Oracle Online

Conversely, the always competitive Tommies, entered the playoffs with plenty of momentum. St. Thomas was fresh off consecutive victories over St. Catherine and University of Wisconsin-River Falls in the week leading up to the playoffs. The Tommies had motivation too. The Pipers defeated St. Thomas 3-2 on Oct. 18 during the MIAC regular season. The victory was Hamline’s first against the Tommies since 1994. St. Thomas went on to finish the season in fourth, one spot ahead of Hamline. The Tommies were 7-4 in the MIAC and 28-5 overall this season.

The Pipers play was flat and uncharacteristic compared to their regular season record. “The third game was the only game that I felt we ever really played like ourselves,” said Witt of Hamline’s play.

Head Coach Gina Rollie’s Pipers lost the first two games despite playing competitive volleyball. There was a glimmer of hope after Hamline won the third game 24-30. In the fourth game St. Thomas scored off the Pipers mercilessly, scoring 10-0 before Hamline could get on the board. The Midway natives would only put up 9 points in the fourth game.

As was the case for much of the regular season, Hamline got solid play from their veteran leaders. Junior Shelby Hyllengren led all Pipers with 12 kills. Only St. Thomas’ Rachelle Dosch had more (15 kills). Hamline Senior Dana Lukien contributed 10 kills, almost six more than her season per-game average (4.16). Fellow senior Jenna Witt added 18 digs for the game. First-year Pipers Jenni Burns and Tasha Simmons added 12 and13 digs, respectively. Despite their best efforts, the Pipers couldn’t muster enough to hold off the Tommies.

The season concludes the impressive careers of four-year starters Luiken, Witt, and Christina Rossetter. It was a season filled with monuments for Luiken and Witt. Witt became the all-time Piper leader in digs with 1,792 and Luiken leaves Hamline as fourth in all-time kills with 1,169 in the Piper record books.

“We were thrilled to be in the playoffs,” said Witt. “We couldn’t have asked for a better senior season.”

Although the playoffs weren’t quite the Cinderella story Hamline was hoping for, the team had an underdog season that is sure to revitalize the volleyball program. Coach Gina Rollie and her staff have been steadily improving the program since taking the reins four years ago. The team and program definitely made a leap this year and her coaching turned some heads in the MIAC. Last week, the MIAC announced that Head Coach Rollie earned Co-Coach of the Year honors. Rollie accepts the award along with Concordia’s Tim Mosser and Kari Eckheart of Gustavus.

“Coach Rollie is a great coach and really is deserving of the award,” said Witt. “[Rollie] gets through to every person on the team. If you’re playing, you know it. If you’re not playing, you know why,” said Witt of Rollie’s coaching style.

Rollie wasn’t the only Piper getting accolades from the MIAC last week. Senior Dana Luiken was the only Piper named to the All-MIAC first team. Luiken had an amazing senior year. She finished the season sixth in the conference in kills with 179, and was third in the conference with a .348 hitting percentage.

The MIAC recognized the season of another Piper, too. First-year Tasha Simmons was named MIAC Rookie of the Year for her play this year. In her first season of collegiate volleyball, Simmons contributed to the Pipers' underdog season. Simmons was third on the Pipers’ kill list with 243 and had 338 digs in her rookie season. Her digs rank her second on the team; only Witt had more.

It’s been said that when someone closes a door, they open a window. The door is closed on the 2006 Piper volleyball season but with Rollie presumably returning, a window is open. The Pipers will return in 2007 with solid coaching and a talented team that can only get better with age. Juniors Sara Burns and Shelby Hyllengren, along with Tasha Simmons, will return next year more experienced and playoff-savvy. The Piper volleyball program has tasted winning and there is no reason not to expect bigger things in the future.