Lady Blues volleyball move to 12-0, lose first set of 2009

Eric Smith

The Washburn Lady Blues volleyball team completed its third tournament of the 2009 season this weekend at the Rockhurst Fall Classic in Kansas City, Mo., going 4-0 with three sweeps.

The weekend began normal enough in what turned out to be an eventful trip. Friday morning, Washburn took care of Midwestern State 25-21, 25-14, 25-22. The 3-0 win moved the Lady Blues’ set winning streak to 27 games, one of the longest streaks to begin a season in WU history. It would end later in the day however, when in the first set, Upper Iowa handed Washburn its first set defeat of the season with the score of 18-25. WU would respond though, winning the next three sets 25-14, 25-20, 25-22 to move to 2-0 for the tourney.

Saturday morning featured another highlight when the Lady Blues defeated Eastern New Mexico 25-13, 25-15, 25-15. With the victory, head coach Chris Herron earned the 300th victory of his college coaching career, which spans more ten years with Washburn and Benedictine. The Lady Blues finished off the Rockhurst tourney with a 25-17, 25-17, 25-19 victory against Illinois-Springfield, moving Herron’s career college coaching record for volleyball to 301-73.

The Washburn volleyball squad’s 12 wins on the season are the most of any MIAA team. And sitting with a zero in the L column, they join rival Emporia State as the only two teams to be undefeated still.

The Lady Blues’ next action begins MIAA play. It is 7 p.m. on Wednesday Sept. 16 in Maryville, Mo., versus Northwest Missouri State.