Coastal Carolina sweeps through the big South Tournament!
Coastal opened the tournament with a 3-0 win over Charleston Southern Friday morning. In a match that only lasted for 39 minutes Coastal was led by Roberta Croteau who had 13 kills (.578 hitting %) and 1 ace. Coastal served very effectively during the match - Colette Pawlyk 4 aces, Amy Bambenek 3 aces, Alicia Pulchinski and Michelle Shepherd also added one apiece. Kari Jackson, April Cook, Nicole Burns, Amy O'Neil, Wendy Kutz, and Emma Prowse contributed to the win.
In the Semi-Final match on Saturday morning Coastal beat Liberty 3-0. Coastal sprinted out to a big lead in the first set before dropping a few points to win 15-3. Once again it was strong serving and an offense led by Roberta Croteau that sparked the lady chants. Game two started like game one with Coastal taking a big lead before Liberty was finally able to put their offense together and gain some points (15-12). Liberty played steadier in game three but they were never able to threaten Coastal (15-10). Croteau had 13 kills, 5 aces, and 14 digs. Amy Bambenek had 8 kills, 16 digs, and one ace. Emma Prowse had 8 kills (.466 hitting %) and did a great job, along with Autumn Staub, of stopping Liberties inside attack. Wendy Kutz added 5 kills, 1 ace, and 10 digs. Alicia Pulchinski added another ace and 8 digs. Colette Pawlyk had 34 assists, 1 ace and 8 digs.
The Final match pitted Coastal (#1) against UMBC (# 2 and host team). Coastal blasted out to a 12-7 lead before UMBC was able to regroup. UMBC came within one point of tying the score up when Autumn Staub put down a back slide to seal the game at 15-13. In game 2 UMBC came out strong and had a 4-0 lead after 10 minutes of play. Coastal then gained control and went on to win 15-8. In the third game Coastal remained in control and finished off the match with a 15-7 win to capture the trophy and earn a birth to the NCAA play-in. Amy Bambenek put in an all-tournament performance with 15 kills, 25 digs, 2 blocks, and 1 ace. Emma Prowse dominated the net with 12 kills, 6 blocks, and an ace. Roberta Croteau added 11 kills, 3 blocks, and 3 aces. Autumn Staub had 9 kills (.400 hitting %), 3 blocks, and an ace. Colette Pawlyk had 47 assists, 3 kills, and 15 digs. Wendy Kutz had 15 digs, 3 blocks and 3 kills. Amy O'Neil had 1 ace and 6 digs, and Alicia Pulchinski added 8 digs.
Roberta Croteau was named tournament MVP and conference player of the year. Emma Prowse was named to the all-conference second team and Coach Tammi Lee was named coach of the year! Roberta Croteau was named to the all-tournament 1st team
