Sept. 28, 2002

Notre Dame (10-3) vs. St. John’s (12-7), Sunday, Sept. 29, 2 p.m.

Joyce Center, Notre Dame, Ind.

Irish survive four-game test vs. Connecticut, look to go 2-0 in the conference vs. St. John’s on Sunday:

The University of Notre Dame volleyball team (10-3, 1-0) looks forward to its second BIG EAST Conference game of the season on Sunday against St. John’s (12-7, 1-0).

St. John’s earned its first conference victory of the season at Syracuse on Friday in four games (30-27, 27-30, 30-27, 30-20) in Syracuse, NY. Sarah McCrary led SJU with 20 kills and 11 digs, while setter Robyn Kurasaki led the offense with 53 assists and seven digs.

Notre Dame ready to broadcast volleyball matches on www.und.com:

The University of Notre Dame athletic department, in conjuncture with the Official College Sports Network (OCSN), will provide live broadcast of Notre Dame volleyball matches this season. OCSN offers the Fighting Irish Pass, which is a subscription service that allows those involved access to all audio available on www.und.com, including football games, press conferences and interviews.

Notre Dame Assistant Sports Information Director Chris Masters (who worked color commentary for Western Kentucky women’s basketball and volleyball before coming to Notre Dame) will do the play-by-play of the Irish matches this weekend, while Liz Muir, Notre Dame’s Director of Equipment Operations, will step in for color commentary from time to time during the season.

Liz Muir was a three-time all-ACC and all-region selection at North Carolina. She also was a member of the ACC 50th anniversary volleyball team.

Simply click on the “listen” link on the front page of Notre Dame’s official site, www.und.com, for access to the live audio coverage.

Bench plays large role in victory over UConn:

Dropping the first game to Connecticut on Friday prompted a few mid-match lineup changes from Irish head coach Debbie Brown. Freshmen Kelly Burrell and Meg Henican saw their most significant playing time of the season and preseason all-BIG EAST middle blocker Kim Fletcher continued her push toward more time in the rotation with a solid performance.

Burrell relieved starting setter Kristen Kinder in game two against UConn. Kristen Kinder had been working through a knee injury over the past week and the limited practice time might have caught up with her. Burrell ended up with 35 assists, four digs and five blocks in the match.

Henican came in on the outside to give the Husky defense a different look and responded with nine kills and 14 digs – both career highs.

Fletcher, arguably playing the best volleyball on the team at the end of the 2001 season, has been working her way into the rotation with a burst of energy off the bench. Against UConn, the junior middle came through with a season-high 11 kills and added five blocks.