ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, April 20, 1996 TAG: 9604220104
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
THE AMERICAN WOMEN'S volleyball team tunes up for the Summer Olympics with a four-game victory over Russia, thanks to Danielle Scott.
The current U.S. women's volleyball team is the most experienced this country has ever fielded, consisting of eight players with Olympic experience and a 12-year coach, Terry Liskevych, who has the most victories and longevity in the program's history.
But on Friday night at the Roanoke Civic Center, it was a player with less than two years of national team experience who helped the Americans to a 15-11, 7-15, 15-10, 15-12 exhibition victory over Russia. Middle blocker Danielle Scott made two critical blocks in the final two games and served the match point as Team USA gained a 3-3 split of the six-match tour.
The Roanoke match was played before the largest crowd of the six-game series, with 3,945 in attendance. That includes an April 10 matchup in Atlanta, site of the centennial Olympic Games this summer. ``They were very vocal, very supportive,'' Liskevych said. ``They really got behind us in the end.''
Scott's inspired play gave the audience a reason to shout. With the match tied at one game apiece, the Russians were getting a huge lift from Elena Batoukhtina and Evguenia Artomonovak, who finished with 24 and 19 kills, respectively. The pair was dominating play at the net and the Americans were running out of answers.
Scott and setter Lori Endicott, however, suppressed them enough to put Team USA up 14-10 in Game 3. On the fourth game point, Scott put the Americans ahead 2-1 in the match with a gutsy block of Artomonovak.
She did it again in the final game and went on to serve the decisive point of the match.
``I hadn't been blocking well during the match, so that made me feel a lot better,'' Scott said afterward.
Scott got the opportunity because one of her teammates, veteran Elaina Oden, wasn't feeling well. Oden, the usual starter, sat out the match with a slight flu, so Liskevych plugged Scott in the gap. Scott responded with 14 kills, four blocks and an ace. And the best part was Oden, Scott's pseudo-mentor, got to see her pupil at work.
``I like to look to Elaina a lot,'' Scott said. ``Sometimes I forget the experience we have on this team.''
Another veteran, two-time Olympian Paula Weishoff, delivered the last blow, spiking an overset on Scott's final serve. Weishoff, 33, will retire after the Summer Games. She has a silver medal from 1984 and a bronze from 1992. ``I need to add a gold to my collection,'' she said.
Liskevych would like to do the same. He, too, will step aside after Atlanta, having built the U.S. team up to the point where it, along with Cuba and these same Russians, is considered a top contender for Olympic gold.
``Nothing will limit this team if it gets going like it did in Game 4 tonight,'' he said. ``This team is special.''
Team USA has one more exhibition series (in May against China) remaining before the Olympics. The 15 current team members will be pared to 12 on June 19.
Outside hitter Teee Williams led the Americans with 22 kills and team captain Tammy Liley had 21. Outside hitter Tara Cross-Battle had 15 kills and Endicott continued her defensive dominance with a team-high five blocks.
Weishoff contributed three blocks off the bench and Caren Kemner, next on the seniority list, had a crucial dig in the final game.
``Any coach in America would like to have a bench like ours,'' Liskevych said. ``If there was an all-time team, they would be on it. It's nice to look and know they're coming in.''
And it's nice when a young sub like Scott looks like a star, too.
LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: PAUL L. NEWBY II/Staff. United States players Beverlyby CNBOden (5) and Tara Cross-Battle (13) block a hit by Russian Elena
Batoukhtina (4) during volleyball action Friday night in Roanoke.