ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- The Whitworth College volleyball team went 3-1 at the Washington University Open, taking second place at the tournament to the number one team in the nation. This weekend's action was the first of the season for the Pirates.

Whitworth opened 2005 with a 30-9, 30-25, 30-22 win over Illinois Wesleyan on Friday afternoon. The Pirates hit .330 in the match, including a sizzling .667 (13-1-18) in the first game. Julie Marsh (Sr., OH, Cheney, Wash.) led the Bucs with 19 kills. Holly Coleman (Sr., Lib., Spokane, Wash.) had 21 digs and Rebekah Hornor (Sr., S, Spokane, Wash.) dished 36 assists.

The Pirates could not keep the momentum against Washington University on Friday evening, however. The Bears, ranked #1 in the AVCA/CSTV preseason Division III poll, rolled to a 30-13, 30-24, 30-14 victory over Whitworth. Natalie Danielson (Sr., MB, Kennewick, Wash.) led the Pirates with nine kills, while Hornor added 20 assists. Whitworth only hit .011 for the match, while Washington hit .404.

The Bucs bounced back on Saturday morning to defeat Dominican University (Ill.) 30-16, 30-18, 30-15. Cassie Moore (So., OH/Lib., Spokane, Wash.) came off of the bench to lead Whitworth with nine kills. Holly Coleman dug 15 balls, while Angie Florence (Jr., OH, Yucaipa, Calif.) added 11 digs. Rebekah Hornor set 29 assists and Whitney Murphy (Sr., RS, Spokane, Wash.) added 10 assists.

The Pirates concluded the tournament with a 30-17, 30-20, 30-23 win over Rhodes College. Julie Marsh posted 10 kills to lead Whitworth. Carey Guhlke (Sr., MB, Davenport, Wash.) was tough on defense with three solo blocks and three block assists. Rebekah Hornor finished with 24 assists, 12 digs and five kills without an error.

Julie Marsh and Natalie Danielson were both named to the all-tournament team. Marsh finished the tournament with 37 kills and a .274 hitting percentage. Danielson had 30 kills and nine total blocks.

Final Tournament Standings: (Match Record, Game Record)
1. Washington U. - 4-0, 12-1
2. Whitworth - 3-1, 9-3
3. Illinois Wesleyan - 2-2, 7-8
4. Rhodes - 1-3, 4-9
5. Dominican - 0-4, 1-12

Whitworth will open the home portion of the 2005 schedule this Wednesday (Sept. 7) when the Pirates host Lewis-Clark State College in a non-conference match up at 6:00 pm. The NAIA Warriors are 1-3 so far this season. Whitworth won the only meeting between the squads last year.