August 31, 2006 Issue                                       

©2006 The Chestnut Hill Local

Mount volleyball building on solid base
by TOM UTESCHER

Mount senior volleyball players Erin Connelly (left) and Katie Kirsch. Connelly is the varsity captain for 2006, and Kirsch was selected by the team to wear the Magic’s number 12 jersey in memory of former Mount volleyball player Steph Arizin. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

In 2005, the Mount St. Joseph Academy volleyball team won the Bicentennial League with a record of 9-1, and went 4-3 against Athletic Association of Catholic Academies rivals to finish as the runner-up in that league. The Magic went on to reach the quarterfinal round of the PIAA District 1 tournament, where a 1-3 loss to Bishop Shanahan closed out the campaign with an overall mark of 14-6.

This year, according to longtime head coach Sandy Butcher, a full complement of Catholic Academies teams have signed up for league competition, so Mount St. Joe has bid farewell to the Bicentennial and will be affiliated only with the AACA for league matches.

Setter Megan Skowronek and hitters Cara Mulholland (outside) and Kait Woznicki (middle) left the Mount team as part of the Class of 2006.

With the departure of Mulholland and the 6’2” Woznicki, Butcher observed, “We don’t have that big terminator, but we’re very solid all over the court. In most cases, we’ll be able to keep the ball in play until the other team makes a mistake. I also like the chemistry of our team; there’s a high level of camaraderie among the girls.”

The Magic will still have a Skowronek at setter; Megan’s sister Michelle is a senior this year. Other players who can fill this role are senior Megan Clearkin, who is also a defensive specialist, and junior Michelle McNamara, who will see the most action at right outside. Defensive specialist Erin Connelly was already known as the Magic’s floor general last year as a junior, and sophomore Marissa Every is also a defender.

Six-foot junior Sarah McGorry and classmate Katie Tenzinger are the middle hitters, and a third 11th grader, Michele Steinmetz, can attack the ball from either the middle or outside. The specialized outside hitters for the Magic are senior Katie Kirsch and junior Chrissy Fesnak.

Coach Butcher feels that incoming freshman Patrice Mulhern has shown that she can already play up with the varsity, giving the Mount an additional outside hitter.

As usual, Villa Maria and Merion Mercy Academy look to be the Magic’s fiercest foes in the league this fall. Like the Mount, they’ve suffered some graduation losses, but both schools have good feeder systems in place, and will remain teams that no one can afford to take lightly.

Butcher will enter the fray with a new assistant coach who is not entirely new to the Mount program. Former MSJ standout Ruth Wright graduated from Mount St. Joseph in 1999 and went on to play college volleyball at Philadelphia University.