Knights swept the weekly honors with Maureen Bannon being named the Player of the Week, while Ariana Mankus was named the Rookie of the Week.
Patriot League Volleyball Release - 8.31.09 
Player of the Week (8.28.09-8.30.09)
Maureen Bannon, Army Sr., S, Manhattan Beach, Calif./Marymount Bannon started in all nine sets in Army's three matches over of the weekend at the Army Invitational. The two-time Patriot League Setter of the Year totaled 85 assists (9.44 per set), 19 digs, six kills and three aces. Named to the All-Tournament team, she posted a double-double in Army's 3-0 win over Eastern Michigan with 26 assists and 10 digs.
Rookie of the Week (8.28.09-8.30.09)
Ariana Mankus, Army, Fr., OH, Lisle, Ill./Benet Academy Mankus made her debut weekend at Army a memorable one, earning a spot on the Army Invitational All-Tournament team. She amassed 33 kills, 23 digs, eight service aces and two blocks. She had four service aces in a 3-0 win over Fairfield and another three in a 3-0 sweep of Eastern Michigan. She had a .400 or better kill percentage in both of Army's victories.
Honorable Mention Performances Last Week
Emily Sawanobori, Bucknell, So., L, Warren, N.J./Watchung Hills Sawanobori competed in 11 sets for Bucknell, recording 58 digs and 10 service aces. In a 3-2 win over St. Francis (N.Y.) she had a career-best 23 digs and six services aces. She helped Bucknell open the season with consecutive wins for the first time since 1999. She was named to the St. Francis (N.Y.) All-Tournament team for her efforts.
Angelina Waterman, American, Jr., OH, Queens, N.Y./Archbishop Molloy Waterman had a career-high 20 kills in American's loss to Georgetown and totaled 44 over the three-match D.C. Classic. For the weekend, she had 48.5 points with 44 kills, three blocks and three aces. She also had 17 digs.
Krysta Cicala, American, Fr., S, Northville, Mich./Louisiana Tech Cicala played in nine sets over the weekend for American, recording 90 assists. She had just four in her first match of her collegiate career, but bursted onto the scene with 47 against George Washington and another 39 against Georgetown. She averaged 10.0 assists, 1.78 digs and 0.67 blocks per set.
Angelika Kopacz, Lehigh, So., OH, Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford Kopacz averaged 3.5 kills per set with 49 over 14 sets and four matches. She also had 33 digs and four service aces. Kopacz recorded a double-double in Lehigh's loss to USC-Upstate with 12 kills and 15 digs.
Patriot League Notebook
Golden 500
Barry Goldberg, in his 21st season as the head coach of American, needs just two wins to reach 500 for his career. He'll be the first volleyball coach in the Patriot League to reach the milestone. He also will continue to climb the NCAA's all-time list. Entering 2009, he was 24th on the Division I all-time career victories list and 18th with a .727 winning percentage.
Young Guns
Two youthful coaches have found great success in the Patriot League over the last two seasons. Army's Alma Kovaci and Colgate's Ryan Baker have quickly garnered respect from the League, winning a combined 82 games in 2007 and 2008. Entering his fourth season at Colgate, Baker has a 46-42 record and 26-16 in the league. He has led the Raiders to the Patriot League tournament twice in the last two years. For his turnaround season where he led Colgate into the League tournament with a 17-13 record, he was named the 2007 Patriot League Coach of the Year. Kovaci, the 2008 recipient of the coaching award, has lost just three League games in her two-year career. She is 25-3 with two tournament appearances. Overall, Kovaci was 50-9 after her 2008 campaign landed Army a 26-4 record -- a winning percentage of .867, which ranked eighth in Division I.
Set For 2009
Army and Colgate return two of the League's top three setters from 2008 in Maureen Bannon and Meghan Fanta. For Army, Bannon has won the Patriot League Setter of the Year award twice (2006 and 2007) and enters the 2009 season with a school career record 11.4 assists per set. Her 3,033 assists over her first three seasons ranked fourth in Army history. Fanta holds Colgate's assist record with 3,242. She ranked third in the Patriot League with 9.28 assists per set last season. Bannon was first with 10.79 per set, while graduated senior and the 2008 Setter of the Year, Christina Nash, of American, posted an average of 10.18.
2009 Patriot League Championship
The 2009 Patriot League Volleyball Championship will take place on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 21 and 22, at the site of the highest seed as determined by regular-season standings with the top four teams qualifying for the tournament. Two semifinal matches will take place on Saturday, Nov. 21, with the No. 1 seed facing the No. 4 seed and the No. 2 seed facing the No. 3 seed. The championship match will be played on Sunday, Nov. 22, with the winner earning the Patriot League's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
2009 Patriot League Preseason Poll
American was selected as the favorite to win its ninth straight Patriot League title, receiving 96 points and 12 first-place votes in the 2009 preseason poll. The Eagles ran away with the No. 1 spot in the poll that is voted on by Patriot League volleyball head coaches and sports information contacts. Colgate edged out Army for No. 2, earning 79 points and three first-place votes, while Army had 78 points and one first-place vote. Bucknell was fourth with 65 points and Navy was fifth with 49. Lehigh (34), Lafayette (31) and Holy Cross (16) round out the preseason poll.
Team Notebooks
American The Eagles opened the season with three tough losses in the D.C. Classic. On Friday, George Mason swept the Eagles 3-0, while Georgetown and George Washington picked up 3-1 wins on Saturday. American will pack up and head out West to compete in three matches at the Nike Portland Invitational. They will face host Portland twice, at 7 p.m. Thursday and 1 p.m. Saturday. The Eagles also will face New Mexico at 7 p.m. Friday.
Army The Black Knights won two out of three contests at the Army Invitational to kick off the 2009 season. They swept Fairfield and Eastern Michigan 3-0 on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Sacred Heart ended Army's streak with a 3-0 win Saturday night. Army will be at Manhattan at 7 p.m. Tuesday before heading to the Delaware Tournament. The Knights will open the tournament with an 11 a.m. match against Rutgers Friday. They will match up against host Delaware at 11 a.m. Saturday followed by Princeton at 5.
Bucknell The Bison finished 2-1 at the St. Francis College Invitational, winning 3-0 over St. Peter's on Friday and 3-2 over St. Francis (N.Y.) on Saturday. NJIT thwarted the Bison's attempt at sweeping the weekend with a 3-0 win Saturday. Bucknell will return to the court this weekend with three matches at the Marist Invitational. Bucknell will face Marist at 12:30 p.m. Friday, followed by a 4:30 match against Bryant. They'll compete against Providence at 11 a.m. Saturday.
Colgate The Raiders opened the season with a 3-0 win over Coppin State Friday at home. Colgate will look to stay on the winning track when it travels to Cambridge, Mass., for the Harvard Invitational. The Raiders will face Harvard at 7 p.m. Friday and Toledo at 10 a.m. Saturday, followed by Stony Brook at 4.
Holy Cross The Crusaders were idle during the first week of volleyball in the 2009 season. They will open their season with a non-League home match against Providence at 7 p.m. Wednesday. They will then travel to Fairfield, Conn., to compete in the Sacred Heart Invitational. Holy Cross will open the tournament with a 7 p.m. match against Sacred Heart on Friday. On Saturday, the Crusaders will face Iona at noon and Missouri-Kansas City at 2.
Lafayette The Leopards did not compete in the first week of the 2009 season and will open up on Wednesday with a 7 p.m. match at St. Francis (N.Y.). They will return home to host the Lafayette College Tournament Friday and Saturday. They will open the tournament with a 6 p.m. match against St. Peter's on Friday. On Saturday, Lafayette will take on Delaware State at 10 a.m. and Fairleigh Dickinson at 4.
Lehigh The Mountain Hawks opened the 2009 season with four matches at the Bradley University Tournament, going 1-3 on the weekend. On Friday, Lehigh fell 3-0 to IUPUI and 3-1 to USC-Upstate. The Mountain Hawks lost 3-1 to host Bradley before winning 3-0 over Chicago State Saturday. Lehigh will compete in a pair of matches Wednesday, traveling to Morgan State for a 4 p.m. match before going to Towson at 7.
Navy The Midshipmen kicked off the 2009 season at the Tiny L. Laster Memorial Tournament in Hampton, Va., going 1-1 over the weekend. Navy won 3-1 over Winston-Salem State on Friday, but fell 3-0 to Hampton on Saturday. Navy will host Minnesota at 7 p.m. Tuesday before competing in four matches in the Battle of Baltimore Tournament. On Friday, Navy will face Morgan State at 3 p.m. and Maryland at 7. The Midshipmen will match up against Loyola (Md.) at 12:30 pm. and Towson at 7.
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