ThunderWolves down Notre Dame de Namur in impressive fashion

By: Anthony Sandstrom, CSU-Pueblo Athletics

SEASIDE, Calif. (GoThunderWolves.com - Sept. 3, 2010) - For the second time in three seasons, CSU-Pueblo opened up its season with a win, scoring a three sets to none victory over Notre Dame de Namur at the Cal State-Monterey Bay Classic Friday.

Notre Dame de Namur, an NCAA Division II team that plays in the Pacific West Conference and went 11-22 in 2009, met a ThunderWolf team that showed a great deal of maturity in pulling out close sets to secure the sweep.

After opening up a 22-13 lead and eventually holding on for a 25-21 win in the first set, CSU-Pueblo engaged a fierce point-for-point battle over the final two sets. 

The Lady Argonauts were holding a 16-11 lead in the second set when the ThunderWolves caught fire.  CSU-Pueblo only committed one attack error throughout the remainder of the second set, pooling nine kills from Bernadette Pitre (Jr., Clifton, Colo.), Alea Wildman (Jr., Denver, Colo.), Janae Heiser (Jr., Westminster, Colo.) and Tamia Herholz (RSo., Colorado Springs, Colo.) down the stretch.  Meanwhile, the Lady Argonauts committed five attack errors down the stretch while the Pack eeked out a 25-21 win.

In the third set, CSU-Pueblo nearly saw a 22-16 lead dissipate, but managed to circle the wagons and pull off a match-clinching 27-25 win.  Notre Dame de Namur scored nine of 11 points to take a 25-24 lead, but big kills by Wildman and Pitre put the Pack in a match point situation, which they converted when the Argonauts committed an attack error.

All told, the ThunderWolves turned in an attack percentage of .237, a mark it eclipsed only three times throughout the 2009 season.  Individually, Pitre's 14 kills and attack percentage of .571 led all attackers, and was the highest individual attack percentage turned in by a ThunderWolf since she put up .643 in a three-set win over Johnson & Wales in 2009.

CSU-Pueblo will close out the Cal State-Monterey Bay Classic Saturday when it takes on NAIA squad, William Jessup, and tourney host, CSU-Monterey Bay.  If the ThunderWolves could add two wins, it would mark the team's first 3-0 start since 1997, when it qualified for the NCAA Division II National Tournament.