Wed., Oct. 21, 2009

   FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- Home-court perseverance paid off again for the University of Saint Francis on 'Senior Night' at Hutzell Athletic Center.

  The pay-off was a scintillating 5-set comeback match against Bethel College with a 15-10 win in the fifth set. It took over two hours for the Lady Cougars to even their Mid-Central College Conference record at 3-3, but worth every dig, every block, every tip and every dive in a match that saw the two teams combine for 405 swings. That included Shellie Rumschlag's 1,000th career kill. USF improved to 12-18 overall while the Pilots slipped to 3-3 in MCC play, 15-12 overall.

   "We just refused to lose," USF coach Kevin Lane said. "I know 'Senior Night' had something to do with it, and it took contributions from everybody to get the 'W'."

   After recognizing the four years of dedication and work of seniors Shellie Rumschlag, Ashley Everhart, Chelsea Hill and Mallory Brooks, the two teams entertained the crowd of more than 100 fans with a thrilling 37-35 USF win in Set 1. BC bounced back to win 25-21 and 25-15 to take a 2-1 lead. USF rallied to win Set 4 27-25.

   "We really wanted to win our last home match and after getting behind, we were not going to lose at home," Hill said emphatically. "We wanted to prove that even though this has been a rebuilding process, we want to prove we can win even though it has been a rebuilding year."

   "We were extremely determined to win that first set," Hill recalled. "That was something."

   Rumschlag said it was exciting most of all to win, and looking back afterwards, getting 1,000 career kills on 'Senior Night' really added to what quickly becomes a special memory.

  "Coach told me I had a shot at 1,000 tonight on Monday, but I didn't think it was possible," Rumschlag said. "He convinced me it was possible if I kept playing the way I've been playing recently. It feels great to do it and get the win at the same time."

  Ironically Rumschlag's serving was the momentum boost in the fourth set that USF needed.

  "She got a couple aces back-to-back and that's when I felt a surge of confidence that we WOULD get the win," Hill recalled.

   Rumschlag finished with 20 kills and 14 digs, her 13th double-double this season. Everhart double-doubled with 13 kills and 20 digs. Junior Abby Schnur added 20 digs as well. Nicole Newton finished with 12 kills, Natalie Ross seven and Karlyn Stroope came off the bench and delivered six crucial kills. Hill delivered 56 assists and 15 digs. Brooks added 13 digs and her two kills in Set 5 finished the match for the Lady Cougars, who now have won five of their last six matches.