STANDISH, ME—The Saint Joseph's College volleyball squad got off to a roaring start to begin their 2012 calendar; winning eight of their first 10 matches and establishing themselves as a legitimate force inside the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC).
Coach Yamile Nolan has enjoyed a 57-34 (.626) overall record since taking over coaching duties at the start of the 2010 season, complimenting an already talented and versatile SJC squad heading into the 2012 schedule.
The Monks' 22-8 overall record in 2012 built upon an already solid 18-12 spot during the 2011 campaign. The high-powered Monk attack was particularly boosted by the efforts of lead point getters Sarah Hawkes (420.5, Pownal, Maine) and Felicia Wachowiak (358, Milton, N.H.), and the leadership of captains Erica Russi (Debary, Fla.), Hawkes, and senior Kiah Begley (Berwick, Maine/St. Thomas Aquinas).
The 2012 team showed the ability to come out on top in big games, going 9-3 within the conference. Despite going into the SJC Autumn Invitational Championship with a perfect 5-0 record, the Monks were halted by Bates, 3-1, in the tourney title match on September 8th.
After the tough loss, the Monks continued their winning ways, claiming seven of their next 10 including the 3-0 triumphs over Anna Maria College (Sep. 15), Framingham State University (Sep. 15) and Lesley College (Sep. 20) in successive matches.
A successful September brought on an even more fruitful October for the Monks, who went 12-3 heading into the GNAC Tournament Quarterfinal against Johnson & Wales University on October 31st. Within this stretch included a 7-0 run spanning from October 8th through October 20th where the Monks blanked every team they faced, 3-0.
With this momentum the Royal Blue took on GNAC-rival Johnson & Wales as the #3 seed, the team who handed SJC a 3-2 loss on October 6th in Providence. Uncharacteristic attack errors throughout the first set eventually set the tone for what would become an abrupt and onerous end to an otherwise successful season for the Monks. Sixth-seeded Johnson & Wales took the first set 25-19, and continued the trend with a 25-16 win in the following set. Down in an 0-2 hole to begin the third and potentially final set of the year for the Monks, the team showed a tough and gritty performance by keeping pace with the hard-nosed attack of JWU; consistently remaining tied and/or ahead of the Wildcats throughout the entirety of the third set. After a Johnson & Wales timeout with the score tied 23-23, the visitors came out with an immediate kill, increasing their lead to one, then taking advantage of an SJC attack error to close the match with a victory, 3-0.
This quick and cutting loss was a bitter end to a season which saw the Monks compete with championship potential; showing the ability to remain poised and consistent from match-to-match. Steady performances by Hawkes (team-leading 339 kills), Holly Bannister (Cumberland, Maine, .54 blocks per set), and Russi (4.47 digs per set) proved the Monks to be one of the most balanced and steady attacks in the conference.
The upset by JWU signaled the end of an impressive career the program's two departing seniors: Begley and Hawkes, a pair of four-year starters who graduated with many of the Monks' all-time records in tow. Hawkes, a three-time All-GNAC selection, leaves the program as the Monks' all-time leader in kills (1107), digs (1229) and solo blocks (146) while Begley ranks as the team's all-time record holder in sets (416) and matches played (121) and assists (2988).
WRITTEN BY JACK HOLLY '14
