The number 2 seeded Red Storm defeated top seed Louisville 3-0 (30-24, 30-14, 30-26) at the Al McGuire Center.,”It was the showdown that had been anticipated all season. St. John's and the University of Louisville took the court Sunday for the Big East Championship.
The No.2-seeded Red Storm defeated top-seeded Louisville 3-0 (30-24, 30-14, 30-26) at the Al McGuire Center.
St. John's put on a defensive clinic in the championship game, out-digging the Cardinals 69-42 behind 21 digs from the Big East Libero of the Year Lena Yee.
"Today we made sure that we did a walk-through of where to stand and how we would defend certain players, and it worked," Yee said.
Louisville finished the season as the No.1 blocking team in the conference at 3.97 blocks per game. The Cardinals used their superior size to earn 12 blocks in the match compared to just five for the Red Storm, but St. John's head coach Joanne Persico-Smith said her team knew what they were facing at the net.
"We knew that we weren't going to grow any taller in the last six weeks, so we knew the only way to combat that was to dig them," she said.
Louisville middle blocker Lecia Brown averaged a Big East best 2.13 blocks per game, and she did her part in the final with eight block assists. However, the St. John's offense was more well-balanced than that of the Cardinals.
"When you're playing against this type of offense … everything has to work really good as a team at the net, so a middle blocker cannot resolve this on her own," Louisville head coach Leonid Yellin said.
St. John's had four players with 11 kills or more, led by Big East Player of the Year Hui Ping Huang with 18.
Going into the match, St. John's was ranked No. 21 in the CSTV/AVCA Coaches Poll, while Louisville was No. 17. Both teams sported 13-1 conference records, but despite the similarities, St. John's dominated the championship match from start to finish.
The Red Storm posted a better hitting percentage in all three games, including hitting .405 in the third and final set. All the life seemed to be sucked out Louisville in the second game when St. John's went up 14-1 on its way to a 30-14 victory. Game three was tight most of the way, but the Red Storm was too much to overcome. St. John's won 30-26.
The All-Big East Tournament team was comprised of five St. John's players and two from Louisville.
St. John's setter Wioleta Leszczynska was the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after averaging 14.5 assists per game, including 54 in the championship match.
Tatyana Kolesnikova led Louisville with 11 kills, but no one else was in double digits for the Cardinals. The Cardinals hit just .173 as a team, compared to .329 for St. John's.
Earlier this season, Louisville defeated St. John's 3-0 in conference play, and Yee admitted that she and her teammates had a little extra motivation to go out and win Sunday.
"Ever since that game we've been waiting for this moment," she said.
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