Sept. 1, 2001

Cincinnati's Bonita Wise turned in a 10 kill, 11 dig performance to power the Bearcats to a 30-24, 30-25, 30-17 victory against USF in the championship match of the 2001 Molten Golden Gate Classic. For her efforts, Wise was named tournament MVP and was joined by teammates Trish Ladusaw and Becky Stahl on the all-tournament squad. Cincinnati (2-0) got a balanced attack, while USF (1-1) struggled to find their offensive rhythm and hit .092 for the match.

Junior middle blocker Teresa Russell and senior middle blocker Nikki Stover each tallied eight kills apiece for USF, and Russell had a match-high 14 digs. Stover was a force at the net for San Francisco and tallied six blocks, just one shy of her career-high in earning all-tournament honors. Joining Stover on the all-tournament team was senior outside hitter Amanda Willnerd, who tallied eight kills to go along with 13 digs.

San Francisco could not find an answer for Wise or Ladusaw, who powered a match-high 16 kills on .333 hitting to go along with four blocks and six digs. Cincinnati hit .263 as a team and Laura Lauder dished out a match-high 35 assists. The Bearcats put up a big block and finished the night with 11.5 team blocks.

USF returns to action Sunday when they host Centenary in a 3:00 PM match at War Memorial Gym.

Furman Sweeps Wyoming 3-1

In the consolation match, Furman fought off Wyoming 32-30, 31-29, 22-30, 30-28. Abby Simon led the way with a team-high 19 kills for Furman (1-1), while the Cowgirls (0-2) got 19 kills from Michele Rauter and both earned all-tournament honors. Furman won despite being out-hit in the match .201 - .149, but made fewer mistakes in the closing points of each game. Amy Doman dished out a match-high 50 assists for the Cowgirls. Laura Bush recorded a match-high 20 digs for Furman.

All-Tournament Team: MVP - Bonita Wise, Jr. MB - Cincinnati

Trish Ladusaw, Jr. OH - Cincinnati Michele Rauter, So. OH - Wyoming Abby Simon, Jr. OF - Furman Becky Stahl, Fr. OH - Cincinnati Nikki Stover, Sr. MB - USF Amanda Willnerd, Sr. OH - USF

Cincinnati 2001 Molten Golden Gate Classic Champion USF - Runner-up Furman - Third Place Wyoming - Fourth Place