October 8, 1998

Monmouth,IL -- The month of October has not been kind so far to the Monmouth College women’s volleyball team. The squad has dropped two dual matches and suffered through a lackluster performance at the Clarke College Tournament since finishing the first month of the season with 10 wins in their first fifteen matches. The Fighting Scots’ season record now stands at 12-9 following last night’s non-conference road loss at Loras College.

The team’s recent slide began with a four-game loss at Illinois College last Thursday night, a decision which evened their Midwest Conference record at 1-1. The two teams split 15-6 scores in the first two games but Illinois College used a superior passing attack to overcome the Scots in the third game 16-14 and the fourth 15-8. The Monmouth offense was led by Wendy Erlandson (Kirkwood,IL/ Yorkwood), who set a new team single-match record with 11 service aces. Freshman Jaime Jones (LaHarpe,IL/ HS) recorded 12 kills and senior Michelle Kommer (Monticello,IL/ Monticello) added 10. Junior Cindy Erlandson (Kirkwood,IL/Yorkwood) handed out 23 assists from her setter position.

Monmouth split four matches at Clarke over the weekend to claim seventh place in the nine-team field. The Scots dropped Friday matches to Barat College and the host Crusaders but rebounded to win both matches on Saturday. The women beat Luther in three games and then defeated Mt. Senario in the seventh-place match 3-0. Jaime Jones was selected to the All-Tournament team for her consistent play throughout the weekend.

The Scots returned to Dubuque on Wednesday night for the Loras match but never got on track. Monmouth lost in straight games by scores of 6-15, 7-15 and 12-15. Cindy Erlandson had 15 assists but the Scots offense was never able to sustain any rallies. Jones led the team with 6 kills and Kommer and Wendy Erlandson chipped in five apiece. "We were flat and just couldn’t pass the ball at Loras," said Monmouth coach Kari Shimmin. "The passing improved a bit in the third game but it was too late."

The volleyballers will attempt to shake out of their slump next Wednesday at Grinnell. The team will take advantage of a week’s rest before facing the Pioneers in a critical MWC South Division showdown. Starting time is set for 7:00 in Grinnell’s Darby Gym.