Aug. 18, 2005
BEVERLY, MA -- The Endicott women's volleyball team took a major step forward in 2004 as they continue to ascend to the summit of New England Division III volleyball. The Gulls set new team records in going 9-0 in the CCC regular season and 3-0 in the playoffs to claim their first Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Championship.
Endicott also reeled off 22 straight wins and finished the season 29-7 overall, setting new records for consecutive wins, wins in a season and season winning percentage (.805) in the process. The 2004 season also saw the Gulls first out of region trip (5 days in Chicago, IL), their first regional ranking on the NCAA regional poll at No. 4 and a Springfield College Tom Hay Invitational Championship where they defeated Springfield College, which was ranked 23 in Division III, for the first time.
With the team awards came individual honors. As well as their many CCC weekly honors, the Gulls placed five players on All-Conference CCC teams: Meghan Hall (Santa Cruz, CA) and Sara Moore (Guilford, CT) were named to the first team, Killeen Ross (Ballston Lake, NY) and Morgan Tranquist (Hamden, CT) earned second team honors and Susan Teta (Charlstown, RI) was named to the third team. Hall was also named CCC Rookie of the Year, Tranquist earned Senior Scholar Athlete honors and head coach Tim Byram was named CCC Coach of the Year.
Additionally, Moore and Hall became the first players in the program's history to be named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-New England Third Team. Each achieved record-breaking seasons which included Moore setting the school record for kills in a season (357) and hitting percentage (.355) while Hall set the record for assists in a season (1,141) and assists per game (9.67).
Endicott will have to retool for 2005 as five players were lost to graduation. Kristen Altieri (Hamden, CT), Katie Lorinovich (Hampstead, NH), Krystan Sylva (Bourne, MA), Teta and Tranquist were all part of coach Byram's first recruiting class. Over their four seasons, the group was instrumental in taking EC from a middle of the pack program to one of the elite in New England.
The departed seniors accumulated a 71-60 overall record while going 26-9 in CCC play. They also made three straight CCC semifinal appearances (2001-2003) before claiming the program's first CCC Championship in 2004. The title qualified the team for their first postseason appearance in the NCAA tournament where they were one of 48 teams competing for the National Championship.
Having tasted the championship flavor, the returning players are now looking to defend their CCC title and make a return trip to the postseason in 2005. Ross and Patty Mikan are working hard to prepare for their senior year while juniors Moore and Katelyn Smith (Ballston Lake, NY) now have another valuable season of experience to draw from and sophomores Hall and Kim Marschner (Londonderry, NH) will be working hard to keep their undefeated streak alive in CCC play.
