Saint Mary's University Athletics

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - The Saint Mary's University volleyball team knew all about Washington University in St. Louis' gaudy NCAA Tournament accolades — how could they not, with those nine national championship volleyball banners staring down at them from the Fieldhouse rafters. What the Cardinals didn’t know, was how to stop WU’s high-octane offense, led by Erin Albers, as the Bears improved to 81-12 in NCAA Tournament play — including 35-2 at home — with a 3-1 (25-21, 24-26, 25-18, 25-22 NCAA Central Regional semifinal win over SMU.

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ST. LOUIS, Mo. — On the roster, she’s listed as a 5-foot-8 middle hitter — yes, a 5-foot-8 middle hitter. But all you have to do is watch Saint Mary’s University’s Jessica Larson (Pine Island, Minn.) play for one volleyball set, and you’ll agree — she doesn’t play like a 5-8 middle hitter. More like a 6-8 middle hitter. Thursday evening, Larson certainly made her presence felt — all 5-foot-8 inches.

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WINONA, Minn. — Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) will join the rest of her Saint Mary’s University volleyball teammates for her first-ever NCAA Division III Regional Tournament match Thursday evening. And the Cardinal junior will take the court boasting a new title: First-Team All-Region. Gardner earned that moniker earlier Thursday, when she was named to the 2009 AVCA All-Central Region — joining 13 other players, including seven from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, on the first team. Teammate Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.), meanwhile, was one of six players earning honorable-mention all-region honors.

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ST. LOUIS, Mo. — When Jessica Larson (Pine Island, Minn.), Courtney Runge (St. James, Minn.) and Pam Stanton (Mundelein, Ill.) arrived on the Saint Mary’s University campus four years ago, the Cardinal volleyball program was two years removed from its last 20-win season — and hadn’t been to an NCAA tournament in six seasons. That, the trio vowed, was going to change. A year later, Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn.) joined the fray, turning the Cardinal trio into a quartet, but the vision was just as clear — get SMU back into the national tournament. Thursday evening, when the Cardinals take the court against Thomas More in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Central Regional at Washington (Mo.) University, they can consider that mission accomplished.

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