MIAC Athlete of the Week Release
WINONA, Minn. — For the fourth time in as many regular-season tournaments, the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota volleyball team swept through the Neumann Invitational last weekend, dropping just one set in beating Keystone, Penn State-Behrend, Neumann, and Rowan.
And Monday afternoon, the Cardinal sweeping continued, as
Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) was named the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Hitter of the Week, while teammate
Morgan Thomas (Palos Park, Ill.) was the conference's Setter/Libero of the Week.
Blattner compiled 80 kills in the Cardinals' five matches last week, while also adding nine aces, 52 digs and seven blocks. Blattner kicked off her week with a 20-kill effort in the Cardinals' 3-0 conference win over St. Olaf last Wednesday. The sophomore hit .421 against the Oles and chipped in three aces and seven digs.
Blattner was just as dominant in the Cardinals' four matches at the Neumann Invitational in Aston, Pa., over the weekend, posting 60 kills—including her second 20-kill showing of the week in a 3-0 win over Penn State-Behrend—while also adding 45 digs and recording double-doubles in three of the Cardinals' four tournament matches en route to landing all-tournament honors.
While Blattner was doing her thing offensively, Thomas was equally as impressive on the defensive end, as the senior libero amassed 103 digs—not to mention 18 assists and 10 aces in the Cardinals' five matches.
Thomas notched 17 digs in the Cardinals' conference win over St. Olaf last Wednesday, before adding 86 digs and 10 aces in landing all-tournament honors at the Neumann Invitational. Thomas—the team's dig leader this season with a career-best 414—had 20 or more digs in three of the four tournament matches, and missed a fourth by one dig. The senior libero also recorded a season- and career-high seven aces in Saint Mary's 3-1 win over Rowan last Saturday—the most aces in a match by a Cardinal since Megan Roesler and Lisa Engdahl served up seven aces during the 2005 season.
The Cardinals (5-1 MIAC, 21-2 overall)—off to their best 23-match start in program history—return to conference play on Wednesday, traveling to Augsburg's Si Melby Hall for a 7 p.m. showdown against the league-leading Auggies.
