11/24/2008
2008 Volleyball Season Recap

The 2008 Clark University womens volleyball campaign showed flashes of promises for the years to come. Welcoming seven new players to the mix  six of whom saw significant time on the court this fall  the young squad served up its first Worcester City Tournament title in seven years to start the season. Down 2-0, the Cougars rallied to win three straight sets to defeat Worcester State College, 3-2, in the opener and later swept Division II Assumption College, snapping the Greyhounds five-year tournament title run. It marked Clarks seventh overall championship since the tournament began in 1984.

Rattling off a season-high four match win streak during the fall, including a key 3-2 victory over cross-town rival WPI, Clark earned a trip back to the NEWMAC Tournament after falling short the previous season. Seeded eighth, the Cougars fell to top-seed and eventual conference champion Springfield College (3-0) in the first round.

While Clark concluded the season with an 11-14 (2-7 NEWMAC) record, the team saw marked improvement in the win column. The Cougars produced five more overall victories and claimed an additional conference win than in 2007.

Individual highlights during the season included a Worcester City Tournament Most Valuable Player nod and NEWMAC Player of the Week honor for outside hitter Maritza Fair 10. It was the first time a Clark volleyball player received the honor since Kate Weiss 03 in 2000. Libero Emily Visone 10 was also selected to the All-Tournament team at the sixth annual Garnet Classic hosted by Swarthmore College.