It was a roller coaster season for the Belles volleyball squad in 2007. Saint Mary’s started the year with 10 players, its smallest squad in recent years but came together to finish the season among the top four teams in the MIAA for the second straight year.
Coming out of the gates, the Belles held a 1-5 record after its first six matches but rebounded to win four of the next five to bring their record to 5-6. The only loss during those five matches was a five-game set-back against nationally ranked and NCAA Tournament participant MIT.
Heading into the heart of their league schedule with a 2-2 MIAA mark, Saint Mary’s struggled to find consistent play over the next seven matches as they dropped to 7-12 overall and 4-7 in conference play. However, things began to start clicking down the stretch as the Belles posted victory in five of their next eight matches. The Belles completed regular season play with a 12-17 overall mark and a 6-10 mark in league play.
Saint Mary’s entered the postseason as the fifth seed for the MIAA tournament were they played their most complete match of the year in upsetting Tri-State in three-games in the first-round. The Belles found themselves competing in the league’s final four for the second straight year, however the result was the same from the previous season as top seeded Calvin ended their season in three-games.
Lorna Slupczynski paced Saint Mary’s all season on both offense and defense. In earning MIAA Second-Team accolades, Slupczynski’s 3.41 kills per game average led all Belle attackers and was the eighth best mark in the league. Her 381 total digs (3.46 digs/game) was the second best mark on the team.
During her final season as the Belles setter, Amanda David had one of her best seasons. She ranked third in the MIAA in assists per game (10.36) and her 265 total digs was the fourth best mark on the team. Also playing in her final season, Marisa Gross ranked fifth on the squad in total digs (254) while playing as a defensive specialist.
The Belles return a host of players as they look to return to the top half of the league standings for the third consecutive year in 2008.
