May 7, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - A pair of Northwestern volleyball players have been named to the USA National Select Team roster for Spring Cup 2002, which will be held May 11-19 in Porec, Croatia.
Sophomore middle blocker Erika Lange (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) and freshman setter Drew Robertson (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly) are part of the "invitation only" USA National Select Team. The players chosen-current university student-athletes and recent graduates-are considered part of the developmental pipeline for the U.S. National Volleyball Team.
There are 17 players on the roster, hailing from Top-25 programs such as Florida, Pepperdine and Colorado. Lange and Robertson will be the only two players representing the Big Ten Conference. The team will be coached by UNLV head coach Dietre Collins and assisted by Meg Colado of Central Florida and Dave Best of Montana.
Lange, who was named honorable mention All-Big Ten after the 2001 season, led the team in kills per game (2.92) and blocks per game (1.62). She led the Big Ten most of the season in blocks per game and finished the 2001 campaign ranked ninth in the nation.
Robertson earned a nod to the 2001 Big Ten All-Freshman team. The freshman setter ended the season with a 9.77 assists-per-game average, and led the team in digs per game (2.41). She was also third among the team in blocks, averaging 0.83 per game.
Spring Cup 2002 is organized by the Croatian Volleyball Federation, and national teams from 13 other countries will be competing. The USA National Select Team will play Croatia on May 12, Denmark on May 13 and Turkey on May 14 in pool play. The finals will be May 16-18. All matches will be at the Intersport Centar in Porec, Croatia.
For the most up-to-date information on Spring Cup 2002, including pictures and daily player journals, go to www.volleycentral.com.