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.
The senior collected 10 kills, including seven in the first two sets when the Cardinals needed her most, in helping SMU to a 3-1 victory over Thomas More in the opening round of the NCAA Central Regional at Washington (Mo.) University.
“Jess was a difference-maker for us — especially in the first two sets,” said SMU coach Mike Lester, whose team rebounded from a 25-23 first-set loss to beat the Saints — and earn a berth in Friday’s 7 p.m. semifinal against top-seeded and host Washington (Mo.) University. “She was giving (Thomas More) fits in those first two sets, and when a team focuses all their attention on her, it frees up Jess (Mate) and Sarah (Gardner) to take some good swings.
“And, if they don’t worry about her, (Larson) will just keep pounding away.”
Larson admits that she isn’t the stereotypical middle hitter, but that hasn’t deterred her in the least.
“I’d love to be 6-2,” she joked. “But to be honest, I don’t really think too much about my height — I just go out there and play my hardest.
“It does help to be able to jump a little, though.”
And she certainly has proven over the years that she can jump.
Larson enters Friday’s national tournament semifinal with a single-season career-best 229 kills, while also leading the team in attack percentage (.274). She is one of five SMU players with 200 or more kills and is second on the team in blocks with 61.
“This was an awesome win for us, but we’re not done yet, either,” said Larson. “We know that (Washington University) is going to be a tough, tough opponent — and we are going to have to play our best match of the season to beat them.
“But we’re definitely not going to be out there expecting to lose — we’re going to give it our best, just like we do every time we step on the court.”
TWO-FOR-ONE: With their 3-1 win over Thomas More on Thursday, the Cardinals have now won their opening-round match in both of their NCAA Tournament appearances.
ALL-REGION: Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) was named to the AVCA All-Central Region First Team Thursday, while
Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) was an honorable-mention selection.
DIGGING IT: The Cardinals collected 80 digs against Thomas More Thursday. It was the second-highest team dig total in a four-set match this season. SMU had four players with 10 or more digs — led by
Tara Rasmussen (Kasson, Minn.) and
Courtney Runge (St. James, Minn.) with 19 and 18, respectively.
SLOW STARTERS: The Cardinals have now lost the first set in six of their last 11 victories.
WINNING WAYS: The Cardinals improved to 22-9 overall with Thursday’s win vs. Thomas More. The 22 wins are the most since the Cardinals went 27-8 in 2000. That year was also the first and only other year that SMU has reached the NCAA Tournament.
THIS AND THAT: Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) has recorded a team-leading and single-season career high 369 kills (3.13 kills-per-set) and is one of two Cardinals with 300 or more kills.
Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) boasts a career-best 335 kills, while
Courtney Runge (St. James, Minn.),
Amy Kujak (River Falls, Wis.) and
Jessica Larson (Pine Island, Minn.) have all eclipsed 200 kills, posting 293, 292 and 229 kills, respectively. … Gardner, who notched five service aces vs. Thomas More Thursday, pushed her team-leading total to 54. …
Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn.), who recorded her 2,000th career assist on match point in SMU’s 3-1 win over Northwestern on Oct. 20, has now dished out 1,152 for the season. She closed out the regular season ranked No. 3 in all of NCAA Division III in assists-per-set at 10.99. … Cherwinka has finished with 50 or more assists seven times this season — including a career-best 65-assist effort in a 3-2 win over St. Catherine on Oct. 14. … Like Cherwinka, Runge set a career milestone this season, as the senior outside hitter compiled 362 digs this season, giving her 1,072 digs for her four-year collegiate career. …
Tara Rasmussen (Kasson, Minn.) leads the team in digs with 471 and is one of six Cardinals with 100 or more digs. … SMU posted season highs in digs (85) and kills (79) in its 3-2 win over St. Catherine on Oct. 14. The Cardinals’ 79 kills were the most since recording 83 kills in a five-set, 3-2 win over Saint Benedict on Sept. 24, 2004. … As a team, the Cardinals concluded the regular season among the leaders in NCAA Division III, finishing sixth in assists-per-set (12.24), ninth in kills-per-set (13.27) and 19th in attack percentage (.249).