The Emory University volleyball team posted the program's 13th
consecutive winning
season in 2006, finishing the year with a 28-11 record that
included the school's 11th straight NCAA Tournament bid where it
advanced to the regional finals The team's 28 victories
represented the 16th straight year of 20 or more wins for the
Eagles. Emory's record included a 10-2 ledger in University
Athletic Association contests, good for second place. Emory
concluded the campaign ranked No. 10 in the nation.
The 2006 season was a testament to perseverance and dedication
as Emory battled through injuries that forced Head Coach Jenny
McDowell to juggle the lineup on a regular basis. With 2005 NCAA
Player of the Year Courtney Rose sidelined the entire season due to
injury and veteran stalwarts Janet Bunning and Dani Huffman missing
parts of the year with ailments, the Eagles saw a number of players
step up to meet the challenge of filling those voids.
As usual, the Eagles played an extremely competitive schedule that
featured 12 regular-season matches against teams that advanced to
the NCAA Tournament. Emory won its own Classic Tournament the
weekend of Sept. 8-9, posting four wins including a 3-0 sweep of
eventual NCAA Tournament participant Hiram College. Emory
came away with wins over top-20 teams in back-to-back weekends,
topping No. 15 Austin College at the Southwestern University
Invitational (Sept. 16) and No. 16 Mount St. Joseph's (Sept.
23). Other key wins against ranked teams included a
pair of wins over New York University (ranked 14th and 19th) and
another triumph against No. 19 Austin College in the NCAA
Tournament.
When in the lineup, junior Janet Bunning was a steadying force for
the team. Bunning earned first team All-America honors after
ranking as the team's leader in kills (3.89 kpg), blocks per game
(1.29 bpg) and hitting percentage (36.0%). She posted
double-figure kills in 18 of the 25 matches she appeared in and
chalked up 13 double-doubles (kills/digs). Among UAA players,
she ranked third in hitting percentage, third in kills per game,
fourth in blocks and 13th in digs (3.35 dpg). Bunning's career-high
25 kills in a five-game battle against No. 2-ranked Washington
University was the high-water mark by an Emory player this season
and tied her for 10th-place on the school's match list.
Bolstering the fortunes of the squad was Alysee Meyer who was
named the Division III Freshman of the Year by the American
Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). A third-team
All-American, The 6-foot outside hitter emerged as a dominant
offensive force, finishing second on the team and fourth among UAA
players in kills per game (3.52 kpg) and 10th in the league (first
among UAA frosh) with a 31.8 hitting percentage. She recorded
22 matches of double-figure kills and her kills total placed her in
a tie for 19th-place on the school's seasonal chart. In addition,
Meyer was also tabbed at the UAA's Rookie of the Year Award
winner.
Sophomores Maggie Baird and Madison Robelen both earned first team
All-UAA recognition while junior Maggie Ramm garnered second-team
acclaim.
Baird, an honorable-mention pick in 2005, was a consistent and
productive force from her right side position. In overall
play, Baird averaged 2.34 kills per game and posted a 31.4 hitting
percentage. Those averages increased significantly in
conference action to 2.73 kills per game and a 38.1 attack
percentage, good for the No. 4 spot on the league chart.
Robelen directed the Eagles' offense with precision all season from
her setter position, averaging 10.7 assists per game in overall
play, good for the No. 2 spot among UAA performers. In
conference affairs, she averaged a league-best 13.24 assists per
game. Her setting helped Emory to a No. 1 position in hitting
percentage among UAA teams for league games (34.9%) while the
squad's overall mark of 28.2 percent placed it No. 2 in the UAA and
No. 8 nationally. Her 1,413 assists enabled her to claim the
No. 2 position on the school's seasonal list.
Ramm established herself as one of the premier defensive
specialists in Emory history and smashed the school season record
for digs with 558. Holding down the No. 3 spot among UAA
players in digs (4.54 dpg). Ramm totaled 31 matches of
double-figure digs including nine outings of 20 or more. Ramm
established a school-match record with 38 digs against Austin
College in the NCAA Tournament. She was recognized for her
play by the UAA and was selected as the league's Libero of the Week
on three occasions in 2006.
As a team, the Eagles established school seasonal records in
assists per game (13.79 apg), total digs (2,564), digs per game
(18.06 dpg), solo blocks (143) and total blocks (393). On the
national scene, Emory ranked 14th in the nation in assists per
game, 27th in blocks per game (2.77 bpg) and 10th in kills per game
(15.46 kpg).
American Volleyball Coaches Association All-America
Team
Janet
Bunning
First Team
Washington, DC (Woodrow Wilson)
Alysee
Meyer
Third Team
Stockton, CA (Lincoln)
AVCA Freshman of the Year
Alysee
Meyer
(one
winner)
Stockton, CA (Lincoln)
NCAA Division III All-South
Janet
Bunning
(one
team)
Washington DC (Woodrow Wilson)
Alysee
Meyer
(one team)
Stockton, CA (Lincoln)
Madison
Robelen
Honorable
Mention
Boca Raton, FL (Spanish River)
NCAA Division III South Region Freshman of the
Year
Alysee
Meyer
(one
winner)
Stockton, CA (Lincoln)
All-University Athletic Association
(UAA)
Maggie
Baird
First
Team
San Antonio, TX (Winston Churchill)
Madison
Robelen
First
Team
Boca Raton, FL (Spanish River)
Alysee
Meyer
Second
Team
Stockton, CA (Lincoln)
Maggie
Ramm
Second Team
Tampa,
FL (H.B. Plant)
Janet
Bunning
Honorable Mention
Washington, D.C. (Woodrow Wilson)
UAA Rookie of the
Year
Alysee
Meyer
(one
winner)
Stockton, CA (Lincoln)
Southwestern University Invitational All-Tournament
Team
Dani
Huffman
San Diego, CA (Scripps
Ranch)
Emory Classic All-Tournament Team
Janet
Bunning
MVP
Washington, D.C. (Woodrow Wilson)
Dani Huffman
San Diego, CA (Scripps Ranch)
Emory Invitational All-Tournament Team
Madison
Robelen
Boca Raton, FL (Spanish River)
Janet
Bunning
Washington, D.C. (Woodrow
Wilson)
Emory National Invitational All-Tournament
Team
Janet
Bunning
MVP
Washington, D.C. (Woodrow Wilson)
Madison
Robelen
Boca Raton, FL (Spanish River)
Maggie
Baird
San Antonio, TX (Winston Churchill)
Maggie
Ramm
Tampa, FL
(H.B. Plant)
UAA Player of the Week
Dani Huffman
Sept. 19,
2006
San Diego, CA (Scripps Ranch)
Maggie
Ramm
Oct. 3,
2006
Tampa, FL (H.B. Plant)
Maggie
Ramm
Oct. 10,
2006
Tampa, FL (H.B. Plant)
Janet
Bunning
Oct. 17,
2006
Washington, D.C. (Woodrow Wilson)
Madison
Robelen
Oct. 24,
2006
Boca Raton, FL (Spanish River)
Maggie
Ramm
Nov. 14,
2006
Tampa, FL (H.B. Plant)