Zielinski Named to BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Oct 18 | Women's Volleyball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (October 18, 2010) - Rutgers volleyball sophomore setter Stephanie Zielinski (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll, the conference office announced Monday. This marks the first such honor of Zielinski’s career.
Zielinski becomes the second Scarlet Knight this season to take home BIG EAST Weekly honors joining fellow captain Caitlin Saxton (Encinitas, Calif.).
Zielinski earned the recognition after an outstanding week of play where she helped lead the Scarlet Knights to a pair of victories over in-state rivals.
Last Tuesday against Rider, Zielinski recorded her first double-double of the week, tallying 23 assists and 11 digs in a three set route of the Broncs.
Zielinski followed up her strong performance against Rider with an even stronger performance against in-state and BIG EAST rival Seton Hall. Zielinski tallied her third-career 20-20 match notching 46 assists and a career-high 21 digs in a 3-2 victory. Zielinski was a key to RU’s comeback from two games down against the Pirates, recording timely blocks, digs and kills.
Zielinski also provided two of the highlights late in the deciding fifth set, starting with a kill to push the RU lead to 13-10. Zielinski, who was at 44 assists at the time, saw an opening in the Pirate defense and placed a perfectly timed attack between a pair of diving defenders to get the Scarlet Knights within two points of completing the comeback. Zielinski’s second highlight of the fifth came when SHU got to within one at 14-13. After a long rally, Zielinski set a perfect ball to Emma Chrystal (Portage, Mich.) for the match-clinching kill.
The win marked RU’s first BIG EAST victory of the season and its first victory over Seton Hall since the 2004 season.
Zielinski and the rest of the Scarlet Knights return to action this Friday, Oct. 22, when they battle BIG EAST rival St. John’s in a 7 p.m. matchup in Queens, N.Y.
