Sept. 22, 2000
The University of Notre Dame volleyball team (9-3) won its sixth consecutive match Friday night over Wyoming (6-9) in three games (15-1, 15-5, 15-8) during the first night of competition in the 2000 Golden Dome Invitational at the Joyce Center. #4 Colorado State swept #22 Loyola Marymount 15-1, 15-3, 15-10 in the first game of the tournament Friday afternoon.
The 24th-ranked Irish used an overpowering offense in the first game of the match to set the tone for the night. Scoring 11 kills on 17 attempts without committing an error, Notre Dame captured the early 1-0 lead in the match before the Cowgirls knew what hit them. Wyoming was unable to muster much of an offense all night and the Irish cruised to a three-game win.
Three Notre Dame players stood out among the 14 that participated in the match. Junior Malinda Goralski had 10 kills on 12 attempts without an error for an eye-popping .833 hitting percentage. Goralski also had seven blocks in the match.
Freshman Kim Fletcher had six kills on eight attempts with one error, posting an impressive .625 hitting percentage. Senior Christi Girton tied with Goralski for the match-high kill mark of 10 and also led the team in digs with five.
Practically the entire Irish roster received a significant length of playing time in the match. Freshman Katie Neff had three kills and three blocks while playing in the final two games. Senior Michelle Graham came off the bench to score two aces. Classmate Adrienne Shimmel continued her solid production off the bench with four kills on seven attempts.
Senior setter Denise Boylan amassed 17 assists in just a game and half for the Irish and played a large part in the .647 hitting percentage Notre Dame posted in the first game. Junior Kristy Kreher, who set a school record for a four-game match with 32 kills yesterday, rested for the final two games after totaling three kills and three blocks.
Notre Dame will face Colorado State Saturday night, at 7 p.m. to decide the Golden Dome Invitational Title. The Irish are shooting for their third tournament title in the month of September (Shamrock Invitational Sept. 1-3, Lady Seminole Classic Sept. 5-16).