Catanach One Win Shy of 700 With Win In SSC Opener

Tampa, Fla. - The University of Tampa volleyball team, ranked number-one in the nation, recorded a 3-1 victory over Saint Leo in the 2006 Sunshine State Conference opener. The victory improved the Spartans to 13-0 on the season, which is the program's best start since 1988. Saint Leo falls to 5-3 with the loss. With the victory, Tampa head coach Chris Catanach moved within one victory of 700 as he looks to become the fourth coach in NCAA II history and the 14th coach in NCAA history to reach the milestone.

Tampa won the first two games of the match behind Alisha Green, who finished with a career high18 kills. Green had seven kills in game one on eight attempts and came out swinging in game two with six kills. She also finished with two blocks and a .438 attack percentage.

Margeaux Sinibaldi led Tampa in digs for the ninth match of the season, registering 19, while Tarah Marinelli had 11. Marinelli was the lone Spartan with a double-double as she also had 12 kills. Katelen Dixon and Stephanie Rivera also had double figure kill totals with 12 and 10 respectively. Gabriela Saade led the team with 41 assists as Amy Rumore had 14. The Spartans also recorded nine service aces as Saade had three and Marinelli added two.

The Spartans return to action on Saturday at Eckerd. The match is scheduled to begin at 7:00 pm.