(Posted December 3, 2001)

WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL (30-9, 7-0 Commonwealth): season complete.
Juniata traveled to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater this past weekend for the NCAA Division III women's volleyball semifinals/finals and came home with the school's sixth third-place finish in the history of the event. The Eagles lost to eventual national champion LaVerne, 27-30, 30-28, 30-17, 24-30, 15-8 in the semifinals on Friday, but came back to down Wellesley, 27-30, 30-28, 30-28, 30-26 in the consolation match. Against LaVerne, sophomore opposite Danielle Hart (Central/Roaring Spring) had 24 kills, 11 digs, two blocks and an ace. Junior middle hitter Niki Mueller (Bishop Guilfoyle/Altoona) tallied 17 kills and team bests in hitting percentage (.333) and blocks (4). Senior outside hitter Brandy Workinger (Dallastown/Dallastown) had nine kills, 19 digs, two aces and two rejections. Sophomore outside hitter Johanna Holtan (Fargo North/Fargo, ND) added in five kills, 22 digs and an ace. Freshman setter Carli Dale (Cochranton/Cochranton) had 52 assists and 10 digs. Freshman middle hitter Erin Wisor (Altoona/Altoona) posted eight kills and three blocks. The victory over Wellesley provided Juniata with its 22nd consecutive 30-or-more-win campaign. Mueller led Juniata with 21 kills, a .562 hitting percentage, three blocks and three digs. Hart had 16 kills, 18 digs and two aces, while Wisor posted 14 kills, a .333 hitting percentage, three blocks and two digs. Dale had 57 assists and 15 digs. Holtan tallied a match-high 20 digs for the Eagles and had three blocks. Workinger finished the night and her career with 12 digs, eight kills, and two aces. Workinger, who was a first-team all-American for the second straight year, ended her tenure with 1,736 kills to place fourth on the all-time list at Juniata, while her 1,786 digs rank second in College Hill annals. Mueller was named to the all-tournament team on the weekend for the first time in her career.

WOMEN'S SWIMMING (2-3): Dec. 5 at Penn State-Altoona; Dec. 8, Scranton.
Juniata traveled to the three-day Indiana (Pa.) Invitational over the weekend and tied for seventh among a field of eight that consisted of all Division I and Division II programs with the exception of the Eagles. Juniata tallied 60 points, while Division I Wagner won the championship with 394.5 markers. The highlights of the weekend were turned in by sophomore Kim Allen (Susquehanna Township/Harrisburg), who placed first in the 200-yard breaststroke on Sunday with a time of 2:31.14. On Saturday, Allen, who became Juniata's first-ever All-American swimmer last winter, was the runner-up in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:09.65). In addition on the weekend, she was 10th in the 400-yard individual medley (5:06.07) and 15th in the 200-yard individual medley (2:21.37). Another top performance on the weekend were turned in by freshman Heidi Blasenak (Central Dauphin/Harrisburg), who was 11th in the 1,650-yard freestyle (20:07.73). Freshman Kathleen Trainor (Upper Merion/King of Prussia) took 13th in the 50-yard freestyle (26.59) and 16th in the 200-yard freestyle (2:07.55). Freshman Kim Heckard (Norristown/Norristown) was 14th in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:19.94). The 200-yard freestyle (1:48.42), the 200-yard medley (2:02.36), the 400-yard medley (4:28.11) and the 400-yard freestyle (3:57.03) relay teams all took sixth on the weekend. The 200-yard freestyle relay unit consisted of senior Jenn Dorsch (Gov. Thomas Johnson/Frederick, MD), freshman Beth Ann Bono (Hempfield Central/Greensburg), senior Erinn Soule (Manheim Township/Lititz) and Trainor, while the 200-yard medley squad was made up of Blasenak, Allen, Bono and freshman Leslie Howard (Eastmont/East Wenatchee, WA). The 400-yard medley relay team included Soule, Allen, Howard and Dorsch, while the 400-yard freestyle relay unit was made up of Trainor, Blasenak, Bono and Dorsch.

MEN'S BASKETBALL (5-1): Dec. 5 at Messiah; Dec. 8, Widener.
The Eagles opened the week with an 88-42 drubbing of visiting Penn State-Altoona on Wednesday. The victory moved Juniata to its first 5-0 start since the 1924-25 season. The blue and gold unit was paced by senior guard Shane Crandall (North Alleghany/Doylestown), who had 17 points on seven of eight shooting from the floor. Senior forward Dave Reddick (North Hills/Pittsburgh) finished with 13 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while sophomore Jeff Lau (York Catholic/Glen Rock) posted 13 points, four boards and two steals. Sophomore forward Ben Gallagher (Butler/Butler) totaled 10 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a steal. Sophomore forward Josh Tyler (Bellwood-Antis/Altoona) had eight points and six rebounds. On Saturday, the Eagles suffered their first loss of the year with a 77-58 setback at Grove City. Gallagher led Juniata with 17 points, eight rebounds and an assist. Lau reached double figures in scoring for the second game of the week with 14 markers. Crandall had 11 points, four steals, two assists and two rebounds. Reddick added in nine points, four boards, two assists and two steals.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL (1-5): Dec. 4 at Messiah; Dec. 8, Widener.
Juniata opened a busy week with an 81-70 win over Lycoming at home on Wednesday. Senior forward Brandy Preslovich (Bald Eagle Area/Moshannon) became the eighth player in the history of Eagle women's basketball to reach 1,000 career points in the process. She led Juniata with 22 points in the contest and also chipped in with seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Senior guard Kelli Young (United/Vintondale) tallied 17 points, 10 assists, six rebounds and four steals, while senior guard Kelly Grove (Penns Valley/Spring Mills) added in 12 points and four rebounds. Freshman Katie Charles (Manheim Township/Lancaster) recorded the first double-double of her career with 10 points and 10 boards. On Saturday, the Eagles lost to Delaware Valley at the King's College Hoop Challenge, 73-63. Preslovich had 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Young added in eight points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals. On Sunday, Juniata dropped a 69-58 count to King's in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Preslovich led the Eagles in scoring for the third time this past week with 16 points. She also had four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Junior center Kelly Steinbeiser (Altoona/Altoona) registered 10 points and gathered in four caroms. Junior guard Jen LaCount (Westmont Hilltop/Johnstown) finished the outing against the Monarchs with 10 points, four rebounds and two steals.

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